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Tim Atkin MW: The problem with misplaced reverence and hallowed wines

Published:  09 February, 2024

It was a scary moment, at least in wine terms. There I was in the cellar at Domaine Leroy in Vosne-Romanée, tasting some of the most expensive reds on the planet. Meetings with Madame Bize are never relaxing. She combines hauteur with the ability to freeze a glass of Pinot Noir at 10 paces. People who have earned her displeasure are never granted access to her presence again.

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Five minutes with Stef Holt, Mangrove Global

Published:  06 February, 2024

Jo Gilbert catches up with Stef Holt on her new role as the first curator of world whisky for Mangrove Global.

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Producer Q&A: Noelia Orts, Emiliana, Chile

Published:  30 January, 2024

Emiliana, the world’s largest organic winery, has sustainability woven into its soul, with wines to match the winemaker’s passion. Andrew Catchpole dropped by.

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Jerry Lockspeiser: Are we forgetting what customers care about most?

Published:  25 January, 2024

Izzy is a twenty-year-old student at York University. Many decades ago I was one there too. In my time students received grants for living costs and tuition fees were paid by the Government. Today those are dealt with by repayable loans. But the loans may not be enough to allow access to all. Like Izzy, for example.

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Buyer’s Spotlight with Jason Millar: Campania

Published:  23 January, 2024

Jason Millar makes the case for an under-represented Italian region, the wines of which he says rival those of Sicily.

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Profile: Jascots’ and Bolney’s symbiotic advantages

Published:  18 January, 2024

Under new leadership Jascots Wine Merchants marches on, strengthening its on-trade reach while making inroads with indies, as Andrew Catchpole discovers.

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Guy Woodward: The perils of eco-friendly embellishment

Published:  16 January, 2024

I spent Christmas in South Carolina, to where my wife’s parents have just moved after three decades in Colorado. What with the new home and the festive season, there was much to celebrate. All of which, naturally, called for a special bottle.

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Pushing Britain’s prestige fizz potential

Published:  05 January, 2024

The launch of a smartly-packaged £395 English sparkling wine may show quite some chutzpah, but as James Lawrence reports, it’s not alone in helping nudge the category into triple figure pricing.

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Five minutes with Guillermo Calderón, Casas del Bosque

Published:  09 January, 2024

Andrew Catchpole catches up with Guillermo Calderón, Casas del Bosque’s sales director and a Casablanca Sauvignon and Pinot specialist, to discuss the trends shaping Chile.

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Producer Q&A: Jonny Croft, Small Batch Spirits

Published:  02 January, 2024

With a great story behind it, Cargo Cult Spiced Rum looks set to raise the premium for the category. Andrew Catchpole meets the man behind the mission.

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Jerry Lockspeiser: This is the worst wine we have ever tasted

Published:  21 December, 2023

In his final column of 2023, Harpers regular Jerry Lockspeiser looks back over the year, before mulling over some lessons for the one ahead.

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Soapbox: Why is the government so disinterested in the wine trade?

Published:  19 December, 2023

The Wine Society CEO Steve Finlan calls out the government’s lack of engagement with the hard-pressed UK drinks trade.

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Profile: Martyn Rolph, Berry Bros & Rudd

Published:  14 December, 2023

Jo Gilbert catches up with Berry Bros & Rudd’s newest head of buying, to discover what’s next for Britain’s oldest wine merchant.

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Tim Atkin MW: Moving away from ‘icons’

Published:  12 December, 2023

My late friend Michael Cox, who ran Wines of Chile’s UK office for more than a decade, had a great line about so-called “icon” wines. “Is that one word or two?” he would ask with a raised eyebrow. The pun works best in English, but the marketing strategy it points fun at is pretty much universal. Wines promoted as “iconic”, especially

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Producer Q&A: Ed Macdonald, Hunter’s Wines

Published:  07 December, 2023

Embracing regenerative viticulture, lightweight bottles and with an Offshoot label to appeal to a different demographic, this family winery stands out from the Marlborough crowd. Andrew Catchpole catches up with Ed Macdonald GM of Hunter’s Wines.

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Five minutes with Charlie Stein, Rick Stein Group

Published:  05 December, 2023

As he rolls out a new series of wine dinners with group head chef and brother Jack across their restaurants, Charlie Stein, director, Rick Stein Group, talks Andrew Catchpole through his approach to wine and food pairing.

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Interview: Carine Bailleul, Champagne Castelnau

Published:  30 November, 2023

In partnership with Champagne Castelnau.

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Jerry Lockspeiser: Has wine become like religion for some?

Published:  28 November, 2023

In last month’s article for Harpers, I considered the potential for huge disruption in the UK wine trade from new rules that will allow the blending and processing of wines imported in bulk. They raise the possibility of making drinks that have all the taste and packaging characteristics of established wines while not being subject to the historic restrictions for making them.

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Jerez calling at Fourth & Church

Published:  23 November, 2023

With international sherry week upon us, sherry educator and self-confessed Jerez ‘anorak’ Paul Morgan explains to Andrew Catchpole how his passion has translated into a month-long event at Hove’s Fourth & Church.

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Soapbox: Somm tips on ordering wine

Published:  21 November, 2023

Aulis’s Charles Carron Brown irons out the mistakes commonly made in approaching a somm, helping to bag the wine a diner wants, rather than the one the somm wants them to drink.

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