Beer lobby steps up campaign to see beer duty rates frozen in 2014 Budget

The UK pub and brewing sector has stepped up its efforts to see another freeze in beer duty rates in the 2014 Budget just days after the wine and spirits sector has called for the same treatment by the Chancellor.

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PLB takes on Bosman Family Vineyards to help drive its fine wine business

UK drinks importer PLB, has become distributor of South African premium Fairtrade producer Bosman Family Vineyards, as it continues to drive to reposition itself in the fine wine arena.

D&D London to list Baron Phillipe de Rothschild wines in new partnership

Restaurant group, D&D London, is to list a number of wines from the Baron Phillippe de Rothschild stable as part of a new partnership with its UK distributor,  Waddesdon Wine.

Liberty Wines reports record sales as consumer confidence and spending grows

Liberty Wines, the national wine distributor, has reported record sales and is taking on more staff to cope with demand.

Concha y Toro looks to new recruits to help drive its growth strategy

Concha y Toro UK is going on a recruitment drive to bring key new people in to the company following a strategic review of the business.

Drinkers urged to write to their MP to get the Chancellor to Call Time on Duty

As part of the Wine & Spirit Trade Association's Call Time on Duty campaign, being launched today to try and force the government to scrap the duty escalator and raise £230m and 6,000 jobs in the process, it is calling on the public to show their support and email a letter to their local MP to put pressure on the Chancellor.

WSTA's Economic Impact Asssessment report on alcohol duty

The WSTA'S  Call Time on Duty campaign to try and force the government to scrap the duty escalator on wine and spirits is centred on a report by Ernst & Young that has found that ending the escalator will bring £230m to the Treasury and create 6,000 jobs. You can read the full report and findings here.

Scrapping duty escalator will raise £230m and 6,000 jobs says WSTA's new Call Time on Duty campaign

The Wine & Spirit Trade Association is today ramping up the pressure on the governement to scrap the alcohol duty esclator by claiming it would generate £230 million and create 6,000 jobs if it was dropped before the 2014 budget.

Government minister applauds drinks industry for its responsible online advertising

The drinks industry has been given a vote of confidence by the government for how it is handling the advertising of alcohol online.

Major buyers from all channels sign up to first Wine Buyers' Forum

Buyers that have signed up to the inaugural Wine Buyers' Forum to be held in Windsor next March have on average over £2 million worth of buying power each.

The 7 Best Ways to Improve Online Conversion

Find out how to make the most of your website and take steps to improve online conversion rates with this report from RedEye and Econsultancy and its Conversion Rate Optimization Report. This study looks at what methods and techniques are being used by the larger e-commerce companies and comes up with seven key ways in which e-commerce business can improve their website conversion. Click on the report attached.

Robin Copesitck's Asian and Australia adventure: down time in Sri Lanka

For obvious reasons I couldn't wait to get out of Australia and despite a long journey including a nine hour stop over I was delighted to arrive in Sri Lanka and not have everyone ask me if I was enjoying the cricket.

James Lawrence is more than convinced by the charm of Argentina on a trip to Mendoza

James Lawrence travels to the vineyards of Mendoza, on a mission to debunk the "one trick pony" cliché forever.

Taylors to release 50 year old Port

The Fladgate Partnership is set to release a collection of 50 year old single harvest Ports under the Taylor's brand.

Independent wine merchants excited by strong pre-Christmas sales

Independent wine merchants are reporting a solid lead-up in sales in the build up to Christmas as the Ipsos Retail Performance has revealed overall shopper numbers are on track to exceed last year.

Amorim enjoys record year as it produces over 4 billion corks in 2013

Amorim, the largest cork producer in the world, has broken its own production record after manufacturing more than four billion mark cork stoppers this calendar year.  The news represents a major boost for cork, which continues its comeback after strong challenges from alternative closures.

Champagne Occasions: Engaging the consumers

The second Harpers Champagne Occasions roadshow asked how on-trade buyers and operators can engage consumers and trade them up by linking Champagne with food.

?Pre-payment bar app Bar Pass given upfront investment for 2014

Digital innovation company The Bakery, and multinational brewing company AB InBev, have teamed up with bar pre-payment start-up company Bar Pass, to help roll its app out across the UK in 2014.

Bulleit bucks the trend and increases ABV of its UK whiskey

News this week that Diageo's Bulleit Bourbon would be changing its UK recipe and introducing a higher ABV is counter to what US bourbon and whiskey brands tend to do in the UK market.