Bancroft Wines: The glass half full

With a raft of new producers folded into its portfolio, Bancroft’s Jon Worsley explains to Andrew Catchpole why he’s cautiously optimistic about the year ahead

New Zealand just shy of organics target, but growth continues

New Zealand has just missed its self-imposed 2020 organics target, though a groundswell of producers switching up their practices means the country could be on track to reach the milestone within the next couple of years.

Tim Atkin MW: China’s risky moves

“Don’t trust them,” says Leon Panetta, a rueful former US defense secretary interviewed in BBC documentary China: A New World Order, “that’s the bottom line.” It’s advice the Australian wine industry and now, apparently, the Wine & Spirit Education Trust (WSET), would have done well to heed.

Chris Maillard takes the helm at Decanter

Decanter has a new editor-in-chief in the form of Chris Maillard, a former Restaurant, BBC Top Gear, and Sky magazine journalist who has taken the magazine’s top editorial job.

2021 Events guide

James Lawrence rounds up the highlights of the coming year’s events calendar

‘Tariff free’ trade continues to muddy the Brexit waters

The scrapping of lab tests for EU wine heading to the UK will save the wine industry tens of millions of pounds a year. However, the new trade deal between the EU and UK has thrown up new questions around how much cross border trade in 2021 is likely to cost, with EU wine travelling via GB to Northern Ireland and other parts of the EU now entering a no man’s land where it temporarily belongs to neither region.

New Horizons Q&A: Charles Pashby-Taylor, Justerini & Brooks

We’re concluding our New Horizons 2021 Q&As by giving the final word to sommelier turned supplier Charles Pashby-Taylor, London on-trade sales at Justerini & Brooks

New Horizons Q&A: Michelle Brampton, Treasury Wine Estates

Harpers 48h blackout: We’re still here

In a very 2020 twist to the New Year, Harpers was welcomed into January with multiple power blackouts which cut all access to our email server.

New Horizons Q&A: Nick Devlin, Naked Wines

With an end game in sight with the vaccine in 2021, we speak to members of the trade about their forecasts and plans for the year ahead.

That’s it for 2020: Merry Christmas and Happy New Year from Harpers

As we teeter on the edge of 2021, a new year and a fresh shot at health and prosperity for the drinks trade, Harpers would like to wish everyone a very Merry Christmas break in whatever form that takes this year.

Jerry Lockspeiser: Britain 2021 – Fear or opportunity?

As we come to the end of this extraordinary year and look towards the future, are we filled with feelings of fear or opportunity, or a strange mix of both?

New Horizons Q&A: Pierre Mansour, The Wine Society

With an end game to the coronavirus in sight sometime in 2021 as vaccine rollouts begin and up-to-the-wire Brexit uncertainties playing out an extraordinarily tough year, Harpers has been canvassing drinks businesses to discover their predictions for the new year.

‘Nouvelle generation’ to drive Beaujolais export potential

With good recent vintages to its name and wines that sit squarely with the modern trend towards fresher, lighter styles, Beaujolais certainly appears to be well placed to capture the attention of a new generation of drinkers. Add in ‘ownership’ of Gamay, a distinctive and easy-to-like variety, and the region also offers a sense of discovery (or re-discovery for older drinkers) in a world awash with international grapes.

WSTA membership climbs as it releases Brexit checklist

A record number of wine and spirit businesses have joined the Wine and Spirit Trade Association (WSTA) this year following a recruitment drive bolstered by concerns over Covid and Brexit.

Cautious optimism returns for hospitality’s businesses prospects

A new survey has revealed a rise in optimism among hospitality operators for the future of their business over the next 12 months, albeit from a very low threshhold – but representing a substantial increase from the third quarter of the year.

New Horizons Q&A: John Colley, Majestic Wine

The year 2020 will surely go down in history as an annus horribilis. With an end game to the coronavirus in sight however – and a vaccine looming on the 2021 horizon – Harpers is choosing to take the optimistic view that things can only get better from here. 

New UK immigration system goes live

The UK’s new points-based post-Brexit immigration system is now operational.

Trade reels from Welsh trading restrictions

The drinks trade has reacted angrily to the Welsh government’s new restrictions on pubs and restaurants, announced yesterday.

Ex-PLB directors launch new business

Two former directors of PLB have teamed up again to launch a new wine export agency.