Harpers Wine & Spirit Trade News

Five minutes with Rhône champion Matt Walls

Published: 08 April, 2025

Andrew Catchpole catches up with the UK’s leading Rhône expert ahead of his inaugural Rhône Roots Tasting in London.

WoodWinters lands prestigious Tua Rita portfolio

Published: 07 April, 2025

Woodwinters Wines and Whiskies has been granted exclusive UK distribution of the wines of Tua Rita estate.

South America Report: Daniel Pisano, Pisano Family Vineyards

Published: 27 March, 2025

Geoffrey Dean visits Daniel Pisano, export manager at Pisano Family Vineyards in Uruguay’s Canelones region, where brothers Gustavo and Eduardo are winemaker and viticulturist, respectively.

ProWein 2025 organisers bullish despite fall in visitors

Published: 19 March, 2025

Approximately 42,000 professionals from 128 countries travelled to Düsseldorf for the 2025 edition of ProWein, including influential buyers from the US, Japan, South Korea and China. Yet its closet rival, Wine Paris, welcomed 52,622 visitors this year, while its floorspace had ballooned by 80% compared to 2024 – a growing bête noire for organisers Messe Düsseldorf GmbH .

South Africa celebrates vintage of 'exceptional freshness' as harvest gets underway

Published: 19 March, 2025

In stark contrast to the drought-ravaged vintages of previous years, South African producers are optimistic that 2025 will deliver wines of “exceptional fruit expression and freshness”, with winemakers and viticulturists reporting “outstanding quality across the board”.

Buyer’s Spotlight: The Battles to Come

Published: 18 February, 2025

Jason Millar on why the trade needs to get behind the WSTA-led wine duty campaign.

Wine Paris delivers on international flavour at record event

Published: 14 February, 2025

Wine Paris has confirmed what the busy aisles suggested, namely that this year’s event (10-12 February) had record-breaking attendance of global drinks trade, propelling it to current pole position in the battle of the big wine and spirits shows.

Wines from Spain Annual Tasting breaks new ground in London and Manchester

Published: 27 January, 2025

Leading Spanish importers are gearing up to descend on the Science Museum’s new Illuminate venue in London as well heading to Manchester for the first time this April, where 20 wineries seeking distribution will present their new offerings for the UK market.

Bar Rioja-owner opens two new London venues

Published: 22 January, 2025

Camino, the Spanish tapas bar and restaurant whose portfolio includes Bar Rioja, a bar dedicated solely to wines from the region, is opening two new venues in Farringdon and Kings Cross.

Waitrose appoints new wine trading manager

Published: 07 October, 2024

Nicola Jones will join Waitrose as its new wine trading manager on 13 October, bringing 13 years of experience from within the company.

Five minutes with Thibault Lavergne, Wine Story

Published: 05 March, 2024

Andrew Catchpole caught up with Thibault Lavergne of Wine Story at Vin, London’s leading French tasting, to find out what makes this specialist importer tick

50 Best Indies 2024: The full rundown

Published: 15 January, 2024

Meet our 50 Best Indies 2024, celebrating the most dynamic and quality focused merchants in this ever-vibrant sector

50 Best Indies 2024 ranking: 20-11 revealed

Published: 11 January, 2024

This week we continue the rollout of our 50 Best Indies 2024 results, celebrating the top merchants from across this dynamic and ever-engaging sector

Harpers Design Awards 2023: The results

Published: 08 December, 2023

Good and great design can only enhance the liquid in the bottle, while communicating much to the consumer. Andrew Catchpole reports back from Harpers Design Awards 2023.

Five minutes with Charlie Stein, Rick Stein Group

Published: 05 December, 2023

As he rolls out a new series of wine dinners with group head chef and brother Jack across their restaurants, Charlie Stein, director, Rick Stein Group, talks Andrew Catchpole through his approach to wine and food pairing.

Harpers Design Awards 2023 open for entries

Published: 30 May, 2023

Submissions are now being invited for the 2023 edition of Harpers Design Awards, which is the leading competition of its kind in the UK market.

Boutinot Wines: Our friends in the north

Published: 14 March, 2023

The straight-talking northern distributor is a company with many hidden talents, writes Jo Gilbert.

55 minutes with Rathfinny Estate’s winemaking team

Published: 06 March, 2023

A double dose of decision-making is this month’s focus as Andrew Catchpole join’s Rathfinny for 2019 Blanc de Blancs and Blanc de Noir dosage trials

Argentina’s ‘white revolution’ moves to newer sites

Published: 24 February, 2023

The slow but steady creep of Argentina’s white wines into new territories has entered a new chapter at Susana Balbo Wines, where the winemaking team has been experimenting with what it believes could be the Uco Valley’s first white-only appellation.