Harpers Wine & Spirit Trade News

South America report: Importers’ Shout

Published: 18 April, 2024

Jo Gilbert quizzes UK importers on the burning questions surrounding Chile and Argentina.

Santa Rita Estates bolsters European team

Published: 27 February, 2024

Santa Rita Estates (SRE) has announced the appointment of two new members to its European team: Lucy Ward joins as the head of off-trade sales GB, while Maria Ines Pina assumes the role of export manager for continental Europe.

VSPT bolsters UK subsidiary with new role

Published: 26 February, 2024

South American company VSPT Wine Group has announced an appointment to the brand-new role of sales manager as the business looks to grow its UK subsidiary.

Friday read: Argentina ban adds economic tension for winemakers

Published: 22 September, 2023

Argentina can add a ban on invoices for overseas services to their woes as a number of top estates have been forced to pull out of marketing and advertising commitments abroad. It is another blow to the industry, as winemakers are forced grapple with yet more economic volatility and a situation which is increasingly creating an uneven competitive playing field in global export markets.

The march of Malbec

Published: 21 June, 2023

Such is the success of Argentina’s flagship variety, it is now spreading its wings around the globe. Andrew Catchpole reports.

Argento’s biodiversity index paves the way for an organic future

Published: 16 March, 2023

Major Argentinian winemaker Bodega Argento is sharing the results of a compelling biodiversity study which aims to put flora, fauna and vine management in harmonious step, as it works to convert its entire estate to certified organic status.

Jeroboams ups Argentine reach with Achaval Ferrer

Published: 15 March, 2023

Leading Argentine producer Achaval Ferrer has joined Jeroboams, which will now act as its exclusive UK agent.

Argentina’s ‘white revolution’ moves to newer sites

Published: 24 February, 2023

The slow but steady creep of Argentina’s white wines into new territories has entered a new chapter at Susana Balbo Wines, where the winemaking team has been experimenting with what it believes could be the Uco Valley’s first white-only appellation.

Uruguayan specialist Vinos Latinos spreads wings over Andes

Published: 10 June, 2022

The UK’s Uruguayan specialist importer Vinos Latinos is set to embark on a “new phase for the business” having secured significant investment for growth.

Winemakers in Uco Valley are ‘growing up’, not just going up, says Argentine specialist

Published: 09 May, 2022

The Uco Valley region of Mendoza is undergoing a significant cultural shift, according to Argentine specialist Madeleine Stenwreth MW.

How the on-trade is advancing Chile and Argentina up the wine list

Published: 06 April, 2022

With its menu populated by Central and South American delicacies, Paladar aptly defines itself as “the taste of Latin America in the heart of London SE1”. To match its geographical scope, the restaurant’s wine list consists of labels from Peru, Uruguay, Brazil, and Mexico. Chile and Argentina feature too, of course – South America-themed restaurants serve as their natural home. Elsewhere however, the continent’s two leading wine-producing countries tend to be relegated to the cheaper end of the wine list.

Raising the flag for Argentina

Published: 01 April, 2022

Looking back on Malbec’s ascent, it has followed quite a remarkable trajectory, delivering for Argentina the kind of hero grape recognition that perhaps only New Zealand Sauvignon Blanc can rival. In most of its markets, though, Malbec has firmly embedded itself a couple of notches above entry-level, typically with only a handful of rarefied listings on a more premium perch. In some ways, it’s a story reminiscent of Rioja’s, with the wines providing ample pleasure, accessibility and quality for just a small number of pounds above the entry-level.

Talking heads; Malbec and beyond

Published: 30 March, 2022

Buyers and critics alike share a snapshot of what currently excites them about South America with Sonya Hook.

Andean offer

Published: 28 March, 2022

Both as wine producers and countries, Argentina and Chile offer very different profiles. The former has its hugely successful hero variety in Malbec, while the latter, having driven its reputation on affordable and accessible international varieties, is gaining ground as a producer of genuine interest and value in the mid-price range. Argentina too, with Malbec having secured a strong foothold at a more premium ‘entry’ price level, has been pushing its diversity, while climbing its flagship variety higher up the price ladder in independents and the on-trade.

Santa Rita Estates predicts record production in Molina, Pumanque, and Cauquenes in mid-harvest report

Published: 17 March, 2022

Santa Rita Estates (SRE) has published its mid-harvest report, and it’s good news for Chile, along with Santa Rita and Carmen.

Argentina’s future should embrace ‘ancestral winemaking’

Published: 07 March, 2022

It’s been a few years since globetrotting oenologist Alberto Antonini proclaimed in Mendoza that the future should be ‘a little less Malbec and a little more Argentina’, set against that flagship variety’s exponential rise.

Domaine Bousquet taps into organic growth with launch of new range

Published: 24 February, 2022

Argentina’s leading organic winery, Domaine Bousquet, launches its Cameleón range into the UK market.

Enotria & Coe marks 50th anniversary with new agency quartet

Published: 08 February, 2022

Leading distributor Enotria & Coe has welcomed four leading brands into its portfolio: Susana Balbo, from Argentina; Martín Códax, from Galicia; Frescobaldi, from Tuscany; and Teusner, from the Barossa Valley.

Redefining Malbec

Published: 28 October, 2021

Argentina’s flagship grape continues to evolve, with renewed emphasis on vineyard sites and terroir. Amanda Barnes, author of The South America Wine Guide, reports.