Harpers’ recent consumer tasting panel revealed a category that is yet to emerge from its mixology-focused reputation. But rapidly growing awareness and availability of quality liquid mean it could soon sit on a par with top-level Cognac and whisky. Jo Gilbert gets the 360° view.
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The likelihood of a free trade agreement between the UK and Australia has led to optimism among many wine producers that new possibilities lie ahead. Andrew Catchpole reports.
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Predicting wine trends for the unpredictable year ahead is certainly a challenge as the trade attempts to plan and prepare for ever-changing times.
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The loss of the on-trade was obviously a huge blow to the UK drinks sector in 2020. In all parts of the UK, the forced shuttering of hospitality has wreaked havoc on both economic and mental wellbeing. For independent businesses, this has often meant the loss of a major chunk of sales in terms of wholesale trade, with an entire source of revenue lost overnight.
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James Lawrence rounds up the highlights of the coming year’s events calendar
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Ines Salpico reports on how the country’s winemakers are finally finding a balance between tradition and modernity
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After a tumultuous and challenging 2020 and more to come in 2021, Harpers wrapped up last year by partnering with Bordeaux Wines for a webinar examining Current Consumer Trends in the UK.
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The new edition of Harpers, out today, will reach readers hot on the heels of a parliamentary debate on the need for the creation of a minister for hospitality role in UK government. Resulting from the success of the Seat at the Table petition launched by hotelier Robin Hutson, of The Pig group and (formerly) Hotel du Vin fame, the proposal gained “an overwhelmingly positive response from all corners”, as reported by Harpers.
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A critical mass of smaller, sustainability-focused players is helping the wine and spirits industries reach new levels of innovation and accountability, writes Jo Gilbert
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Bacardi’s new plant-based, entirely biodegradable bottle marks a new era for packaging and design ambition, which aims to push sustainably crafted products to the front of the mass-market shelf.
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The low and no category came into its own in 2020, but how can producers communicate
its true riches to consumers? Nigel Huddleston investigates.
James Lawrence rounds up the biggest launches from a tumultuous, yet ever-creative, year
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From the first indications that a novel coronavirus brewing in the east had reared its ugly head in the west, 2020 fast played out as the year when Covid-19 turned the trade upside down. On-trade restrictions and closures, pivoting of businesses, innovation in every shape and form, plus the super-charging of ecommerce and an amazing collective response by individuals, companies and trade bodies alike all became the ‘new norm’. As a year most of us wish to see the back of stumbles to a close, the Harpers team rounds up some of the most significant events of 2020.
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With the end of the Brexit transition now hurtling down the track, many indies may not be aware of quite how much post-1 January changes could affect their businesses, as Andrew Catchpole reports.
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Among many insightful climate-related sessions at the Future of Wine Forum 2020, the plenary discussion on what wine industry leadership should look like stood out. Andrew Catchpole reports
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Each year the entries for Harpers Design Awards deliver much to delight, with the bar raised time and again, and so it proved once more with our 2020 judging. This year delivered many exemplary category winners, along with a host of worthy gold, silver and bronze medals.
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The WSTA is sticking to its ‘hope for the best, prepare for the worst’ approach to Brexit as we hurtle towards the 1 January deadline with no deal in sight. Jo Gilbert speaks to chief executive Miles Beale about what we can expect at the eleventh hour.
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Rueda is the Spanish white with the most global appeal, but it’s more complex, higher-end wines deserve to be better known. Andrew Catchpole reports
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Spain deserves better recognition as a leader in organic and sustainable viticulture and its time may well have come, writes Andrew Catchpole.
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While most areas of the trade experience decline, Spain still has the odd reason to be cheerful in buoyant UK exports and ever-robust Rioja. James Lawrence reports
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