IXSIR partners with monks for southern Lebanon expansion

Lebanese winery IXSIR has added a new vineyard to its portfolio in the southern Quatine area of the country, planted in partnership with Maronite monks that own the land.

Champagne fails to agree 2020 yield amid “worst crisis since WW2”

The Champenois are in disarray as efforts to reach agreement on the level of yield for the 2020 harvest failed at a recent meeting of the Comité Interprofessionnel du Vin de Champagne (CIVC) in Epernay.

Ramón Bilbao targets organic certification for vineyards

Spanish producer Ramón Bilbao has begun the three-year process of converting its Rioja and Rueda vineyards to organic production methods.

Pernod Ricard issues more upbeat guidance for 2020

Pernod Ricard is predicting a softer impact on its business as a result of the ongoing Covid-19 crisis, according to its latest guidance for its 2020 results.

Three new wines from Offbeat

New Wiltshire-based sustainable winery Offbeat wines has released three wines, following the sell-out success of its first issue.

Premium rosé trend gathers pace

World-wide consumption of rosé has long seen a steady increase, growing 40% between 2002 and 2018, with three countries – France, United States and Germany - accounting for 60% of all volume consumed in 2018. But the category’s value proposition seems to be changing, with consumers increasingly seeking a sense of provenance, expression of terroir and varietal character (all data from Observatoire Mondial du Rosé).

GB sustainability initiative given the “green” light

The environmental sustainability scheme for the UK wine industry is now underway, around a year after plans were first announced in order to put GB winemaking on a par with green rivals in New Zealand and Champagne.

Loire Valley sparklers herald UK uplift

Loire Valley fizz has enjoyed a surge in exports to the UK, with Crémant de Loire having jumped just shy of 50%.

Affordable tiers of English still wines ‘crucial’, says Oz Clarke

Affordable tiers of still whites and red blends will be essential in supporting the rise of English sparkling wines both at home and on export markets.

English Wine Week set to fizz

Picnics, quizzes, virtual tours, tastings and winemaker webinars are among the myriad events set to fly the flag during English Wine Week on 20-28 June.

Hattingley marks anniversary with TV wine first

Hattingley Valley has become the first English wine producer to launch a TV advertising campaign, to kick off just head of English Wine Week (20-28 June).

“Smallest vintage in living memory” delights Oz winemakers, if not accountants

Off the back of a “rollercoaster ride”, variously involving frosts, drought, heatwaves, horrendous bush fires and finally the disruption of Covid-19, Australia’s 2020 vintage is expected to produce some “sensational wines” from a very low yielding crush.

Grupo Rioja calls for more support as ‘Basque Wine’ shored up

Rioja wine producers have lashed out at the ‘insufficient measures’ adopted by the Spanish government yesterday to alleviate the impact of Covid-19 on Spain’s wine sector.

Oregon commits to ‘anti-racism and equity’

As the fallout from the death of African-American George Floyd continues to reverberate around the western world, Oregon Wine Board has responded with a commitment to embed “more fully” an inclusive and racially equal approach across the state’s wine industry.

Southern hemisphere winemakers share lessons from crisis harvesting

Producers from across the southern hemisphere have shared their experiences of what it was like to complete their 2020 harvests while infrastructure closed down around them and the movement of people became restricted.

Torres hits emissions target early

Catalonia-based wine producer Familia Torres has hit its target of reducing carbon emissions by 30%, when measured against levels in 2008, a year early.

New role at Doña Paula for Atkin’s ‘Viticulturalist of the Year’

Doña Paula Estate’s Martín Kaiser has taken on a new role as director of viticulture and winemaking at Doña Paula, building on 14 years as viticulturalist at this Santa Rita Estate’s-owned Argentinian winery.

Louis Latour continues quest for affordable sites outside of Burgundy

Maison Louis Latour has been ramping up its search for the best slopes for its hero Pinot Noir grape outside of Burgundy as a way of offering customers “stable” wine prices.

Nyetimber expands across Kent with 205,000 new vines

Nyetimber has gone ahead with plans to rapidly expand its area under vine, with a major planting of 42ha at a new site in Kent.

Concha y Toro brings harvest forward to tackle one of most challenging harvests yet