Zareh Mesrobyan wins Ruinart Sommelier Challenge

Estelle Manor’s head of wine Zareh Mesrobyan won the 2026 UK Ruinart Sommelier Challenge yesterday (8 June), following a hard-fought contest at London’s Dorchester hotel.

VAT cut campaign passes significant milestone

A campaign to cut VAT for the hospitality sector to 10% has already garnered massive support, with more than 10,000 people signing the #VATsTheProblem petition within 72 hours of its launch.

Campaign to cut hospitality VAT to 10% spearheaded by Tom Kerridge

Chef and publican Tom Kerridge is urging the hospitality industry to sign a new petition backing VATsTheProblem – a campaign to cut VAT for the sector to 10%.

Call out for Top 50 Sommeliers nominations

Nominations are open for Harpers Top 50 Sommeliers 2026 listing, with all in the UK drinks world invited to propose candidates for consideration.

UKH decries increasing costs after youth inactivity report

UK Hospitality (UKH) has responded to the recent Milburn review interim report on youth unemployment, saying that it demonstrates “the damaging impact of increasing costs on job opportunities”.

Applications open for New Zealand Winegrowers Sommelier Scholarship

New Zealand Winegrowers has announced applications for the 2027 edition of its Sommelier Scholarship are now open.

Chains drive ‘eating-out’ market with smaller operators falling behind

Food and drinks insights company Lumina Intelligence has detailed that the ‘eating-out’ market is set to reach a value of £102.8bn this year, an increase of +1.8% year-on-year.

British bar shows in good spirits following strong attendance

Attendance figures revealed from this week’s BCB London (11-12 May) and April’s Edinburgh Bar Show (13-15 April) reveal that thousands of bar trade professionals passed through the events in the capital cities.

Harpers Top 50 Sommeliers 2026 listing is open for nominations

Our annual Harpers Top 50 Sommeliers feature celebrates the best in the somm world, focusing in on the professionalism and talent shown by those behind many of the great wine and drinks offers we are lucky enough to have in restaurants and hotels across the UK.

Coravin highlights research indicating by-the-glass growth

At a recent industry lunch, Coravin highlighted the results of three surveys conducted in 2025, which suggest that consumers are ordering more wine by-the-glass (BTG) than they were two years ago. The company is also expanding its guide to BTG lists. 

UK Hospitality urges government to provide energy support for sector

In a letter to the chancellor, UK Hospitality has proposed six measures that the government could implement to help hospitality businesses through increasing energy costs.

Diageo confirms finalists for World Class GB 2026

Diageo has revealed the ten bartenders who will take part in this year’s World Class GB final, with contestants hailing from around the UK.

STA calls on incoming MSPs to ensure support for hospitality

The Scottish Tourism Alliance (STA) has released an open letter addressed to Scotland’s next MSPs just days before the Scottish Parliamentary election, due to take place this Thursday (7 May).

Study finds hospitality SMEs hit hardest by inflation

A new study from UK-based card payment provider Dojo has found that hospitality businesses’ operating costs have been hit harder by inflation than any other sector over the past decade.

Hospitality insolvencies persist with rise seen for February

Consultancy firm RSM UK has analysed the latest company insolvency statistics, with February 2026 seeing a 22% month-on-month rise to 270 in terms of accommodation and food services insolvencies. This compared to the 222 insolvencies seen for hospitality in January of this year.

Cocktail festival to return to Brighton with 50 bars announced

Brighton Cocktail Festival has announced that it is returning for its second year of city-wide celebrations, running from 18 to 27 September.

On-trade outlook: Spring visits up but volumes down

New on-trade data for March 2026 from market intelligence company The Oxford Partnership shows improving average occupancy and dwell time year on year compared to March last year. In terms of the former this rose +1.1% to 65.4%, while the latter saw visit length rise +3.4% to 153 minutes.

Chorus of industry bodies laments April price hikes

Fresh survey data from four leading hospitality trade bodies reveals that as a result of the government’s 1 April cost hikes 64% of on-trade businesses will cut jobs.

Survey: 93% of workers would recommend a career in hospitality

Software provider Access Hospitality has said that belief in hospitality remains strong, despite “short-term morale” falling.

Pub and bar closures hit five-year high as macroeconomic pressures bite