Take a trip down memory lane with Harper's Quizmas Quiz

By Claret Pimpernel

Published: 05 December, 2014

It has been a long and emotional 2014. Can you recall the rollercoaster ride of drinks trade happenings?

Just in time for the festive season Harpers.co.uk thought it would be fun to test your knowledge of several big events that happened throughout the year.

Click here to take our Quizmas Quiz and top scorers will be entered to win a bottle of Champagne.

We will provide the answers in the first edition of Harpers in the new year and on Harpers.co.uk. So stay tuned and good luck. Happy Christmas!

In the mean time lets a take a look back at 2014 at just a few the highlights from a big year for the UK drinks trade.

This year's biggest story may just be TescoGate and the shake up of the retail industry:

2014 will be seen as the year that Aldi and Lidl firmly entrenched themselves as major players in the UK's grocery sector. This will be the year that not only changed the landscape of the UK retail sector but saw the biggest player, Tesco, stumble. Tesco, which was slowly losing market share to the discounters in the beginning of 2014, by July faced mounting pressure to oust then chief executive Philip Clarke. He was replaced by the new CEO Dave Lewis at the start of September. By the end of September, Lewis announced to Tesco shareholders that a mistatement of profits was found to the tune of £250 million. By late October, the mistatement of profits was confirmed to be £263 million, eight senior executives had been put on administrative leave and the Serious Fraud Office had launched a criminal investigation.

Such goings on at Tesco have turned a spotlight onto retailer and supplier relations industry-wide, which some believe could lead to a fundamental and structural shift in the grocery market. Will things change in 2015?

Scottish Independence Vote:

The Scottish Independence Vote was another big milestone in 2014 for many reasons, and became a hot potato in the drinks trade as well. Concern was voiced from several Scotch whisky producers and Scotch Whisky Association over what the ramifications could and would be should Scotland become independent. In the end the Scottish public voted to remain within the UK.

Bibendum and PLB merger:

This was one of the biggest deals in many years in the UK drinks trade. The merger, which was announced in late October 2014, makes Bibendum PLB a company to be reckoned with in the on and off trade within the UK. Let's watch this space to see how the companies come together through 2015.

London Wine Fair's successful return to Olympia:

Let's not forget the great return of the London Wine Fair to Olympia this year. It was widely received as an improvement for those attending and those exhibiting and a great highlight in 2014.

En Primeur came under attack:

2014 saw the en primeur system get slammed by several critics in the trade for no longer being an effective way to sell Bordeaux's top wines. Several trade leaders criticised the en primeur system of breaking down and accused those that led the process of failing to bring prices down enough after two rough vintages. It was a challenging time, and with the next en primeur in our sights, it will be interesting to see if there are changes.

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