After years of rapid expansion, the UK’s low & no-alcohol sector is entering a new phase of maturity. Rob Hallworth, senior client insight partner at NIQ, shares the data view After several years of strong momentum, the UK’s low & no alcohol sector enters 2026 as a maturing, mainstream category. The latest NIQ data reveals a category that continues…

Following the inaugural Definitive Champagne Tasting held last year, a selection of Champagne producers once again descended on London yesterday [22 April] to showcase the best of their offerings. A strong time for Champagne in the UK, the event followed recent export figures from the Comité Champagne, revealing that shipments to the UK increased by 1.9% in volume, a pleasant divergence from the previous year, which saw volumes plummet…

Alcohol spend has continued to decline across most major world markets, with the premiumisation trend slowing, according to new data from the IWSR.  Long hailed as the bright spot amid general decline, the insights company explained that premiumisation is no longer holding steady and has even slipped into reverse in some markets.  In preliminary data, the IWSR added…

You’ve heard that consumers are going premium, but do Buzzballz disprove this? Lizzy O’Riordan considers If you’ve been paying attention over the past few years, you’ve probably heard that consumers are drinking less, premiumising more and imbibing lower-abv drinks. Yet, at the same time, an undeniable countertrend is taking place: the rise of Buzzballz. A high-sugar, high-abv, colourful pop of…

Cider’s long-held reliance on sunshine and summer drinking occasions is being challenged as new data reveals falling volumes despite record warm weather. Ciderologist Gabe Cook examines why the category is leaking drinkers – and how to win them back Benjamin Franklin was one of the founding fathers of the United States of America and was, as it happens, a huge cider enthusiast and…

Pear cider is globally thriving – whatever the major brands might say – writes Adam Wells One of the more eyebrow-raising moments in the cider world last year was when, asked the somewhat leading question of whether perry was dead in an interview for The Grocer, Westons’ then head of business development Darryl Hinksman replied that it was. The question…

From hazy IPAs to pastry stouts, craft beer spent a decade chasing bigger flavours and louder styles. Now, brewers and drinkers are rediscovering the quiet brilliance of lager, writes Katie Mather In 1876, a brewer from northern Europe emigrated to Barcelona and took beer culture with him. Eventually, the lager he had brewed back home in what was then German Alsace evolved to…