Sir Alex Ferguson has mixed success in Christie's fine wine auction

Sir Alex Ferguson bought well when he was at Manchester United and enjoyed some exceptional years in charge. But now after retiring from the club he is enjoying off-loading some of his myriad responsibilities.

Champagne industry must face up to negative impact of global warming

One of the biggest challenges facing the Champagne industry is how to manage the negative effects of global warming, according to Krug's senior viticulturist, Romain Le Guillou.

Rioja needs own wine trade tasting week to compete at top end

Rioja needs to introduce its own trade tasting week, if it is to compete at the top end with Bordeaux or Burgundy, says a senior UK buyer.

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Nicolas Feuillatte joins in the Gumball Rally's celebrations in London

London's Regent Street is set to be closed on Sunday, June 8 to make way for 120 Super Cars competing in the Gumball 3000 rally which sees motoring enthusiasts cross 3,000 miles across the United States and Europe between June 5-11. Nicolas Feuillatte is not only the official Champagne for the race, but has two branded cars competing in the rally.

The week that was: top news, Q&As and opinion on Harpers.co.uk

In case you missed some of the headlines this week (and a bit of last week due to the long weekend) on harpers.co.uk, we have done a review of the top online news, Q&As, and opinion stories.

Mateus to launch lighter style wine range in UK through Stevens Garnier

Mateus, the iconic Portuguese wine brand, is introducing a new lighter style wine range as part of a £2 million investment in the overall brand in the UK.

High profile restaurateur Xavier Rousset defends Coravin after bottles explode

New SmartCork offers hi-tech closure for natural cork fans

SmartCork is billing itself as a "game-changer" in the wine closures market as it claims to combine the advantages of natural cork with a hi-tech membrane which prevents spoiling.

Laithwaite's pioneers online recommendations with Amazon-style service

Laithwaite's is offering customers Amazon-style tasting recommendations based on an algorithm that creates a taste fingerprint for each wine on its website.

Kingsland shakes up business model with wider branded offer

Kingsland is shaking up its business with plans to launch fruit-flavoured wines, make brands more accessible to younger customers and offer deeper consumer insights.

Portugal's wine industry struggling for survival, says Paul Symington

Portugal's wine industry is being decimated by high costs of production and regulation and "something's gotta give", says leading Douro producer Paul Symington.

Personalisation is key to engaging with consumers online

A reoccurring theme at London Wine Fair 2014 has been the growing importance of creating personalised content online to engage with consumers.

Top beer sommelier says craft beer revolution becoming more mainstream

Craft beer is being taken more seriously in the UK - evidenced by its growing prominence in circles formerly restricted solely to wine, says one of the country's top beer sommeliers.

Broadland Wineries enjoys strong growth

Broadland Wineries has grown sales by 28% in the past year, with profits up 50% before tax, according to its managing director.

Entry level Spanish producers 'sweating bullets' as prices fall

Spanish producers at the bottom end of the market are "sweating bullets" as they still have wine in their cellars and the next harvest is looming, according to one prominent Master of Wine.

Idea of buying Bordeaux en primeur now is 'null and void', says Farr Vintners

Wine investors who bought one case of each of Bordeaux's first growth chateaux for the five years from 2009 would have lost £35,000 if they sold last Friday, said the Wall Street Journal's Will Lyons.

Britain's shoppers now too savvy to buy solely on promotion, says Nielsen

Britain's grocery shoppers are no longer tempted to buy just because something's on promotion, according to data from analysts Nielsen.

WSTA's Miles Beale wins Harpers Special Achievement award for Call Time on Duty campaign

Miles Beale, chief executive of the Wine & Spirits Trade Association, has been awarded with a Special Achievement award at tonight's Harpers Awards for the leadership he showed in driving the Call Time on Duty campaign which resulted in the duty escalator on wine and spirits being scrapped in the 2014 Budget.

London Wine Fair: Live News Blog