Harpers Wine & Spirit Trade News

Tim Atkin MW: What Rowan Gormley could learn from Tony Laithwaite

Published: 09 April, 2019

Wine critic, broadcaster, co-chair of the IWC

Californian wine under £20 boosts UK sales

Published: 09 April, 2019

US wine exports to the UK have seen a slip in value but a rise in volume, thanks largely to a growth in buyer interest in a previously difficult-to-source section of the market.

Buckingham Schenk goes veggie for portfolio update

Published: 28 March, 2019

Buckingham Schenk has bumped up its number of vegetarian-friendly wines, which now account for 70% of its wine list.

Shift from shop to showroom is vital for the future of retail, says Majestic CEO

Published: 27 March, 2019

The chief executive of the newly rebranded Naked Wines has defended the decision to trim down its 200-store estate while shifting investment focus to the online side of the business.

Sainsbury’s Asda merger “unlikely” to impact consumer choice as supermarkets offer to unload 150 stores

Published: 25 March, 2019

The tie-up between Britain’s second and third largest supermarkets will have no detrimental impact on the diverse and “quick to adapt” supermarket sector, it has been suggested.

China and the US drive boom in global premium wine consumption

Published: 13 March, 2019

Wine priced between $10 and $20 will be the biggest driver of value growth for still and sparkling wine over the next couple of years.

Bibendum counteracts the “vanilla” effect of the Conviviality machine

Published: 13 March, 2019

Bibendum PLB is back on top form after veering away from Conviviality’s “one-size fits all approach”, according to one of its top bosses.

Jeroboams and Rick Stein raise £5,000 toast to The Benevolent

Published: 12 March, 2019

Jeroboams, Château d’Yquem and Rick Stein have raised an impressive charitable sum thanks to an experimental evening pairing fine wines of Bordeaux with the "best of British” seafood.

Amathus strengthens Priorat and Montsant

Published: 06 March, 2019

Amathus Drinks has expanded its Spanish portfolio with the addition of two new Catalonian producers: Celler l’Encastell from Priorat and Celler Masroig from Montsant.

Tim Atkin MW: Celebrating Creole

Published: 01 March, 2019

Compiling a list of the 10 best red and white grapes is an entertaining parlour game for consenting wine lovers. Should Chardonnay trump Riesling and Chenin Blanc? And what about Cabernet Sauvignon? Better or worse than Pinot Noir, Grenache or Nebbiolo? I’ve played this dozens of times around the world and the results differ more than you’d think. Yet some varieties never make the podium. There are more than 5,000 to choose from, but no one ever finds room for Aligoté, Dornfelder or Seyval Blanc.

Single site Sicilian range Mandrarossa makes it to Liberty Wines

Published: 21 February, 2019

Liberty Wines is swelling the ranks of its Sicilian portfolio with new producer, Mandrarossa.

Q&A: Dean Harper, owner of HarperWells shares his Norwich knowledge

Published: 12 February, 2019

James Lawrence talks Brexit, MUP, millennials and alternative formats with indie Dean Harper of HarperWells

Tim Atkin MW: Closing off the cork-vs-cap conundrum

Published: 31 January, 2019

TIM ATKIN MW

Scandinavian style: Climate change pushes wine to the fringes

Published: 30 January, 2019

For much of the winemaking world, it’s an inconvenient truth that climate change is changing how easily and successfully wine can be made.

Malux to launch Vida at Hungarian tasting

Published: 25 January, 2019

Hungarian food-and-wine wine specialists Malux are gearing up to launch four wines from Szekszard estate Vida at their upcoming trade tasting – including a Kadarka from rare 100-year-old vines.

Liberty pushes into new frontiers ahead of Brexit

Published: 16 January, 2019

An English winemaker, a French winemaker and an Italian winemaker walk into a winebar.

Liberty takes on Piper-Heidsieck

Published: 14 January, 2019

Liberty Wines is bolstering its Champagne portfolio by taking on distribution for Piper-Heidsieck.

Halewood Wines & Spirits not dialling down wine despite ramping up spirits

Published: 10 January, 2019

Liverpool-based wine and spirit producer Halewood Wines & Spirits has denied it is slowing down its wine business after several moves this year to boost its international spirits profile and selling off its “loss making” Romanian wine arm.

Spotlight on 2020: Doug Wregg, Les Cave de Pyrene

Published: 07 January, 2019

As we prepare for the new decade, Harpers looks back over 2019 and ahead to what the coming year will bring – hopefully full of revived optimism for both politics and the trade.