Drinks Retailing’s parent company, Agile Media, has acquired the licence to the Sommelier Wine Awards. The deal, with Imbibe Live organiser Reed Exhibitions, will see the competition return in 2024. Launched in 2007, The Sommelier Wine Awards has a reputation as the “wine reference for sommeliers and on trade looking for quality and independently accredited wines to add to their wine list”, Agile Media said…

The Scotch Whisky Association (SWA) has called on the UK government to rethink its plans to increase duty on spirits, while sharing figures that demonstrate the importance of spirits to the overall growth of the drinks industry.  As of August 2023, duty on spirits is set to rise by 10.1%, the trade group said. The SWA has strongly contested this increase, and has…

Drinks trade groups have welcomed the appointment of Liz Truss as the next prime minister, but they have warned that the industry is facing major challenges. Mark Kent, chief executive of the Scotch Whisky Association (SWA) said Truss takes office at a critical time, “with the cost-of-living crisis at the forefront of minds”. “Ahead of the Autumn Budget, it is vital that the UK government…

The Scotch Whisky Association (SWA) has registered ‘Scotch whisky’ as a certification trademark in the US as it looks to protect its national drink. The US is the category’s largest global market, worth around £800 million in 2021. The SWA said the recognition of Scotch whisky as a trademark “strengthens the legal protection for Scotland’s national drink in the United States, which is already protected…

The Scotch Whisky Association has reported growth in value and volumes for Scotch whisky exports, as the category continues to recover from the pandemic and US tariffs. The SWA said late last week that global exports grew 19% in value, to £4.51bn, in 2021. The number of 70cl bottles exported also grew by 21%, to the equivalent of 1.38bn. However, despite the return to growth…

Halewood Artisanal Spirits has sold its alcohol-free wine brand Eisberg as part of its strategy to focus on the premium spirits sector. The alcohol-free wine brand has been acquired by the producers of wine-based drinks Schloss Wachenheim AG (SWA). The two businesses have been production partners since 2006, with SWA playing an integral part in the continued success of the Eisberg brand. During recent years…

The Scotch Whisky Association has launched a campaign urging consumers to write to their MPs to press for action to fight US tariffs on whisky imports. The Call Time on Tariffs campaign is a response to the imposition of a 25% tariff on shipments of single malt Scotch whisky to the US market introduced last October. The SWA said the tariff had resulted in the…