Chris Porter on how together the Benevolent and drinks industry are changing people's lives

What a year it is turning out to be for The Benevolent. Many of you will have read about the changes that we are making to our core strategy, moving away from a "bricks and mortar" approach. Instead we are concentrating on delivering help where it is most needed, in the homes of employees from our industry who are now unable to work due to an unexpected deterioration in their personal circumstances or the onset of serious illness. The Benevolent's support means that they can remain in their own homes, within their communities, close to their friends, families and loved ones.

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Q&A: Graham Shore, Domaine Vintur, Provence

Bought in 2010 by former investment banker and Oxford graduate Graham Shore, Domaine Vintur is situated on the lower slopes on Mount Ventoux and is run by Shore who has just completed his diploma in wine production from Plumpton College.

Independents head to London for SITT Autumn

Independents from across the on and off-trades will be heading to London today for the Specialist Importer Trade Tasting (SITT) where they will have the chance to meet close to 60 exhibitors at the Royal Horticulture Halls between 10:30 am and 6 pm.

Laura Vickers on what wine brands can learn from success of revamped Black Tower

The iconic black bottle of Black Towerhad its peak back in the 1980s, reaching sales of 18 million bottles a year, but their sales nosedived in the 1990s as New World wines grew in popularity and filled their place in the market. Since then, the company has been striving to recover its previous levels of success.

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Days of cheap Kiwi wine are over, says New Zealand wine chief

The New Zealand wine industry has gladly gone back to the days when demand far outstripped supply and it could concentrate on producing quality, premium wine, and get away from the cheap wine market, according to Philip Gregan, chief executive of New Zealand Winegrowers.

Noble Rot looks to continue publishing with crowd-sourcing investment scheme

Noble Rot, the off-beat consumer wine magazine that can boast members of the Beastie Boys and Coldplay as contributors, is looking for investors willing to help it raise money to continue publishing through the web-based crowd-sourcing platform Kickstarter.

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Diageo investors in protest vote over "excessive" executive pay outs

Shareholders and investors in the drinks giant, Diageo, are to vote later this week on what they claim is an "excessive" level of payout for former chief executive, Paul Walsh.

Moët-Hennessy to launch home grown sparkling wine to Indian wine market

Moët-Hennessy is to try and introduce home grown sparkling wine to the Indian wine market next month with a range of new Non Vintage sparkling wines produced in the Nashik region.

Q&A: Mark Bedingham, managing director, Moët-Hennessy Asia Pacific

Savour 2013 confirms new link up between Australian wine and Tourism Australia

Savour 2013, Wine Australia's largest event international event, kicked off last night in Adelaide with the official announcement of a new advertising campaign partnership with Tourism Australia.

UK's best Spanish wine players celebrated in Harpers' Spanish Wine Awards

Waitrose, The Wine Society, Cambridge Wine Merchants, Camino Group and Matthew Clark were some of the stand out winners in Harpers inaugural Spanish Wine Awards to celebrate the best operators in the Spanish wine category in the UK.

Mike Paul: was The Beautiful South the way forward for generic wine tastings?

I have always been a firm supporter of generic marketing. I've chaired importer committees and worked on developing regional strategies. I know how difficult it is to secure an appropriate level of agreement, across the producer and distributor base, to plans with real cut through, and I know how powerful a well coordinated generic effort can be. I also appreciate that coming up with innovative plans is particularly difficult currently when budgets are severely constrained. Given all this and given that generic marketers have no direct control over the producers and wines they represent, I tend to believe that they have one of the most difficult roles in our industry. All this  makes me loth to criticise any generic activity.

John Nevens on how the rise in English wine is a lesson for all drinks companies

John Nevens, director of category management specialists, looks at how changing demographic trends and social habits are impacting on the kind of food and drink we buy, and how the rise in interest and popularity of English wine is something that is relevant to all drinks suppliers.

Carol Emmas reports back from Liverpool's Whisky Lounge Fest 2013

Robinsons to spend £7m upgrading its north west pub estate over the next two years

Robinsons, the regional brewing business in Cheshire, is to invest £7 million on pub refurbishments during 2013 and 2014 as it looks to revamp and upgrade its offer across its 340 pub estate.

Las Bodegas looks to grow its specialist Argentinian wine business with bigger team

Specialist Argentinian wine agency, Las Bodegas, is looking to expand its sales team so that it can better service its growing number of independent wine merchant and on-trade customers.

Dany and Michel Rolland on the look out for investments in Napa Valley

Investing in California's Napa Valley is next on the list for Bordeaux oenologists and consultants Dany and Michel Rolland, owners of the Rolland Collection.