- Home
- Analysis & Insights
Published: 21 January, 2026
Even within the UK wine trade, mention that you are off to Japan to learn more about the wines, and the comment comes back, ‘oh, rice wine, you mean sake?’. But with sake now firmly established on fine dining wine lists across Britain, a group of wine producers from Yamanashi Prefecture – the heartland of the indigenous white Koshu grape variety – believe that the time is ideal for a greater push for recognition in the ‘global shop window’ that is the UK. And with the wines ticking many on-trend boxes, being fresh and elegant, with naturally modest alcohol and just a soupçon of the exotic born of Japan origin, their food-friendly nature completes a picture of natural affinity with modern wine mores.
Read more...
|
Published: 19 January, 2026
As last year drew to a close, after a November Budget the WSTA touted as “death by a thousand cuts”, Harpers set out to take the political temperature of the trade with a survey asking readers what they really thought of a number of government policies.
Read more...
Published: 16 January, 2026
If the response to Cointreau’s satirical ad featuring White Lotus star Aubrey Plaza is anything to go by, consumers are tired of the endless treadmill of premium, celebrity-backed tequila. In times like this, when money’s tight and mood is low, consumers aren’t seeking status brands to impress their friends, they want quality drinks that provide an experience – without the reputational hangover tequila just can’t seem to shake.
Read more...
Published: 14 January, 2026
Last January, leading alcohol retailer Majestic reported a 15% rise in fortified wine sales over the previous six weeks. The figure might seem positive for the category, yet sales data from the festive season – when Ports and sherries are traditionally enjoyed at celebratory gatherings – are notoriously misleading. In fact, the category has been experiencing a sustained decline in recent years. Sherry, for example, recorded its third consecutive year of falling sales globally in 2024, at around 24m litres, down from just under 32m litres in 2022 (Consejo Regulador for sherry). And Port has been following a similar trajectory, with 2024 marking its fourth year of global decline, from 124m litres in 2021 to just under 115m litres in 2024 (IVDP).
Read more...
Published: 12 January, 2026
It is perhaps appropriate, considering the historic role that the church played in viticulture, that one of Cornwall’s most iconic merchants occupies a former place of worship. Once a Methodist chapel, it was transformed in the mid-1970s into the premises for Laymont & Shaw, a specialist importer with a passion for all things Iberian. Decades later Hispanophile Jamie Tonkin joined the business before being drawn to the bright lights of London. After a stint in the capital’s wine trade, Tonkin returned to Cornwall and purchased the business in 2009, continuing its evolution as “an old chapel full of wine”. Joined by co-owner Louisa Fitzpatrick in 2020, Old Chapel Cellars is today a leading merchant, community hub and sustainability advocate rolled into one.
Read more...
Published: 07 January, 2026
The December-January period for many in the on-trade often charts a feast followed by famine trajectory. Last year’s data showed a similar pattern. According to the CGA RSM Hospitality Business Tracker – which assesses the performance of Britain’s leading restaurant, pub and bar groups – total sales for December 2024 were up 3.2% year on year. Contrast this to January which, by the same metric, saw a fall in sales of 1.3%.
Read more...
Published: 05 January, 2026
The wine subscription market is experiencing something of a boom at the moment. While established wine clubs have been around for decades, wine sellers seem to have been setting up such subscriptions left and right. Worldwide, at least, this is borne out by the facts – according to a recent report by Future Market Insights, the global wine subscription market is expected to grow by an average of 9.7% annually from 2025-2035.
Read more...
Published: 22 December, 2025
Given that it’s been in use for wine consumption since about 1500BC, glassware has had plenty of time to evolve, and today’s manufacturers have the restaurant world spoilt for choice when it comes to sizes, shapes and colours. But how far are today’s top sommeliers prepared to go outside the traditionally accepted vessels when it comes to providing the best experience for diners in their food-matching choices – and what do diners expect?
Read more...
Published: 19 December, 2025
How do you design the perfect, catch-all wine label for the 21st-century consumer? A young start-up may well crave contemporary shock value, but Château Lafite is unlikely to embrace funky designs and psychedelic script when its brand equity depends on projecting notions of heritage and storied prestige. The visual language of yesterday – cursive fonts, textured paper and stately imagery – still has an important role to play in a world where consumer expectations vary significantly.
Read more...
Published: 17 December, 2025
Quick-response codes (more commonly known as QR codes) have become increasingly widespread in recent years. Even 10 years ago QR codes may have seemed a technological gimmick, with their use on packaging confined to some early adopters and consumer engagement led by novelty. Today, as Cameron Worth, founder and CEO of io.tt, a ‘connected products’ platform puts it, “QR codes are boring”.
Read more...
Published: 15 December, 2025
Trying to extract any optimism from the autumn Budget is potentially a fool’s errand. Alcohol duty will increase in line with RPI – a move many in the sector had pleaded with the government not to make. With RPI currently set at 3.66%, according to the WSTA, this will see duty go up 11p on an average bottle of Prosecco, 13p on a bottle of red wine and 38p on a bottle of gin. This, combined with the cumulative strain of the inflationary pressures of the past five years on consumer buying power, will likely continue to inhibit spend on alcohol.
Read more...
Published: 12 December, 2025
During harvest this year I posted a video on Instagram showing the ‘punching down’ of Pinot Noir grapes; within a few minutes I was asked by two different UK winemakers where the punchdown tool came from and how much it cost.
Read more...
Published: 10 December, 2025
From France to Australia, by way of many territories between, the shrinking global vinescape has become enough of a concern that its impact was reported in The Economist this November. With wine drinking in decline, cash-strapped consumers reining in spend and thus an industry feeling the pain of oversupply, vineyards are being ripped out, with other, more profitable crops often being planted. And a troubling fact – at least where future quality wine production is concerned – is that older vines, by dint of the fact that they are less productive and sometimes harder to work, are often first in the firing line.
Read more...
Published: 08 December, 2025
Packaging waste matters and policy that can reduce it is vital. This would be a view held by most across the drinks trade. Despite this, implementation and policy design matter too. The introduction of extended producer responsibility (EPR) policy for some in the sector has been far from satisfactory. In many ways this comes down to a case of unfortunate timing – the policy’s introduction coinciding with a raft of other cost-increasing measures, namely alcohol duty and NIC hikes. But also, legitimate concerns exist regarding the policy’s minutiae.
Read more...
Published: 05 December, 2025
The shifting landscape of demand in restaurant wines has been well reported upon in recent years. To gauge the lay of the land of the quality on-trade, Hamish Graham surveyed this year’s Harpers Top 50 Sommeliers to chart key themes and trends.
Read more...
Published: 03 December, 2025
Hospitality venues are increasingly turning to wholesale partners investing in the venue’s success. Jaq Bayles looks at the opportunities for indies.
Read more...
Published: 01 December, 2025
Members of the Harpers Sustainability Charter outline current and likely future challenges on the road to a greater green profile. Oliver Catchpole reports.
Read more...
Published: 28 November, 2025
Marcos Carol looks proud as he describes the changes in the village of Tilimuqui, north west Argentina, since his La Riojana wine co-operative became Fairtrade certified in 2006. The Fairtrade premium has helped fund a new running water system, a health centre, a new secondary school and 50 scholarships for the children of growers. It’s just one example of wine industry efforts to address ‘social sustainability’ – its ethical responsibility to the people who work in it and buy its products. And at a moment when concerns around the environmental impact of wine already have a high profile, social sustainability is fast moving up the agenda.
Read more...
Published: 26 November, 2025
Though it produces just 1% of the world’s wine, Austria is punching above its weight when it comes to leadership on the issue of sustainability as the industry grapples with its carbon footprint and existential questions around the future viability of long-established regions.
Read more...
Published: 24 November, 2025
For this month’s Sustainability Report, Harpers decided to ask the signatories of our Harpers Sustainability Charter about their progress in one of the key areas of sustainability – reducing carbon dioxide emissions. While only one pillar of a charter that encompasses incredibly important sustainability issues such as waste management, ecological care, diversity, public health and many others, carbon emissions stand out due to the outsized role they play in warming the planet.
Read more...
