Country Reports - Harpers Wine & Spirit Trade News

Oregon: On pushing Pinot Noir

Published: 10 April, 2018

Oregon has become the Pinot Noir capital of the Pacific Northwest. Jo Gilbert traces its evolution to the modern winemakers now redefining the grape

Portugal Uncovered

Published: 26 March, 2018

Following on from last month’s Simplesmente Vinho in Portugal, Sarah Ahmed takes a look at the producers really shaking things up for the country’s wine scene

Spain has long been known as the commercial hub of Europe’s classic winemaking regions – a category that has traditionally seen off-trade sales veer towards its £5-£10 “sweet spot” or lower, to the sub-£5, rather than its top tier of lauded pagos.

Riesling: gateway to Germany

Published: 22 March, 2018

Could Riesling be the answer to opening consumers' minds to lesser-known German Wines? Lisa Riley reports

Plotting the indigenous jewels on Hungary’s wine map

Published: 09 March, 2018

Hungary has come a long way since the heyday of Bull’s Blood in the 1970s. Now it’s rich tapestry of indigenous styles are finding their feet

Gallic Groove

Published: 02 March, 2018

French wines rank third in the UK off-trade in terms of value sales by country of origin (Nielsen, off-trade MAT to December 12, 2017), and fourth in terms of volume, with only New Zealand commanding a higher average price per bottle sold, at £8.80 versus £9.50 respectively.

Chile: hot, cookin' and cool

Published: 23 February, 2018

Chile is emerging as a hugely exciting and innovative wine-producing country, while also being the only top five wine catgeory expected to grow it's UK market share between now and 2021 (IWSR Trends Report figiures).

New Zealand’s southern stars

Published: 01 February, 2018

New Zealand’s unsullied image and premium focus is widening its quality appeal, finds Anne Krebiehl MW

Why brands are the key to cracking China

Published: 19 January, 2018

China is without doubt the next frontier for the UK wine industry, but while the potential market is huge it is a notoriously fiddly country for western brands to penetrate. Christopher Haywood reports

Discovering Spain’s private members’ club

Published: 08 December, 2017

Grandes Pagos de España is the association of top Spanish wineries whose members have been tearing up notions of old-school Spain. Jo Gilbert reports

Uruguay’s winemakers target UK 'global shop window'

Published: 14 November, 2017

As an Atlantic-cooled nation of just 3.4 million people, Uruguay and its winemakers are keenly aware of the need to differentiate its wine offer from that of the country's major South American rivals, viewing the UK as an unrivalled platform to achieve that aim.

South Africa chases premium ground

Published: 13 November, 2017

As South Africa strives to push innovation and quality, natural factors may just provide the tipping point for the country.

Behind the scenes: Varietal clones at one of Argentina’s biggest producers

Published: 10 November, 2017

Harpers caught up with pioneering winemaker Santiago Mayorga at Cadus – the premium arm of Nieto Senetiner, one of Argentina’s largest producers – who revealed his experimentation with Malbec clones for the first time.

Languedoc standing strong

Published: 02 November, 2017

Jo Gilbert looks at how France’s leading volume producer continues to evolve and intrigue the UK market

Finding Austria’s niche

Published: 06 October, 2017

Grüner Veltliner may have been Austria’s “breakthrough” variety, but consumers need to be encouraged to investigate further, writes James Lawrence

The Australian Alternative

Published: 07 September, 2017

As exciting new wines continue to emerge from Down Under, Andrew Catchpole finds that for the UK it’s more about style than variety when it comes to looking afresh at Oz

Earliest harvest start on record for Galicia

Published: 29 August, 2017

The usually cool and wet climate of Galicia in the Atlantic reaches of Spain has been turned on its head this year, leaving wine producers to handle one of the earliest, but longest and most peculiar harvests ever recorded.

Italian trends

Published: 01 August, 2017

Italian exhibition company Bellavita undertook some extensive research into Italian wine in the UK market to coincide with its recent London Expo. Here it shares those insights exclusively with Harpers

Oregon – Pinot Noir and Life Beyond

Published: 31 July, 2017

Having just returned from Oregon Pinot Camp 2017, passionate pinot-phile Doug Wregg of artisan importer Les Caves de Pyrene reports on a region where quality is a driving passion