Mitchells & Butlers buys Orchid venues for £266m

Mitchells & Butlers has boosted its 1,600 strong estate with the addition of 173 of Orchid Group's venues after completing a deal worth £266 million.

Kathrine Larsen wins UK Sommelier of the Year 2014

Kathrine Larsen MS has become the Academy of Food & Wine Service's Moët UK Sommelier of the Year 2014 following an intense final at London's Mandarin Oriental Hotel last week.

Majestic Wine profits flat in 'difficult year' as investment planned

Majestic Wine has reported a small dip in like-for-like sales, down 0.1%, but fine wine sales have rocketed by a fifth while Provence rosé is up 84%.

Franciacorta producers look to include old Italian indigenous variety to production process

Producers of Franciacorta, the premium Italian sparkling wine, may soon have to make it with an old indigenous grape variety if changes to the production process are approved. 

Your chance to win the World Cup with Harpers!

Love it or hate you won't be able to escape the World Cup taking part in Brazil over the next month. So why not keep up your interest over the coming weeks by taking part in the Harpers World Cup Predictathon?

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

In case you missed some of the headlines this week (and a bit of last week due to the long weekend) on harpers.co.uk, we have done a review of the top online news, Q&As, and opinion stories.

Digital innovation achieves record breaking $18.7 million at Auction Napa Valley

The Napa Valley Vintners (NVV) non-profit trade association kicked off its 34th annual Auction Napa Valley on the 6th of June, but for the first time permitted bidding for the Barrel Auction via a mobile app.

Bodegas Campillo moves from Cellar Trends to Inverarity Morton

Spain's Bodegas Campillo has switched its UK distribution from Cellar Trends to Inverarity Morton to push sales in premium on-trade venues.

Laroche winemaker Grégory Viennois on a new dawn for Chablis, the difficult 2013 vintage and price changes

Grégory Viennois, the outspoken winemaker and technical director at Domaine Laroche (owned by the Advini group), was in London to present the 2012 vintage of his Chablis premiers and grands crus and hold a master class on the different crus on the right and left bank of the Serein river. Anne Krebiehl caught up with him afterwards: he sees the dawn of a new era for Chablis, reflects on the difficult 2013 vintage and price developments.

Bordeaux producers philosophical following 'catastrophic' hail storm

Bordeaux's wine producers remain philosophical in the face of destructive hail storms, despite some having up to 85% of grapes destroyed.

Bordeaux's wine cultural centre will drive wine tourism internationally

US craft brewers unite for travelling beer festival

US craft brewer Sierra Nevada is teaming up with 700 brewers to host a series of beer festivals and collaborate on limited edition beers at a roadshow travelling from its California base to its new facility in North Carolina throughout July and August.

Wine still one of the most heavily promoted grocery categories

Almost six out of every 10 bottles of wine are sold on promotion in the UK, according to figures from Nielsen for the past year. 

International Wine Challenge prepares to showcase top wines at Taste of Gold event

Wine lovers, be they trade or consumer, can sample the International Wine Challenge's gold-medal winning wines and mingle with expert judges at next week's A Taste of Gold event in London.

Grab a G&T: sixth annual World Gin Day to celebrated around the world

Gin producers the world over will be raising their favourite gin drinks this Saturday June 14 for the sixth annual World Gin Day.

UK number one export market for Brazilian wines

The UK is now the number one market for Brazilian wines, accounting for one fifth of its exports, with value sales rocketing 224% by value in the past four months compared to the whole of 2013.

New Zealand's 2014 grape harvest up 29% on last year

Official figures for New Zealand's 2014 grape harvest show it has increased by almost one third on last year.

WSTA gears up for aggressive campaign against duty hikes in 2015

The WSTA is considering calling for a 2% cut in duty on wine and spirits as part of its campaign in the lead up to next year's Budget.

Troubled Remy Cointreau names replacement chief executive

Rémy Cointreau which has seen profits and sales rapidly decline over the first half of the year, has named Valérie Chapoulaud-Floquet as the new chief executive slated to take contirl of the struggling spirits brands in mid-September.

Golfer Colin Montgomerie launches special Ryder Cup Johnnie Walker Blue Label whisky

Golfing legend Colin Montgomerie has joined forces with Johnnie Walker Blue Label to celebrate the return of The Ryder Cup to Scotland after a 41-year absence with a limited edition whisky.