People & Opinion - Harpers Wine & Spirit Trade News

Meet the buyers: Louise Oliver, Seven Cellars

Published: 11 December, 2017

Harpers catches up with leading indie buyer, Louise Oliver, joint owner, Seven Cellars, on how she ended up in the business of wine

Guy Woodward: The great Port revival

Published: 08 December, 2017

Remember all that talk, a few years back, of the big sherry revival? About how, spurred on by the growth of tapas bars, small-plate dining, aperitif culture and cool España, fino and amontillado were the new tipples of choice for the hipster generation?

Tim Atkin MW: Wine's luxury lustre

Published: 06 December, 2017

Serendipity is part of the pleasure of owning a wine cellar. Unless you’re the kind of person who keeps a log of every bottle that’s down there – I’m as organised as the next Virgo, but there are limits – these chance discoveries are wonderful. Well, most of the time. For every bottle of oxidised Condrieu or dried-out claret, there are dozens that are exciting to unearth. I had a bottle of 2006 TMV Swartland Syrah recently, made by Chris and Andrea Mullineux before they set up their own now globally famous winery in South Africa, and it was a revelation.

Meet the buyers: James Hocking, The Vineyard Cellars

Published: 27 November, 2017

Harpers gets the lowdown from specialist retailer buyer James Hocking, wine director at The Vineyard Cellars

Meet the buyers: Alistair Viner, Hedonism

Published: 27 November, 2017

Harpers gets the lowdown from Alistair Viner, head buyer at Hedonism

Meet the buyers: Edward Gerard, Harrods

Published: 27 November, 2017

Harpers gets the lowdown from specialist retailer buyer Edward Gerard, buying manager for wines, spirits and cigars at Harrods

Meet the buyers: Rob Graves, Harvey Nichols

Published: 27 November, 2017

Harpers gets the lowdown from specialist retailer buyers Rob Graves, head of food and wine buying at Harvey Nichols

Jerry Lockspeiser: An epic management disaster

Published: 20 November, 2017

It’s a tale of corporate mismanagement to rival the worst.

Q&A: Irene Paiva, Vistamar

Published: 10 November, 2017

The Vistamar winemaker talks to Andrew Catchpole about the ongoing evolution of Chile’s winemaking scene

Guy Woodward: At the mercy of the elements

Published: 06 November, 2017

Within days of the Napa Valley going up in flames, as firefighters were still wrestling for control of Atlas Peak and Mount Veeder, the assurances were being issued. Everything was OK – the vast majority of the grapes had already been harvested, the remaining fruit on the vine was the thick-skinned, resilient Cabernet and any smoke taint was likely to be minimal.

Tim Atkin MW: Rich pickings for the vineyards of Burgundy

Published: 02 November, 2017

Remind me never to play poker against Frédéric Engerer.

Meet the buyers: The Wine Society

Published: 02 November, 2017

James Lawrence catches up with the buying team at customer-owned The Wine Society

David Cox, Penny Richards, Michael Saunders and Patrick McGrath MW

Q&A: David Cox, chief executive, The Benevolent

Published: 30 October, 2017

Ahead of his forthcoming retirement David Cox talks to Andrew Catchpole about a lifetime at the forefront of the drinks trade

Jerry Lockspeiser: How to stop wine’s race to the bottom

Published: 24 October, 2017

Many years ago, one of the UK’s biggest retailers used Reverse eAuctions to source entry point wine from Eastern Europe. Their annual contract to supply fixed quantities of different wines was at stake. The volumes were huge. It was a thrilling but deflating experience.

D&D: Standing out from the crowd

Published: 18 October, 2017

D&D London’s Michael Patterson talks to Andrew Catchpole about evolving drinks trends on the London restaurant scene and how they affect the buyers’ role

Independents: The art of being a specialist

Published: 16 October, 2017

Having a speciality can be a boon for a merchant. Andrew Catchpole invites a few to share the pros and cons of sourcing, selling and communicating such an offer

Guy Woodward: Substance versus style

Published: 11 October, 2017

Former editor of Decanter @guyawoodward

Tim Atkin: Semillon - The Naked Grape

Published: 06 October, 2017

When I was younger, fitter and considerably trimmer than I am now, I took part (twice) in a wine trade version of The Full Monty for charity. The name of our group of buffed-up writers, sommeliers and importers was The Semillons (geddit?). So, when I received an invitation to an event called The Semillon Sessions recently, part of me hoped that a new group of amateur strippers would be strutting their moves on a stage somewhere.