Harpers Wine & Spirit Trade News

French Independent Winegrowers fair comes to London

Published: 12 December, 2013

The French Independent Winegrowers fair will be returning to the Royal Horticultural Halls in London for a fifth year on February 6^th, 2014.

?WSTA to get consumers behind its 'Be Fair George' campaign

Published: 12 December, 2013

The Wine & Spirit Trade Association is to next week launch a high level national media and consumer campaign to persuade the government to scrap the final year of the duty escalator on wines and spirits in the next Budget.

Third bi-annual Sparkling wine symposium wraps up

Published: 11 December, 2013

The third bi-annual International Sparkling Wine Symposium (ISWS), which was held last week on December 3^rd and 4^th, had 150 attendees from 15 different countries at the Denbies Wine Estates in Surrey.

UK on-trade: ?Italy, Spain and Chile surge ahead

Published: 11 December, 2013

Which wine countries are leading the way in the UK on-trade? This year sees a bit of a flight to value with Spain, Italy, and Chile being the biggest winners, according to the latest research from Wine Business Solutions as part of its UK On Premise report for 2013.

Scotch Whisky Association sets up £500,000 to help alcohol-related harm

Published: 10 December, 2013

The Scotch Whisky Association has launched a £500,000 action fund to tackle alcohol-related harm.

Alcohol consumption in Scotland falls by nearly 10%

Published: 10 December, 2013

Alcohol consumption in Scotland has fallen by 8% since 2009 with 18 to 24 year-olds young people increasingly looking to drink less, according to a new report.

Accolade Wines takes on John Ratcliffe as its new chief executive

Published: 10 December, 2013

Accolade Wines has appointed former Seagrams and Oddbins chief, John Ratcliffe, as its new chief executive.

Global bulk wine prices for December released by Murphy Wine Company

Published: 10 December, 2013

Here is your one stop guide to the latest global bulk wine prices produced by bulk wine broker, Murphy Wine Company.

Wine Vision chairman, Paul Henry, gives his personal view of global wine challenges

Published: 10 December, 2013

I like words, but I think that numbers do a better job at setting and managing expectation. So when an event entitled, 'Wine Vision', appears, and there is an opportunity to be involved, I guess you have to think pretty carefully about the risk and reward quotient - clearly, at some point, there should be a requirement to be 'visionary'.

Croatian wines start to make serious inroads in to the UK

Published: 09 December, 2013

High-end and with bags of niche appeal, Croatia is turning heads among sommeliers and independents. Andrew Catchpole reports on the opportunities for Croatian wine in the UK.

Jonathan Simms to be brand ambassador for Pernod Ricard UK Champagnes

Published: 09 December, 2013

Pernod Ricard UK has appointed Jonathan Simms as its new ambassador for its Champagnes brands.

The Symingtons purchase highly coveted Quinta da Sarbordela

Published: 09 December, 2013

Symington Family Estates has bought the much coveted 30 hectare Quinta da Sabordela vineyard in the Douro valley which will now be incorporated in to the neighbouring Quinta do

Casa Silva becomes the the eighth winner of the Chilean Winery of the Year

Published: 09 December, 2013

Chilean wine producer, Casa Silva, is the eighth winner of the annual Winery of the Year competition held by the Association of Chilean Wine and Wines of Chile.

Cambridge Wine Merchants named as Sud de France Retailer of the Year

Published: 09 December, 2013

Cambridge Wine Merchants has been named the Sud de France Retailer of the Year in a competition run by the region's generic body, in association with Harpers.

Wine Vision Day 3: Our round up the main social media activity around the event

Published: 06 December, 2013

Such was the social media activity around last month's Wine Vision global conference held in London it was trending on Twitter by day three of the event. Here is our round up of the main social media activity taking place during the final day of talks, debates and panel sessions.

Customs sets up wholesaler registration scheme in a bid to fight alcohol fraud

Published: 06 December, 2013

News that the government is to insist the drinks sector introduces a new registration scheme for wholesalers in a bid to curb alcohol fraud has been welcomed by trade leaders.

Duty raised from wine predicted to grow 54% by 2019

Published: 06 December, 2013

Economic forecasts have been released this week that predict the total amount of money raised by duty on wine will increase by 54% over the next six years if the duty escalator remains in place.

Trinity Hill moves distribution to Liberty Wines

Published: 06 December, 2013

New Zealand winery, Trinity Hill, is moving its distribution in the UK from Enotria to Liberty Wines from January 1, 2014.

Origin Wine targets Europe with new Nordic office in Sweden

Published: 05 December, 2013

South African producer, Origin Wine, has opened a new office in Sweden this week as part of its strategy to drive distribution of its wines in key markets around the world.

Make social media a priority for your business urges Warwick Estate's Mike Ratcliffe

Published: 05 December, 2013

Without the budgets to talk directly to a highly fragmented consumer base in diverse markets around the world, social media offers wine producers an unrivalled way of tapping into potential customers, according to South African producer, Mike Ratcliffe.