Analysis & Insights - Harpers Wine & Spirit Trade News

On-trade: The highs, lows and holding on

Published: 18 July, 2024

Clinton Cawood examines the sectors of the market faring best and those suffering the most.

Headline Heroes: Creating Champagne’s ‘perfect year’

Published: 17 July, 2024

David Kermode looks at how top Champagne houses are taking their pick of the best vintages to create superior blends

AI – drawing the line

Published: 11 July, 2024

From NPD to vineyard management, Jo Gilbert asks how AI can benefit the alcohol industry – and when it’s time to stop.

Canada may be a small player on the international wine scene, but in recent times its wines have received increasing international attention and praise beyond what has traditionally made Canada famous – its icewines and late harvests.

Analysis: Playing down the UK wine hype

Published: 08 July, 2024

Is the UK trade over-hyping the home-grown wine ‘boom’? Jo Gilbert explains why the industry needs to tread carefully.

Multiples: Summer trade is on a roll

Published: 05 July, 2024

James Bayley looks at how the Euros look set to influence consumer spending patterns to the benefit of the UK trade.

Indies: Retail only, please…

Published: 01 July, 2024

James Lawrence finds that ‘hybrid’ wine shops with a food and drink-in offer are not always a panacea.

France Report: Prioritising premium

Published: 26 June, 2024

Good value’ is a tag that follows the wines of Languedoc and Roussillon around. While it’s undoubtedly not the worst thing that consumers can associate with a region, it can serve to dampen the ambitions of makers of more premium wines. As Justin Howard-Sneyd MW, winemaker in Roussillon and regional chair for Languedoc-Roussillon at the Decanter World Wine Awards, puts it: “Good value can be a trap. Chile struggled with that. People see it as good value and therefore don’t see their premium wines as something worth spending money on.”

Headline Heroes: Harmonious sustainability

Published: 26 June, 2024

The Plaimont cooperative is not only an advocate of adapting to climate change, but also the custodian of heritage grape varieties. James Lawrence reports on its work to safeguard the future of wine.

France Report: The Champagne bubble

Published: 26 June, 2024

David Kermode charts a bumpy ride for France’s favourite fizz.

France Report: Delivering diversity

Published: 25 June, 2024

Andrew Catchpole samples the trade’s take on France and its ever-enticing offer.

Greek Odyssey

Published: 25 June, 2024

Greece is fast morphing from interesting addition to must list. Andrew Catchpole charts its progress in the UK.

Beyond Champagne: Bubbling under

Published: 25 June, 2024

Jo Gilbert caught up with leading suppliers to find out how the non-Champagne sparkling parts of their portfolios work in their respective categories.

Tech: The perils of cask whisky investment

Published: 17 June, 2024

Felipe Schrieberg talks to Jo Gilbert about a potential upcoming crash in cask whisky investment.

Balancing the benefits and harms of alcohol in UK society

Published: 14 June, 2024

James Bayley assesses the duality of the effects of alcohol consumption.

Multiples: Summer standouts

Published: 13 June, 2024

Own-label and discovery ranges are in the spotlight as supermarkets refresh their wines for the season. By James Bayley.

Analysis: Safeguarding old vines

Published: 12 June, 2024

A recent old vine field trip to Jumilla sparked a conversation around the importance of preserving both local expertise and community input alongside heritage vineyards, and what it means for broader concepts of sustainability and terroir. Jo Gilbert reports