In response to Jackson Wine Estates International's recent appointment of J E Fells & Sons as its UK agent, James Tookey, formerly in charge of European sales, has been appointed UK Sales Manager, and will manage the relationship with Fells.
By Nicolas Belfrage MW & Franco Ziliani
Readers of these pages will recall how a few months ago we reported that the EU Commission had ruled that no member nation could use the name Tokay', or soundalikes, for wine except the Hungarians, giving several years' notice before putting the ruling into effect.
Laurent-Perrier has appointed Steve Brandwood to the newly created position of UK sales director, responsible for sales of Laurent-Perrier, Marqus de Riscal, Trinity Hill and Thorn-Clark to all UK trade sectors.
A lorry containing duo-packs of Laurent-Perrier Brut NV Champagne was stolen on 2 January from a haulier in east London.
Argentine wine producer and exporter Familia Zuccardi has been awarded the Best Winery Award in the annual Agricultural Excellence Awards given by the national newspapers La Nacion and Galicia Bank.
Harvey Nichols' first store outside London was opened in the historic Victoria Quarter of Leeds in 1996. The store has five floors with a stylish 85-cover caf and bar on the fourth floor. Three days a week, Thursday, Friday and Saturday, it is open for dinner until 10pm. Close to the dining area is the wine shop run by Michael Dilworth. He and head chef Richard Walton-Allen work closely together on the restaurant's wine list, which is taken from the group's master list and compiled by Harvey Nick's overall head wine buyer, Rob Graves. Richard, a 36-year-old Yorkshireman, was part of the opening brigade at Sir Terence Conran's huge 300-cover Quaglino's restaurant in London's St James's. He also worked at the esoteric Swedish restaurant Anna's Place in north London and in Melbourne, Australia. He has been head chef at Harvey Nichols in Leeds for eight years.
Major drinks suppliers: Playford Ros, Bibendum, Percy Fox, Enotria, Cellar Trends, Coe Vintners
Author and wine writer Hugh Johnson has been awarded an OBE in the Queen's New Year's Honours List.
Dominique Hriard-Dubreuil, the chairman of Rmy Cointreau, has sought to reduce speculation that the French spirits and Champagne company might be sold.
WHERE: Lord's Cricket Ground, St John's Wood, London NW1
WHEN: Monday, 15 January 2007 from 11am-5pm and Tuesday, 16 January 2007 from 10am-5pm
CONTACT: Alison Power at New Zealand Winegrowers on 020 7973 8079
In the UK wine market, where suppliers have been lashed by flat sales - and some countries have started to sink, New Zealand continues to ride a wave of success. But sea changes are already underway for 2007, as the States look set to overtake the UK as New Zealand's primary export destination - despite the Kiwis sending more wine to Britain than ever before.
Grapes grown at altitude taste different. As you go higher, temperatures drop and the fruit is exposed to more ultraviolet (UV) light. Higher UV leads to higher levels of anthocyanins (and therefore darker-coloured wines) as well as enhanced production of protective compounds - most notably the phytoalexin resveratrol.
Read more...Peter Nixson joined BOAC as cabin crew in 1973 after being thrown out of university for failing his first year exams. In 1986, Business Traveller magazine did a survey of the wine served on board airlines, and BA came 16th out of 16. The CEO wanted to see an improvement, so a secondment was created for someone to join the catering team. Peter joined the team in 1986, became BA's wine and beverage development manager in 1990, and has been there ever since.
Read more...Distribution for Australian producer McGuigan Simeon Wines has moved to WaverleyTBS, ending a 14-year partnership with Vinoceros.
Constellation Brands, which claims to be the world's largest producer of branded wines, has blamed poor performance in the UK for its disappointing third-quarter financial results.
Police in the Chinese capital, Beijing, put a stop to a winemaker's planned mass nude run' on Christmas Eve.
By EUNICE MURRISON
Wine retailers across the UK enjoyed a healthy Christmas trading period. Berry Bros & Rudd (BBR) and Lay & Wheeler both saw double-digit year-on-year growth, while Majestic's like-for-like sales rose by 4.4%.
UK wine drinkers will spend more on still and sparkling wine than any other European country by 2010, according to new research from Vinexpo.
Black Bottle was repackaged earlier in 2006, and now has a new website to complete its revamp: www.blackbottle.com.
The Women of Wine (WoW) Christmas party was held at the Met Hennessy HQ in London's Mayfair last month.
The newly formed northern branch of Buddies of the Benevolent (BOB) is celebrating Burns Night on 25 January from 7.30pm in Freemasons Hall, central Manchester.
