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Budget: Chancellor announces freeze on all alcohol duty

Published:  11 March, 2020

Duty on wines, spirits and beers is to be frozen, new Chancellor Rishi Sunak announced in today’s budget, allaying trade fears of another rise in line with inflation.

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Threat of ‘WineExit’

Published:  11 March, 2020

EU producers should lobby in tandem with UK importers for the best mutual outcome, stresses Harpers’ Brexit panel at Wine Paris

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Brexit red tape to hit premium trade

Published:  09 March, 2020

Government’s post-Brexit default adoption of EU regulations will pile further costs on indies, specialist importers and on-trade. Andrew Catchpole unravels the flaws in its proposed trading position

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Staffing crisis: Low skilled judgement

Published:  02 March, 2020

The government’s damaging immigration policy will further exacerbate the staffing crisis in an already beleagured on-trade. Chris Losh takes aim...  

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Friday Read: Hospitality is in for a rough ride

Published:  21 February, 2020

Wine duty hikes, currency devaluation, Brexit uncertainty – the Conservative government has been no friend of the wine trade. When the previous budget was unveiled in 2019, wine was the only drinks category to be hit with a duty rise. It was another ill-timed kick in the teeth for the trade, at a time when businesses were already coping with escalating overheads and staff shortages.

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Soapbox: Nik Darlington on Brexit hubris

Published:  19 February, 2020

Our second entry in a series of topical viewpoints from the trade finds Graft Wines co-owner Nik Darlington cautioning British producers against talking up the alleged benefits of exiting the EU

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EU producers must support UK to deliver best Brexit outcome

Published:  14 February, 2020

European wine producers should join their UK counterparts in lobbying their own MPs and the EU to deliver the most favourable post-Brexit trading environment.

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WSTA calls on members to ‘embrace a brave new world of trading’ as the UK Brexit

Published:  31 January, 2020

The WSTA has called on its members to “embrace a brave new world of trading” and “focus on opportunities” as Britain leaves the EU.

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Brockmans appoints former Jägermeister executive as MD

Published:  19 December, 2019

English gin producer Brockmans has appointed former Mast-Jägermeister and Russian Standard Vodka executive Guy Lawrence to the newly created role of MD as part of its ambitious plans to double sale in five years.

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Spotlight on 2020: Hugh Sturges, Jeroboams

Published:  19 December, 2019

As we prepare for the new decade, Harpers will be taking the month of December to look back over 2019 and ahead to what the coming year will bring – hopefully full of revived optimism for both politics and the trade.

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An ever lengthening festive period bodes well for on-trade

Published:  17 December, 2019

A bumper Christmas could be on the on-trade horizon driven by the festive period now extending across three weeks compared to the ‘historic’ two, according to CGA.

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Spotlight on 2020: Alex Hunt MW, Berkmann Wine Cellars

Published:  16 December, 2019

As we enter a new decade, Harpers look back over 2019 and ahead to what the coming year will bring – hopefully full of revived optimism for both politics and the trade.

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Spotlight on 2020: Simon Doyle, Concha y Toro UK

Published:  16 December, 2019

As we prepare for the new decade, Harpers will be taking the month of December to look back over 2019 and ahead to what the coming year will bring – hopefully full of revived optimism for both politics and the trade.

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Spotlight on 2020: Andy Talbot, Off-Piste Wines

Published:  16 December, 2019

As we prepare for the new decade, Harpers looks back over 2019 and ahead to what the coming year will bring – hopefully full of revived optimism for both politics and the trade.

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Spotlight on 2020: Mark Roberts, Lanchester Wines

Published:  16 December, 2019

As we prepare for the new decade, Harpers will be taking the month of December to look back over 2019 and ahead to what the coming year will bring – hopefully full of revived optimism for both politics and the trade.

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On-trade optimism flies in face of uncertainties

Published:  16 December, 2019

Optimism among leaders in the on-trade has risen to its highest point for 18 months despite political and economic uncertainty. But senior executives remain wary of squeezed spending and rising costs, according to the latest Business Confidence Survey from CGA and Fourth.

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Food and drink industry gives cautious welcome to Tory victory

Published:  13 December, 2019

The food and drink industry has given a cautious welcome to the Conservative party’s general election win last night, which saw the Tories claim 364 seats, securing a majority parliament compared to rival Labour’s 203.  

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Mixing politics and wine

Published:  22 November, 2019

What attracted me to wine journalism nine years ago was that the stories were about the wine and the people, not cocaine-fuelled celebrity mishaps or sexual exploits involving a reverse osmosis machine. The beauty of wine was that, by and large, there was no 'news.'

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Jerry Lockspeiser: How should the wine trade vote on 12 December?

Published:  22 November, 2019

Running west along London’s Southbank on the section after the London Eye, with the Houses of Parliament to the right across the River Thames and just before Lambeth bridge, I came across a red van selling hot drinks. The side of the van was emblazoned with the words SINGLE ORIGIN HOT CHOCOLATE.

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At the 11th hour, how will a no-deal Brexit affect the wine trade?

Published:  16 October, 2019

As the UK fruit and vegetable harvest gets into full swing in the looming shadow of Brexit, headlines such as The Guardian’s ‘Tonnes of crops left to rot as farms struggle to recruit EU workers’ are becoming commonplace.

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