Tim Atkin MW: Can we really believe it when a wine is awarded 100 points?

What's the definition of a 100-point wine? Depending on who's handing out the numbers, a cynic might say it's something you can't afford and don't want to drink anyway, but the question deserves a more considered answer. Scores are an increasingly big deal in the wine world, relied upon by merchants, auction houses and investors as a short hand for buying and selling wine. They are even used by real consumers from time to time.

Q&A: ?Nick Tatham MW wine development manager for Continental Wine and Food

Q&A: Agustin Trapero, head sommelier at Michelin-starred Launceston Place

Q&A: Bruce Perry, sales director, Eaux de Vie

Q&A: Scotland's Inverarity Morton talks Scottish business, new wine range and independence

Having sold its Scotch whisky business Loch Lomond Distillery Company earlier this week to private equity, the Bulloch family has retained its controlling interest in Scotland's biggest independent wine merchant - Inverarity Morton. At the company's first major trade tasting since buying Forth Wines in October, managing director Stephen Russell and commercial director Ian Cumming spoke exclusively to harpers.co.uk.

Matthew Dickinson: Who really benefits from wine fairs?

Having attended my fair share of wine fairs (geddit?) over the years, both as buyer, producer, agent and now general dogsbody (sorry, highly regarded entrepreneur), I find myself getting cynical - a dangerous place to be during your mid-life crisis.

Tim Wildman MW on the vision behind his Vineyard Safaris tourism concept Down Under

There's no hill at the Hill of Grace vineyard. This often surprises people when they visit Henschke's famous site but the name comes from a translation of the 19th century Lutheran church Gnadenberg which is adjacent to the beautiful, but relatively flat, vineyard I'm currently standing in. Its 5pm and still 35 degrees and the photographer is telling me to smile and say something funny. We're shooting for the website of my new business Vineyard Safaris and I'm wondering, as I struggle to be amusing for the hundredth time that day, how the hell did I end up here?

Jo Wehring, UK market manager for Wines of South Africa, talks Fairtrade

Jo Wehring, Wines of South Africa's UK market manager, believes Fairtrade wines should offer more premium choices and be more widely available.  

Hugh Jones: should we be using the public more when tasting and assessing wines?

The other evening I was on the phone to my friend who manages a wine shop in Mayfair, and found myself making a hasty request: "Please could you get me some white Burgundy? Let's say three bottles for about £300?" Shortly afterwards I checked my bank balance and phoned back to cancel the order. Is white Burgundy really that much better than Chardonnay made anywhere else on the planet? And is it really worth the money; would anybody even notice the difference if they tried a £10 Chardonnay next to a £30 Meursault? I adjusted my shopping list accordingly and called back a third time...

Bernard Fontannaz, founder of Origin Wine, on why Fairtrade is important for business as a whole

When asked what Fairtrade means for me, I cannot think of a better explanation than the inspirational quote of our late leader Nelson Mandela: "What counts in life is not the mere fact that we have lived. It is what difference we have made to the life of others that will determine the significance of the life we lead."

Douglas Blyde hears history, gains insight and tastes wines at Fells first summit

Combine one part history lesson with another part insight into the runnings of five family businesses, with a final part of tutored wine tastings, and the first Fells wine forum would result.

Jonathan Cahill: successful drinks marketing is about understanding consumers' perceptions

As with any product or brand, the wine consumers' choice is based on their perception of it and not on reality. Often the gulf between the two is large. The fact that this is not widely recognised, despite all the evidence which underwrites it, can only be a handicap in the marketing of wine.

Q&A with Craig Duggan of Signature Wines on the potential of Macedonian wines in the UK

Craig Duggan, business development manager for Signature Wines, talks to Douglas Blyde about reviving Macedonia's ancient wine tradition with Stobi Wines.

Caroline Gilby goes on a Voyage tasting around central and Eastern Europe

The Voyage was certainly an appropriate name for this fascinating tasting at Vinoteca in Soho. It brought together the portfolios of Theatre of Wine and Eclectic Wines, along with Croatian specialists Vino Nostro and Hungarian wines from The Winemakers' Club. 

Jerry Lockspeiser: when it comes to liking wine preconceptions are everything

Many years ago I was trying to sell Argentinean wine to the Co-op. We had a delicious, modern style Torrontes that had been custom made for the UK market but I just could not persuade the buyer, of its merits. He tasted it several times always with the same result: he said he didn't like Torrontes. 

Thibaud André on the emerging culture of drinking wine in China

China has never been a country with a true culture of wine. Even today, Chinese consumers do not have a deep knowledge and wine does not benefit from the same status it enjoys in Western countries. However, according to a recent survey from Vinexpo, China, in 2013 became the first market in the world for consuming red wine. Of course, China's huge population helps when it comes to comparing a total amount with say France or Italy. Chinese consumption is still far lower on a per capita basis. But still, this change of lead is a strong sign and highlights China as a fast growing market.

James Lawrence becomes a winemaker for a day at London Cru

James Lawrence heads to West Brompton, the latest source of quality Barbera, Chardonnay, Shiraz and Cabernet Sauvignon, to participate in London Cru's winemaker for a day event.

Q&A with John Valentine, founder of Winetrust100, the online wine retailer

Set up in March 2013, Winetrust100 gathers experts to seek out the world's top 100 wines based on the price quality ratio. Founder John Valentine tells Dominic Weaver how it works.

Independent's profile: South Down Cellars

Many customers still request cigarettes and canned lager on a daily basis at the South Downs Cellars wine shop in Lindfield, West Sussex, despite the fact it stopped selling them after it switched from being a Thresher off licence nearly three years ago.

Q&A with Ricardo Baettig, chief winemaker at Chile's Viña Morandé

Ricardo Baettig, chief winemaker at Viña Morandé in Chile, talks about the 2014 harvest, experimental techniques and new grape varieties coming to the fore, and how people perceive Chilean wine.