UK wine buyers to look more closely at alcohol levels, says Portman chief

UK wine buyers will start factoring alcohol content into their buying decisions on the back of a new Responsibility Deal pledge around lower alcohol house wines, says Portman Group chief Henry Ashworth. 

Just what is Boris Becker thinking? Send us your photo captions...

With another Wimbledon title to his name (admittedly in his role as a coach to Novak Djokovic) you would think Boris Becker would be nothing but smiles at the moment. The Claret Pimpernel, however, caught him in a more thoughtful mood at a recent Franciacorta special event at the Italian ambassador's residence in London.

UK wine market expected to grow in value by 6% by 2018

The UK wine market is expected to grow in value by 6.1% to £13.14 billion by 2018, with volume growth forecast to pick up again in 2017.

?Roussillon's Maison Cazes buys vineyard in Maury

Maison Cazes, the Rivesaltes-based producer, has expanded its Roussillon holdings by buying a new vineyard in Maury.

Screw cap grows in popularity in UK and Australia, but Americans lag behind

Americans are still wary of screw cap closures for wine, while their British and Australian counterparts are much more accepting.

South Africa's record bulk wine growth slows

South Africa's record growth in bulk exports of wine to the UK has slowed, with figures from VinPro showing no increase on last year.

Tesco tries out wine tastings for customers at home

Government praises drinks industry's on Responsibility Deal as new pledges announced

The drinks industry has been roundly praised by the Home Office and Department of Health for the "real progress" it has made in tackling alcohol misuse via the Responsibility Deal.

Jason Wilson: whatever happened to Viognier becoming the next big thing?

Whatever happened to Viognier becoming "the next Chardonnay"?

Wine flexitank capable of carrying two different liquids launched

If 24,000 litres of wine is too much to ship at once, bulk buyers can now take advantage of a dual compartment flexitank which can transport two different wines within one container.

New Zealand scholarship up for grabs for UK wine professionals

UK wine professionals with a hankering for the New Zealand way of life could see their dreams come true by winning a scholarship to Marlborough.

Adrian Atkinson leaves his role as Pernod Ricard's wine development manager

Adrian Atkinson has left Pernod Ricard this week as part of a mini restructure of its commercial and marketing teams.

Wine merchants celebrate national Independents' Day with sales boosts of up to 30%

Independent wine merchants are going from strength to strength in the UK, with a straw poll showing sales up by between 20% and 30%.

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

In case you missed some of the headlines this week on harpers.co.uk, we have done a review of the top online news, Q&As, and opinion stories.

Leading independents hit out at major wine suppliers for their "lazy" service

Leading independent wine merchants have stepped up to the plate today to strongly criticise the quality of service that they are receiving from many of the major UK national wine suppliers and distributors.

Harpers Design Awards relaunches as global competition

The Harpers Design Awards are being relaunched for 2014 as a global competition, inviting entries for wines, spirits, beers, ciders and soft drinks from anywhere in the world - providing they are already on sale in the market.

France Summit to focus on how the country is adapting to UK consumer needs

Harpers will once again be turning the spotlight well and truly on the ins and outs, ups and downs of the French wine category as the French Summit returns for its second year on October 21 at London's St Ermin's Hotel.

Guy Woodward lambasts old school wine world for being stuck in its ivory tower

Former Decanter editor, Guy Woodward, uses his first regular Harpers column today to lambast the old school wine world for being out of touch with how consumers now want to talk about wine.

How retailers are using consumers to drive their brand image and strategy

The new, all-singing, all-dancing London Wine Fair was an apt setting for Harpers debate on how companies can harness consumer power to drive their businesses forward.

Independent wine merchants report sales hikes of up to 30%

Independent wine merchants are going from strength to strength in the UK, with a straw poll showing sales up by between 20 and 30%.