Pubs offer pints for £1 and wine for £5 a bottle

Pub chains are responding to the recession by offering massive discounts on new year drinks prices, including beer for 99p a pint, bottles of wine for £4.99 and main meals for £1 a dish.

SPI Group and William Grant sign Stolichnaya deal

Drinks company SPI Group, owner of the Stolichnaya vodka brand, has entered into an agreement with William Grant & Sons for the distribution of Stolichnaya in the United States.

Public tired of celebrities

You can't open a magazine or newspaper at the minute without a picture of some celebrity popping up in an exotic location supping on an expensive cocktail or knocking back the Champagne.

Bacardi opens retail store, launches reserve rum

Bacardi has opened its first retail store.

Stoli lined up for bidding war

Stolichnaya - the Russian vodka brand - could be subject to a bidding war resulting in a possible billion-dollar deal.
The news comes hot on the heels of Pernod Ricard's takeover of Swedish maker Absolut.

Jack Daniel's ramps up production

The Sunday Express

JAMIE GOODE comes up with drinks for Caribbean food. They are Havana Club 7 Aos rum (15.99; Oddbins), 2004 La Chasse du Pape Chardonnay/ Viognier (4.99; Sainsbury's, Waitrose, Co-Op, Asda), Sailor Jerry Spiced Caribbean Rum (12.99; Waitrose), 2004 El Prado Tempranillo Ros (3.99; Tesco) and Duval beer from Belgium (1.48; Tesco).

Back in the mix

Gin is currently one of the most active and interesting of all the spirit categories. Worldwide it sells over 50 million cases - right up in the international spirits market, making it a major force. But if we listen to the pundits, we could easily be convinced that gin's days are numbered, with all the signs indicating declining sales worldwide. There is no disputing that, in the past five years, the category has experienced a 6% fall in terms of volume; at the same time, the great gin renaissance shows no signs of slowing down. How can both these contradictory trends be true?

William Grant & Sons takes full control of First Drinks Brands

Bacardi Martini Ltd has sold its 50% share in distribution company First Drinks Brands to independent distiller William Grant & Sons.

Three Barrels goes First

First Drinks Brands is bringing the number one off-trade brandy brand, Three Barrels, into its portfolio following the acquisition of Raynal & Cie by William Grant & Sons.

The best-selling take home drinks, according to AC Nielsen

The leading alcoholic drinks brands may have retained their positions in the market but this AC Nielsen results show that the UK take-home drinks trade is currently going through some subtle, but surprising changes.

Mason flavour

Chris Mason has been a man of the drinks world for more than 30 years. When he eventually decides to quit the booze-selling game, he will be drawing pensions from Pernod Ricard, Allied Domecq and Bacardi. Had it been the type of company that thought about pensions', he could have added Seagram to the list. As he says, It's only Diageo that's missing for a full set.'
As so often in the drinks trade, it very nearly didn't work out that way. Had it not been for the antisocial hours, Mason could well be appearing in the pages of Property Week or The Builder, rather than Harpers. It was rugby that saved him from the social-pariah status of his first proper job as an estate agent. I played a lot in those days,' Mason says, and, though I wasn't afraid of working long hours, I didn't want to work on Saturday afternoons. But you can't be an estate agent without working on Saturday afternoons.'

Out with the old

It has been quite a year for Scotch whisky. The category has been bogged down with issues such as tax stamps and legal definitions - both drawing attention away from the more important aspect of what's in the bottle, not on it. But a quick look around the category highlights many examples of creative thinking, and new takes on a classic product.

First Drink's 18-million Christmas investment

First Drinks is targeting the Christmas period with a total marketing investment of 18 million', supporting both its brands and the retailers.

William Grant acquires Three Barrels brandy

William Grant & Sons has snapped up the French brandy company Raynal & Cie, thus adding the Three Barrels and Raynal brands to its portfolio.

Sales of single malts soar

The amount of malt whisky drunk in the UK in 2004 is 10% up on 2003 levels - and the consumer is trading up, too.

Showcase Showdown

2005 is already a landmark year for the International Wine and Spirit Competition (IWSC). In March, the company opened its new, customised premises in Dunsfold Park, Surrey, with a 25,000-bottle capacity and room for expansion.

IWSC trophy winners announced at Vinexpo

The International Wine and Spirit Competition used the opening day of Vinexpo earlier this week to announce the first round of Trophy Winners in this year's competition.

Benevolent launches buddy scheme and outlines funding fears

The Wine and Spirits Trades' Benevolent Society is likely to be badly hit by the takeover of Southcorp by the Foster's Group and the possible takeover and carving-up of Allied Domecq by Pernod Ricard, the Fortune Group and Diageo.

Appointments - Pernod Ricard adds two new faces at the top

Pernod Ricard has appointed two new senior figures to its UK business.