French wine banned in Australia for masquerading as Kiwi wine
A French Sauvignon Blanc, called Kiwi Cuvee, has been prevented from being sold in Australia because of its name.
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Wine News Archive
Asia's high society celebrate New Year with fine wine
Demand for fine wine, ahead of Chinese New Year, is soaring, especially for Bordeaux first growths.
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Twin billionaires to plant vines in the Channel Islands
Billionaire twin brothers David and Frederick Barclay, owners of the Daily Telegraph and the Ritz hotel in London, are planting their first vineyard on the island of Sark in the Channel Islands.
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Constellation terminates 300 contracts
Australia's biggest buyer of wine grapes, Constellation Wines, has advised 300 growers in the Murray Valley that their contracts will be terminated after the 2012 vintage.
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Majestic sales surge
Majestic Wine saw a surge in sales of 11.7% over the Christmas period after the collapse of First Quench in November.
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2009 hailed as vintage of the decade
As 2010 begins, the 2009 vintage in England is being hailed as one of the best ever by a number of winemakers and possibly the best of the decade.
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New Tuscan wine scandal
Another Italian wine scandal is erupting this time involving around 10 million litres of Tuscan wine that the Italian authorities suspect may have been blended illegally.
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Hong Kong world's 2nd biggest wine auction centre
Hong Kong has overtaken London as the second-biggest wine-auction market after New York.
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Chardonnay's mother is poor relation
A study has identified the maternal parent of leading grape varieties as Gouais Blanc, a grape once banned in parts of Europe because of its poor quality.
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NZ sweet wines now legal
Until now New Zealand dessert wines have been banned from Europe but after 15 years of lobbying they can legally be imported
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Fine wine trading is up
The fine wine market is showing strong signs of recovery with trading up 27% vs November 2008 and up 6% vs the previous month.
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Wickham Vineyard buys 14 First Quench stores
Hampshire based Wickham Vineyard has stepped in to save 14 off-licences from closure following the collapse of the First Quench group.
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Dragons Den star sets up shop
Dragons Den star sets up wine website www.gondola.co.uk.
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Only 21 First Quench stores saved
Only 21 stores from the First Quench group have been purchased after adminstrators KPMG failed to find buyers for the remaining 391 stores.
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Sub £10 Champagne
Lidl cuts the price of Champagne to under £10 a bottle and other supermarkets discount heavily.
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Vinopolis is 10
London's Vinopolis celebrates its 10th birthday this month.
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Wine containing antibiotic banned in Europe
Wine containing an antibiotic, natamycin, has been withdrawn from sale in Germany because, while it doesn't pose a threat to humans, it is a banned substance in wine in Europe.
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381 First Quench stores close
Adminstrators at First Quench announce the closure of a further 381 stores and 1900 job losses.
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Matt Skinner criticised for recommending wines he hasn't tasted
Wine writer and sommellier Matt Skinner has admitted to not tasting several wines that he recommends in his latest book The Juice 2010.
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Majestic sued by wine writer
Wine writer Martin Isark has issued a writ against Majestic Wine, claiming damages believed to be in the region of £50,000.
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Majestic sales are up
Majestic's half-year trading figures show its change in strategy to reduce minimum purchases to 6 bottles seems to be paying off. Like-for-like sales increased by 5.4% and pre-tax profits were up 9% to £6.1 million over the period.
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Beaujolais Nouveau est arrive!
There are great expectations for the 2009 vintage Beaujolais ahead of Beaujolais Nouveau day which arrives this year on Thursday 19 November 2009.
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What a waste of wine!
According to figures collated for WRAP, the Waste & Resource Action Programme, British households are pouring £470 million worth of wine down the plughole every year.
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First Quench to close 373 stores
Administrators of First Quench Retailing have announced the closure of 373 loss-making stores which will result in 1,738 redundancies.
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Sainsbury's and Waitrose go head-to-head on wine promo
Sainsbury's cut the price of wine for a week by 25% and Waitrose launch counter-offensive with same deal.
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Threshers and Wine Rack group goes into administration
First Quench Retailing, owners of Thresher and Wine Rack, has gone into administration.
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Mineral wines are not the salt of the earth
Wines with minerality are not special terroir driven wines, closely linked with the soil, but simply a metaphor for lean and austere wines.
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UK wine critic bans heavyweight bottles from his column
Leading wine critic Tim Atkin MW is boycotting heavyweight wine bottles from recommendations in his Sunday newspaper column
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Ridgeview fears new national park will stop expansion
South Downs national park could jeopardise expansion of a thriving wine industry in Sussex.
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The Wine Show joins BBC show Masterchef Live
The Wine Show has been purchased by Haymarket Exhibitions, owners of Masterchef Live, and will run alongside the food show as a joint event at London's Olympia in November 2010.
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Iron in red wine causes flavour clash with fish
Iron in red wine supports the rule of red wine with red meat, white wine with fish, scientists discover.
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IWSC Southern Hemisphere & Trophy results out
The International Wine & Spirit Competition announce results for Southern Hemisphere wines and Trophy winners.
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UK drinking levels are down
UK alcohol consumption is falling at the fastest rate for more than 60 years according to HM Revenue & Customs data released by the British Beer & Pub Association (BBPA).
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Twitter launches charity wine
Twitter has launched two wines under the brand Fledgling Wine in a joint initiative with Crushpad, a San Francisco based winery and charity Room to Read.
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Tesco shopper falls foul of new alcohol guidelines
A Tesco shopper has fallen foul of new guidelines which support the government's Think 25 responsible drinking campaign.
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Broadbent clears name over 'Jefferson Bottles'
Wine writer Michael Broadbent has won a libel case against Random House over allegations in the book The Billionaire's Vinegar over the notorious Jefferson bottles.
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Fuel from waste water!
A wine company has taken part in a test to demonstrate for the first time how waste water can be converted into fuel.
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English wine harvest in full swing
The harvest is well underway in English vineyards with producers reporting healthy yields, high sugars and balanced acidity in the grapes.
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Pancho Campo MW resigns from Spanish Wine Academy
Pancho Campo MW has resigned as president of the Spanish Wine Academy after a Madrid journalist discovered an arrest warrant for him on the Interpol website.
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Northern off licence chain goes into administration
Independent wine and convenience store chain, Wine Cellar, has gone into administration.
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Bubbles hold the flavour of fizz
It's the bubbles that give Champagne its flavour confirming the long-held view that Champagnes with a fine and persistent mousse, or stream of bubbles, are of a higher quality.
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Computer game creates Wine Tycoons
A new computer wine game Wine Tycoon is being launched in the United States.
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Smaller measures legalised
The UK Government plans to allow sample measures of wine to be served in bars and restaurants by deregulating wine measures under 75ml.
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Laithwaites sets up in Hong Kong
Direct Wines, owner of the Sunday Times Wine Club and Laithwaites, is to launch a new wine club with Hong Kong newspaper, The South China Morning Post.
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Nicolas Catena is Man of the Year
Decanter magazine's Man of the Year 2009 is Nicolas Catena owner of Argentinian winery Catena Zapata.
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Imported 'B.C.' wines annoy locals
British Columbian wines are the focus of media attention and consumer outrage after revelations that bulk imported wine is being sold as B.C. wine.
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Waitrose to take shoppers on journey from 'supermarket to vineyard'
Waitrose is planning to take consumers on organised wine tours in an attempt to educate them about their wine range.
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Protest against Mosel bridge that could desecrate wine region
The wine writer Hugh Johnson is protesting against a new bridge and motorway which he says will desecrate some of the Mosel's finest vineyards.
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London restaurant cuts price of fine wine
Soho restaurant Bob Bob Ricard is undercutting its competitors on the price of fine wines.
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Louis Roederer wine writers' awards announced
Wine writers had their chance to shine this week at the 2009 Louis Roederer International Wine Writers' Awards held in London.
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