Harpers Wine & Spirit Trade News

Sparkling wine sales jump 24% at Jascots

Published: 12 January, 2017

Specialist wine supplier to the on-trade, Jascots, has reported record sales in 2016 with soparklign wine sales jumping by almost a quarter.

Borsa Vini Italiani returns to London in 2017

Published: 12 January, 2017

Owners and winemakers from 70 Italian wineries will descend on Italian tasting Borsa Vini Italiani when it returns to London next week.

Burgundy en primeur: Spotlight on whites

Published: 11 January, 2017

While there has been a consensus that Burgundy's 2015 reds have much to offer buyers in this year's en primeur market, there is less agreement about the quality of the region's whites.

Bordeaux: Not so sweet for sweet wine

Published: 10 January, 2017

No one doubts that the future for historic winery Chateau d'Yquem and for sweet Bordeaux's renowned 11 premier cru producers - and even the second crus in Sauternes and Barsac - looks good.

Majestic Retail has "biggest ever Christmas" during bumper trading period

Published: 10 January, 2017

Sales of sparkling and gin helped to put a skip back into Majestic's step over the Christmas period with total group sales up 15.3% compared to the previous year.

Champagne leaves Prosecco in the dust as the New Year wine of choice

Published: 05 January, 2017

The unfailing success of Prosecco encountered a roadblock on New Years Eve as UK consumers ditched Italian fizz in favour of Champagne.

Cocktail group reports record festive trading

Published: 05 January, 2017

Early reports show that the hospitality industry received a welcome boost over the Christmas period thanks in part to December 23, 24 and 25 falling over the weekend.

English fizz beats Champagne to become official Boat Race partner

Published: 03 January, 2017

Leading English winery Chapel Down has become an official partner of the annual Oxford and Cambridge Boat Race, replacing Champagne Bollinger.

A taste for fizz

Published: 19 December, 2016

Champagne and Britain are inextricably linked. As the region's longest-standing, largest export market, hovering steadily around the 33 million bottle mark every year, it is surprising that the sound of popping corks does not drown out all other noise.

Prosecco bursts Champagne's bubble with faster sales growth across Europe

Published: 14 December, 2016

Sales of Prosecco in the UK continue to rise faster than Champagne despite the Champagne sector's attempts to compete by dropping prices.

Growers Champagne offering an alternative to Prosecco this Christmas, says Virgin Wines

Published: 13 December, 2016

Grower Champagnes having been sparking consumer interest at Virgin Wines, where wine buyers are expecting sales to flourish this Christmas.

Bolney Wine Estate on opening the door to 2017

Published: 13 December, 2016

When Bolney Wine Estate was started in 1972 by owners Janet and Rodney Pratt, it was one of only six commercial vineyards in the country.

Top of the pops: Fizz leads the top trends for Christmas and beyond

Published: 06 December, 2016

The enduring success of sparkling ignited by consumers' unquenchable thirst for Prosecco over the past decade is already reaching into 2017 and is pushing new boundaries.

New sparkling brand offering "Prosecco" in a can prepares to launch in the UK

Published: 02 December, 2016

A new lifestyle-led sparkling wine brand is aiming to match the prospects in the female drinkers/millennials market with the Italian wine and the RTD categories in the hopes of cracking the UK market.

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

Published: 02 December, 2016

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

Festive fizz

Published: 29 November, 2016

Champagne may be facing a bumpy time in the UK but, as Christmas approaches, all signs are that sparkling wines without the famous French appellation attached to their label are in rude health and many retailers are pinning their hopes on bumper fizz sales this festive season.

Usain Bolt becomes "CEO" of top Champagne house

Published: 29 November, 2016

Usain Bolt has swapped winning for wines in a new partnership with one of France's largest Champagne producers.

World's oldest Port house launches into second major high street retailer

Published: 25 November, 2016

Historic Port brand, Kopke, is currently launching its Reserve Tawny Port into Waitrose - the second time the brand has been listed in a major national retailer in the UK, following the launch of its 1996 Colheita (an aged Tawny Port made with grapes from a single vintage) in M&S in September.