The UK Government should pull out all the stops during the Brexit negotiations to avoid what it describes as the “worst possible outcome” – a no deal Brexit, according to the UK's drinks trade body, the Wine and Spirits Trade Association (WSTA).   [caption id="attachment_17824" align="aligncenter" width="960"] UK Brexit secretary David Davies and his EU counterpart Michel Barnier kicked off Brexit negotiations yesterday[/caption] Formal talks kicked off yesterday between the UK’s Brexit secretary David Davis and the EU’s chief negotiator Michel Barnier, and the WSTA is urging the government to go

Americans are amongst the biggest fans of Burgundy, and the US remains the biggest importer of  wine from the French region for the fourth consecutive year, according to the Burgundy Wine Board (BIVB).   Burgundy accounted for nearly a quarter (23%) of the value and just over a fifth (21%) of the volume of total exports, and has been the largest export market for Burgundy since 2014.  Wines from Burgundy account for 13% of the total volume of French AOC’s exported to the US, and 16% of turnover.   Total US

South African winemakers are looking forward to a high quality vintage, despite the volume of this year’s crop being below average An extremely dry growing season held back the size of the crop, but vintners are particularly enthusiastic about the quality of the grapes. [caption id="attachment_17769" align="aligncenter" width="1024"] Chris and Suzaan Alheit[/caption] “2017 was a very nice vintage all around,” Chris Alheit told Wine Spectator. His eponymous winery produces white wines from parcels situated around the Cape. He said that the 2017 vintage was at least as good as that

Brexit may present "monumental challenges" to the UK drinks industry, but it also opens up new opportunities that we should embrace, said Dan Jago,  chairman of the UK’s drinks trade body The Wine & Spirit Trade Association.   He even went as far this week in an interview with Drinks Business, to say that this was also one of the most exciting moments for the UK wine industry and it needs to do all it can to grab it. Jago, who is also chief executive of  Berry Bros & Rudd, said he didn’t

The British love affair with  Prosecco is still going strong, with 85 million bottles sold last year, with Champagne sales trailing at less than half that volume, at 31 million bottles. Spanish fizz, predominantly Cava, remains in third place at around 23 million bottles, according to the Wine and Spirit Trade Association's (WSTA) annual Market Overview, which reveals which countries were top in the UK for sales of fizz. [caption id="attachment_17755" align="aligncenter" width="714"] English sparkling wine sales are increasing year on year, and are now the fourth best selling country of

The average price of a bottle of wine in the UK has hit new heights, smashing through the £5.50 barrier for the first time to reach £5.56.  And this average has risen more in the past 12 weeks than it has in the last two years, according to the Wine & Spirit Trade Association (WSTA) in its annual market report.   [caption id="attachment_17692" align="aligncenter" width="684"] The value of Sterling has plummeted since the UK voted to leave the EU[/caption] The impact of Brexit, which has seen the the value of the pound

In a modern tale of David vs Goliath, Jayne Powell, aka "Champagne Jayne" has won a long-standing trademark dispute against the Comité Champagne (CIVC) over whether or not she could continue in business using what turned out to be her controversial monicker.  The dispute has been played out over the last five years with the CIVC first taking legal action against Powell as far back as 2013. The basis of the case was that the CIVC claimed she was was potentially misleading the public and infringing its own trademark as she