Chapel Down turns to crowdfunding to drive English wine growth plans

Leading English winery, Chapel Down,  is continuing to drive its growth by looking for private investors to support it through a crowdfunding scheme.

France study tour: Les Grands Chais de France

French wine is the lifeblood of a good independent business. But as the five top merchants who joined Harpers on a recent tour with Les Grands Chais de France discovered, there is still much to learn, even for the most experienced retailer. Richard Siddle reports

UK's top French wine experts lined up for October's France Summit

A line up of top speakers from across the UK wine trade, including Master Sommeliers, multiple buyers, restaurateurs and leading independents will all be taking part in the second Harpers France Summit taking place on October 21 at London's St Ermin's Hotel.

Vinexpo strengthens management team ahead of 2015 Bordeaux show

Vinexpo has strengthened its management team ahead of next year's exhibition in Bordeaux with two new directors joining the team.

Grande Dame of wine trade Baroness Philippine de Rothschild dies

Leading light of the global wine trade Baroness Philippine de Rothschild, head of the Rothschild family dynasty, has died aged 80.

Lebanon and Brazil to offer specialist masterclasses at Emerging Regions Tasting

Visitors to next month's Emerging Regions Tasting will get the chance to take part in two specialist masterclasses and discover more about Lebanese and Brazilian wines.

Bulgaria's Yakata group strives to change the country's wine image

Bulgaria is looking to promote itself as a very different kind of wine-producing country than it was 30 years ago and it seems to be attracting the right level of investment and interest to potentially change its image in the UK wine trade.

Wine not expected to be affected by Russian sanctions

The rising political tensions between the EU and Russia and the subsequent sanctions against the country may not have an impact on EU wine imports.

Independents to compete in the Sud de France Retailer of the Year merchants programme

Your chance to vote in Harpers France Wine Awards and take part in France Summit

Harpers is once again looking to reward the very best retailers, restaurants, distributors and individuals that are leading the way in selling and promoting French wine in the UK in our second Harpers France Awards.

Prosecco producer Bisol reveals plans to launch new Venetian wine

Bisol, the leading Italian Prosecoo producer, is to release a Venissa red in 2014, accroding to Matteo Bisol, the director of the family's Venissa tourism project on the Venetian island of Mazzorbo.

Katie Jones recovers from last year's destroyed vintage to release new 2013 wine

Katie Jones, the English winemaker based in the Languedoc in France, who saw last year's vintage destroyed by vandals, has successfully released her new 2013 wine which is now available in the UK.

Wines From Spain Awards 2014 winners announced

Wines From Spain Awards 2014 announced the 102 winners of its annual competition where over 700 Spanish wines were tasted by the judging panel headed up by Tim Atkin MW.

Five wines awarded Champion status at the IWC 2014 awards

France, Germany, Australia, and Portugal shared the honours last night as the overall Champion Wines were announced at the 31st annual International Wine Challenge awards ceremony in London. 

French dominate Winemakers of the Year at the IWC 2014

France dominated the overall winemaker awards at last night's International Wine Challenge dinner picking up three of the main five prizes handed out.

Frédérique Dutheillet de Lamothe on why Cru Bourgeois is a wine brand in its own right

The French Appellation Contrôlée system is famously based on guaranteeing the geographical origin of a wine, rather than focusing on the quality of what is actually in the bottle - something that causes a headache for those who are trying to sell French wine and the consumers who wonder what the difference is between a bottle of Bordeaux at £4 and one at £24.

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.

Christian Seely shows the quality of the Douro with a vertical tasting of Quinta do Noval

Christian Seely's contention that the Quinta do Noval vineyards are producing outstanding dry red table wines was vindicated at a mid-summer vertical tasting in London. The flamboyant, bow-tie- wearing managing director of the leading port house has always believed that unfortified wines from the Douro had the potential to express Noval's terroir. A look at the estate's three dry reds - Quinta do Noval Douro DOC,  Cedro do Noval and Quinta do Noval Touriga Nacional - between the period 2004-11 supported that view.

Alain Ducasse sommelier wins first Wines of Portugal Wine Quest competition

Dorian Guillon, assistant head sommelier at Alain Ducasse at The Dorchester, has won the inaugural Wines of Portugal Wine Quest 2014 competition set up to help spread the word about Portuguese wine amongst UK's leading sommeliers.