Fake Pint Noir producers found guilty
The French court case surrounding E & J Gallo's fake Pinot Noir has concluded with a guilty verdict for 12 producers and traders from the southwest of France.
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Wine News Archive
Tim Atkin's wine column loses weight
Sunday newspaper The Observer has scaled down its weekly wine column written by Tim Atkin MW
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Wineskills initiative launched for UK winegrowers
A training project for the UK wine industry called Wineskills has been launched Plumpton College thanks to funding by DEFRA and the European Union.
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Red Bicyclette Pinot Noir in latest wine scandal
A French court case is underway surrounding claims that E&J Gallo's 2007 Red Bicyclette Pinot Noir was not made from Pinot Noir grapes.
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Champagne sales get their fizz back
Champagne sales recover in the last 2 months of 2009 in France and the UK.
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First Scottish wine to be made in 2010
Vines planted as a trial 4 years ago in Perthshire, Scotland will be harvested this year to produce the first ever Scottish wine.
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Scottish wine merchant fails as the recession ends
Scotland's oldest wine merchant Cockburn's of Leith has fallen victim to the recession.
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US drowns in cheap Bordeaux as Diageo pull out
Diageo has dealt a blow to the US market for Bordeaux wine by pulling out its subsidiary Chateau & Estate Wines (DC&E), the biggest US buyer of Bordeaux fine wine.
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Aussie's make less but we're drinking more
Australia's grape crush was down 5.4% in 2008-09 weighing in at 1.7 million tonnes while exports were up 5.2%.
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Supermarket wine sales proposed in NY
New York State's governor is proposing a change in legislation to permit the sale of wine in supermarkets, grocers and convenience stores.
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New tools to tackle Australia's wine glut
A new initiative has been launched in Australia to help producers evaluate the viability of their vineyards and encourage some of them to grub up vines.
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Asia's wine consumption set to grow by 25%
New research released by Vinexpo suggests that Asia's wine consumption will grow by 25% in the next five years.
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Hillebrand buys drinks logistics rival
Specialist drinks shipper ABV Logistics has been acquired by JF Hillebrand.
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New low alcohol wines show off their units
A new low alcohol wine called Vetro will be one of the first to clearly display the units of alcohol on its front label in response to the government's Know Your Limits campaign.
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First Quench franchisees go independent
Its been confirmed that most of the 88 franchised stores licensed by First Quench Retailing will continue to trade as independent off-licences.
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French wine banned in Australia for masquerading as Kiwi wine
A French Sauvignon Blanc, called Kiwi Cuvee, has been prevented from being sold in Australia because of its name.
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Asia's high society celebrate New Year with fine wine
Demand for fine wine, ahead of Chinese New Year, is soaring, especially for Bordeaux first growths.
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Twin billionaires to plant vines in the Channel Islands
Billionaire twin brothers David and Frederick Barclay, owners of the Daily Telegraph and the Ritz hotel in London, are planting their first vineyard on the island of Sark in the Channel Islands.
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Constellation terminates 300 contracts
Australia's biggest buyer of wine grapes, Constellation Wines, has advised 300 growers in the Murray Valley that their contracts will be terminated after the 2012 vintage.
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Majestic sales surge
Majestic Wine saw a surge in sales of 11.7% over the Christmas period after the collapse of First Quench in November.
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2009 hailed as vintage of the decade
As 2010 begins, the 2009 vintage in England is being hailed as one of the best ever by a number of winemakers and possibly the best of the decade.
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New Tuscan wine scandal
Another Italian wine scandal is erupting this time involving around 10 million litres of Tuscan wine that the Italian authorities suspect may have been blended illegally.
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Hong Kong world's 2nd biggest wine auction centre
Hong Kong has overtaken London as the second-biggest wine-auction market after New York.
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Chardonnay's mother is poor relation
A study has identified the maternal parent of leading grape varieties as Gouais Blanc, a grape once banned in parts of Europe because of its poor quality.
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NZ sweet wines now legal
Until now New Zealand dessert wines have been banned from Europe but after 15 years of lobbying they can legally be imported
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Fine wine trading is up
The fine wine market is showing strong signs of recovery with trading up 27% vs November 2008 and up 6% vs the previous month.
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Wickham Vineyard buys 14 First Quench stores
Hampshire based Wickham Vineyard has stepped in to save 14 off-licences from closure following the collapse of the First Quench group.
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Dragons Den star sets up shop
Dragons Den star sets up wine website www.gondola.co.uk.
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Only 21 First Quench stores saved
Only 21 stores from the First Quench group have been purchased after adminstrators KPMG failed to find buyers for the remaining 391 stores.
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Sub £10 Champagne
Lidl cuts the price of Champagne to under £10 a bottle and other supermarkets discount heavily.
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Vinopolis is 10
London's Vinopolis celebrates its 10th birthday this month.
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Wine containing antibiotic banned in Europe
Wine containing an antibiotic, natamycin, has been withdrawn from sale in Germany because, while it doesn't pose a threat to humans, it is a banned substance in wine in Europe.
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381 First Quench stores close
Adminstrators at First Quench announce the closure of a further 381 stores and 1900 job losses.
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Matt Skinner criticised for recommending wines he hasn't tasted
Wine writer and sommellier Matt Skinner has admitted to not tasting several wines that he recommends in his latest book The Juice 2010.
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Majestic sued by wine writer
Wine writer Martin Isark has issued a writ against Majestic Wine, claiming damages believed to be in the region of £50,000.
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Majestic sales are up
Majestic's half-year trading figures show its change in strategy to reduce minimum purchases to 6 bottles seems to be paying off. Like-for-like sales increased by 5.4% and pre-tax profits were up 9% to £6.1 million over the period.
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Beaujolais Nouveau est arrive!
There are great expectations for the 2009 vintage Beaujolais ahead of Beaujolais Nouveau day which arrives this year on Thursday 19 November 2009.
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What a waste of wine!
According to figures collated for WRAP, the Waste & Resource Action Programme, British households are pouring £470 million worth of wine down the plughole every year.
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First Quench to close 373 stores
Administrators of First Quench Retailing have announced the closure of 373 loss-making stores which will result in 1,738 redundancies.
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Sainsbury's and Waitrose go head-to-head on wine promo
Sainsbury's cut the price of wine for a week by 25% and Waitrose launch counter-offensive with same deal.
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Threshers and Wine Rack group goes into administration
First Quench Retailing, owners of Thresher and Wine Rack, has gone into administration.
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Mineral wines are not the salt of the earth
Wines with minerality are not special terroir driven wines, closely linked with the soil, but simply a metaphor for lean and austere wines.
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UK wine critic bans heavyweight bottles from his column
Leading wine critic Tim Atkin MW is boycotting heavyweight wine bottles from recommendations in his Sunday newspaper column
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Ridgeview fears new national park will stop expansion
South Downs national park could jeopardise expansion of a thriving wine industry in Sussex.
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The Wine Show joins BBC show Masterchef Live
The Wine Show has been purchased by Haymarket Exhibitions, owners of Masterchef Live, and will run alongside the food show as a joint event at London's Olympia in November 2010.
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Iron in red wine causes flavour clash with fish
Iron in red wine supports the rule of red wine with red meat, white wine with fish, scientists discover.
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IWSC Southern Hemisphere & Trophy results out
The International Wine & Spirit Competition announce results for Southern Hemisphere wines and Trophy winners.
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UK drinking levels are down
UK alcohol consumption is falling at the fastest rate for more than 60 years according to HM Revenue & Customs data released by the British Beer & Pub Association (BBPA).
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Twitter launches charity wine
Twitter has launched two wines under the brand Fledgling Wine in a joint initiative with Crushpad, a San Francisco based winery and charity Room to Read.
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Tesco shopper falls foul of new alcohol guidelines
A Tesco shopper has fallen foul of new guidelines which support the government's Think 25 responsible drinking campaign.
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