Champagne and Sparkling - Harpers Wine & Spirit Trade News

Berkmann expands premium portfolio with EPC Champagne

Published: 13 March, 2024

Berkmann Wine Cellars has reached an agreement with EPC Champagne to distribute the brand in the UK market.

Mentzendorff adds two new shareholder producers under new MD

Published: 04 March, 2024

Mentzendorff has swelled the ranks of its shareholder brands since new MD Justin Liddle took the top job in November, with two new additions which include the Fladgate Partnership’s first foray into light wine.

Bibendum & Campari shake on Champagne partnership

Published: 23 February, 2024

Bibendum and Campari have teamed up to give a fresh boost to Champagne Lallier, with the Campari-owned house now joining the on-trade distribution’s portfolio of premium brands.

White hot: Demand for fizz pushes white production to its highest ever level

Published: 14 February, 2024

Global red wine supply and demand have significantly decreased in the last twenty years, while white wine has picked up the slack (along with rosé), largely due to the boom in sparkling wine in markets like the UK.

Gusbourne reports double digit growth for 2023

Published: 31 January, 2024

Gusbourne has revealed the results of what turned out to be a major year of change and upheaval for the estate, with sales growth both in the UK and abroad in the double digits.

Gusbourne reshuffle continues with new head winemaker

Published: 29 January, 2024

Gusbourne has announced it has a new face leading its winemaking team, with Mary Bridges now officially taking on the mantle of head winemaker following the departure of CEO Charlie Holland.

Yann Munier joins Maison Mumm as cellar master

Published: 26 January, 2024

Maison Mumm, the Champagne house owned by Pernod Ricard, has announced the appointment of Yann Munier as its new cellar master, effective from 8 April 2024.

Hambledon announces new MD

Published: 24 January, 2024

Hambledon Vineyard has announced it has a new MD as it prepares to embark on a future under joint Symington Family Estates and Berry Bros. & Rudd ownership.

All change for Gusbourne as it announces CEO

Published: 17 January, 2024

Leading sparkling and fine wine producer Gusbourne has today announced it has a new CEO, with former marketing director Jonathan White stepping up following a ‘rigorous internal and external search process’.

2023 Champagne shipments down 8.2%, 'as expected'

Published: 15 January, 2024

Le Comité Interprofessionnel du vin de Champagne (CIVC), the organisation grouping the actors of Champagne production and trade, has revealed that total Champagne shipments in 2023 were down 8.2% to 299m bottles.

Cava sales boosted by domestic market

Published: 20 December, 2023

The Cava Designation of Origin (Cava DO) has announced that total Cava sales have risen by 2.35% from January to September 2023, with a notable increase of 7.65% in the domestic market.

Segmentation aims to lift critically low grape prices for Cava

Published: 04 December, 2023

The Cava DO is pinning its hopes on the evolution of aged styles in international markets as a way of lifting the average price of its grapes, which now sits at around 30 cents per kilo – over twenty times less than the price of Champagne (€7 a kilo).

Interview: Carine Bailleul, Champagne Castelnau

Published: 30 November, 2023

In partnership with Champagne Castelnau.

Nyetimber secures 2024 Olympic Games sponsorship

Published: 27 November, 2023

English sparkling wine producer Nyetimber will be the Official Sparkling Wine of Team GB for the Paris 2024 Olympic Games.

Headline Heroes: A question of time for Champagne

Published: 22 November, 2023

David Kermode quizzes the experts about why lees ageing is so important when it comes to the finest Champagnes.

Plumpton College Queen’s Anniversary Prize

Published: 17 November, 2023

Plumpton College has been awarded the highest National Honour in education, a Queen’s Anniversary Prize for its work in wine education and wider impact on the English and Welsh wine sector.

Analysis: Champagne Supernova

Published: 13 November, 2023

Champagne’s star has certainly risen of late – in fact, the sector has broken its own record. James Bayley has the figures behind the phenomenal growth.

Champagne Day 2023: Recovery for the world’s top sparkler

Published: 31 October, 2023

Champagne appears to be holding onto its status as everyone’s favourite premium sparkling wine, new figures reveal, as the category continues an export drive dating back more than 20 years.

Champagne Billecart-Salmon partners with Jérôme Bretaudeau

Published: 24 October, 2023

Family-owned Champagne House Billecart-Salmon has partnered with Jérôme Bretaudeau, a renowned winemaker in the western part of the Loire Region.

Balfour Winery named among England’s top visitor attractions

Published: 16 October, 2023

Balfour Winery has been recognised as one of the country’s top visitor attractions as the only vineyard to receive a Gold medal accreditation by VisitEngland – the official tourist board for England.