LWF 2016: Updated Live Blog

Published: 03 May, 2016

As the annual London Wine Fair returns to London's Olympia, Harpers.co.uk catches up with leading figures in the industry for a quick snapshot of the UK wine and spirit trade.

Stay tuned as we keep you posted throughout the day on our live blog, as well as following us on Twitter on @HarpersWine using the #LWF2016 hashtag.

As the annual London Wine Fair kicks off at London's Olympia, Harpers.co.uk catches up with leading figures in the industry for a quick snapshot of the UK wine and spirit trade.

Stay tuned as we keep you posted throughout the day on our live blog, as well as following us on Twitter on @HarpersWine using the #LWF2016 hashtag.

1.30 pm Bibendum PLB adds Chinese wine range to its portfolio.

Bibendum PLB unveiled the latest addition to its portfolio at the London Wine Fair - a Chinese wine created by Austrian winemaker Lenz Moser.

The wine, which has five bottles in the range, is from the Chateau Changyu Moser XV in Ningxia.

The Moser XV Cabernet Sauvignon 2015 will be the first of several Chinese wines the distributor plans to add to its list this year.

"Bibendum PLB taking on China, Ningxia and Chateau Changyu Moser XV in particular is a game changer for China as an emerging wine country. The Moser XV Cabernet Sauvignon 2015 will offer something new to English wine lovers," said Lenz Moser, who has been a consultant for the winery for the past 11 years.

For the full story click here.

10.30 am Joseph Walsh, commercial director UK & Ireland, Distell

Joseph Walsh, commercial director UK & Ireland, at South African wine congolomerate Distell, said he is looking to grow the company's presence in the UK to "at least to the double digits."

He said: "We have never really played in the UK like we should have for a company our size. We currently have only about 4% share of the South African category is not acceptable on my watch. We should be in double digit at least, given the resources we have, the capabilities we have and the portfolio that we can offer."
In order to do that he is looking at expanding the sales team and the company now offers more logisitc options, outside of jsut the FOB model, to make the premium wines they offer more accsible to UK customers.

For the full story click here.

Day Three

5.00 pm Austrian winemaker Lenz Moser unveils a new range of Chinese wines via Bibendum PLB

Bibendum PLB unveiled the latest addition to its portfolio today - a Chinese wine from Chateau Changyu Moser XV in Ningxia.

Lenz Moser, who has been a consultant for the winery for the past 11 years, said it was time to throw himself in the deep end and create his own range.

He said: "Consulting doesn't work in China. Wine making is intuitive. I had to get really immerse myself in the project, so I spent three months in Ningxia creating the wines.

"Ningxia has ideal conditions for winemaking. It doesn't rain during the harvest and it has good soil, plus the government is really pro-Ningxia wines."

The range will be launched in June.

1.30 pm Stefano Zanette, the president of the Consorzio Tutela Prosecco DOC

The president of the president of the Consorzio Tutela Prosecco DOC wanted to put Prosecco drinkers at ease and said that following a bigger crop iin 2015, there would be no Prosecco shortage.

"The shortage is a false problem. There was a problem in 2014 that was caused by poor weather that resulted in production being down and we could not meet the demand. There was a lot of rain and it was cool. But in 2015 there were 50% more grapes than 2014, with 4.5 million quintals of suitable grapes being harvested," said Stefano Zanette, the president of the Consorzio Tutela Prosecco DOC.

Despite volume going up, many expect that prices for Prosecco will rise.

According to Robin Copestick, managing director of Copestick Murray, who saw price increases on average of about 20% last year, said: "Demand is up globally, not just in the UK. There is a lot of demand in the US as well. There is no shortage now, but there could be possible price increases in the years to come. There seems to be a feeling that if prices remained the same, that there could be a shortage in the future."

For the full story click here.

11.00 am Anthony Galvin, director and owner of Altion Law Limited, speaks at the AWRS Industry Briefing

Anthony Galvin, director and owner of Altion Law Limited, warned that the government means business with the new Alcohol Wholesaler Registration Scheme (AWRS), which affects all UK wholesalers selling alcohol.

He said: "If you're refused from the scheme, you have to stop trading in duty paid immediately. We know that this has happened already. The penalties for failing to do this seem heavy handed by unfortunately it's now the law."

Galvin's advice is to be prepared.

"The reports from these visits [of HMRC] is that this is a detailed meeting," he said. "Make sure your procedures and policies are in place. Also risk assessments and due diligence must be on point. Wholesalers really need to look at whether their business is fit and proper."

For the full story, click here.

9.00 am Rodrigo Plass, commercial director Europe, Latin America, MIddle East & Africa, Errazuriz

Rodrigo Plass, commercial director Europe, Latin America, Middle East & Africa, for Errazuriz winery in Chile is pleased with how well Chile is doing in the UK, but the market is still a challenging one. He said at the first day of the London Wine Fair: "This year we are expecting only single digit growth in the UK which is still going to be challenge. But it is also one of the largest markets for us. Last year was good, but in January the exchange rate for pounds when much lower than we had forecasted. Additionally duty went up, which just squeezes our margins even further. We never make adjustments to price so it means we just need to tighten our belts. The market is always a challenge because of the price sensitivity."

He thinks the style evolution that is currently happening with Chilean wines, with producers focusing on lighter styes of wines that are more fruit forward is helping to drive growth.

"Chile is definitely on a a premiumisation trend at the moment. We specifically are focusing on cool climate wines. We just released our cool climate Pinot Noir and Chardonnay and there was real buzz about the wines when they were released and we have already sold out," said Plass.

DAY TWO

5.00 pm Robin Copestick, mananging director, Copestick Murray, to check and see if there may

Today Spanish news outlets reported that Freixnet had given its approval for German wine company Henkell, which has proposed an offer to buy out the family owned Cava producer, to audits its financial books. No information about where the offer stands has been confirmed as a confidentiality agreement is in place.

However, Robin Copestick, of Copestick Murray, which is owned by Henkell & Co said: "An offer has been made and now it is up to the shareholders. It would be an exciting opportunity for Henkell and for Copestick Murray. Henkell can expand through acquisition and Freixnet would be natural partner."

3.00 pm Diana Hunter, CEO Conviviality Retail and Michael Saunders, CEO of Bibendum PLB

Following the announcement of Conviviality Retail acquiring Bibendum PLB Harpers.co.uk got an inside look at how the deal came about.

"I was very, very interested in Bibendum and always have been ever since I came into my role. I have always admired Bibendum and what Michael has done with the business. Bibendum PLB I think is fabulous. There was never any doubt in my mind that I would target Bibendum as potential acquisition," said Hunter.

Although the Saunders had not been actively looking for a buyer, after being approached by Hunter in January the deal made sense strategically. Saunders said: "We have had a number of people talk to us over the years being a private business. There were four things that I wanted to feel comfortable in my own mind. Firstly it had to be right for my shareholders."

For the full story on what Saunders was looking for and what the deal means to Conviviality please click here.

1.00 pm, Andrew Catchpole and his panellists at Selling Wine's Craft Credentials round off a fascinating debate around wine's "cool" credentials

Most panellists agreed that being able to tell a story is key to building a connection with customers - and that to date, winemakers had missed out on opportunities to get their messages across.

Andrew Shaw, of Bibendum-PLB, said: "One recent survey asked people if wine could be cool. Most people said 'no'. One person said 'it doesn't belong under the arches in Hackney', which says a lot. Gin has a story and personality, whereas wine relies too heavily on what's on the label."

For the full story, click here.

12.00 pm, Esoterica area is buzzing

As London Wine Fair opened its doors a favourite area for smaller importers called Esoterica has returned. Many of those participating appreciate that they are able to exhibit at the fair, but on a scale that is affordable.

Red Squirrel's Nik Darlington said: "It's a game changer for small companies; really it's a little fair within a fair.

To read the full story on what Esoterica does for Darlington and other exhibitors at the London Wine Fair, please click here.

11.00 am William Broadfoot, London Wine Fair's marketing manager and Ross Carter, London Wine Fair's event director

Harpers.co.uk caught up with the London Wine Fair's event director, Ross Carter and Will Broadfoot, LWF's marketing manager to find out what they are most excited about as the doors to this year's event opened.

"The launch went very smoothly and the the fair went up all in a single day. The space is almost identical with a total number of exhibitors of 627 at this year's fair. But its the integration of LWF with the Bottlebooks software that is really exciting this year. We have had 4,700 individual sessions booked before the fair even started," said Ross Carter, London Wine Fair's event director.

Will Broadfoot, LWF's marketing director, said: "We have never attempted anything like this before. Pre-registering people for different content sessions has been great. With the first-come first-serve that we have done in the past, Bottlebooks avoids people being disappointed when they try to attend a specific session. It also has allowed us to target sessions for attendees and allows them to a reserve a place without any hassle."

10.30 am Neil Anderson, Kingsland Drinks

Kingsland is at this year's London Wine Fair, for the first as a fully integrated business following the acquisition of Bottle Green last year. It is also launching Mr Gladstone's Curious Emporium, a range of fruit fusion wine-based drinks.

"We talked to consumers and while the trade can be a bit stuffy about fruit fusion drinks, consumers really like them," says Anderson.

"We have been talking to retailers and our bottling partners and there is a lot of interest, it's always good to innovate and bring new products to market and this is one area which looks set to really grow and engage with consumers."

For the full story on the integration of Kingsland and Bottle Green and the launch of the wine-based fusion drinks please click here.