Bacardi has appointed Andy J Gibson to the role of chief marketing officer and president of Bacardi Global Brands.

A bottle of Hine Grande Champagne Cognac from 1952, to commemorate the accession to the throne of Queen Elizabeth II, is among several lots of Cognac to feature in auctioneers Bonhams’ sale on February 14 in London.

Gruppo Campari has sold liqueur brand Punch Barbieri to Distillerie Moccia for € 4.45 million.

Diageo to expand its archive

01 February, 2013

Diageo has announced plans to invest £1.5 million in expanding the its global brand archive.

Paul Walsh has disputed there are bourbon and tequila gaps in Diageo’s portfolio and said the group’s priority is building existing brands, not acquisitions.

Diageo CEO Paul Walsh today said down-trading markets in southern Europe could have a positive effect on Diageo’s Scotch brands.

Diageo, the world’s largest premium alcoholic drinks company, has announced its interim results for the six months ended December 31, 2012

Diageo has announced an agreement to buy a 50% interest in the company which owns United National Breweries’ traditional sorghum beer business inSouth Africa.

Climats du Vignoble de Bourgogne, a lobby organisation for the Burgundy region of France has failed to get the world famous wine-producing vineyards of the region listed by UNESCO as one of its World Heritage sites.

Get Carter for the LIWF

24 January, 2013

Brintex, organisers of the London International Wine Fair (LIWF), have announced  the appointment of Ross Carter as exhibition director, replacing James Murray who resigned after 10 years in the role.

Sichel results

23 January, 2013

Bordeaux-based producer and négociant, Maison Sichel has reported that 2012 was the company’s second best year since it was established in 1883.

An EU court has dismissed Budweiser Budvar’s challenge against AB Inbev's use of the term ‘Bud’  in the latest round of the decades-long trademark saga.

Specialist bottler, Cobevco will be offering ‘bag-in-box’ as part of its beverage filling capabilities from the end of May.

Beam sells value brands

22 January, 2013

Beam has sold several spirits brands to Luxco for $65 million.

Pernod Ricard has announced formally the signing of an agreement with Arcus-Gruppen to sell the Danish spirits brands Aalborg and Brøndums, German brand Malteserkreuz Aquavit, and the Danish bitter brand Gammel Dansk. The Aalborg production facility in Denmark is part of the transaction.

Wine distributor Steven Garnier has appointed Daniel Hart to the newly created role of agency manager. He was formerly senior buyer at Enotria. 

Roust appoints CEO

16 January, 2013

Russian Standard distributor Roust has appointed Oleg Kirillin to the role of CEO.

Molson Coors UK & Ireland has bought the Franciscan Well craft beer brand and micro-brewery in Cork City, Ireland.

South Africa’s 2012 exports reached 417 million litres, the largest amount that the country has exported to date and 10 million litres more than the previous record, according to Wines of South Africa (Wosa) the generic body for the South African wine industry.

Wine Country Ontario won Best Generic Wine Body at the Wine Tourism Awards 2013.

Champagne Nicolas Feuillatte saw volume slide by 6% in 2012, but managed to retain value.

Wines of South Africa has said that riots in the Western Cape don't appear to be connected to the wine industry.

Bacardi has appointed Eric A Kraus to a newly created role of senior vice president, chief communications and corporate affairs officer.

Consumers’ fear of fakes is the biggest obstacle to imported wine sales in the Chinese off-trade, according to Wine Intelligence.

The Wemyss family is to open a new £3 million distillery in Fife next year where it will produce Kingsbarns Single Malt Whisky.  

William Grant & Sons marked its 125th anniversary on Christmas Day last year by distilling a spirit that will be released in decades to come as a Christmas-themed Glenfiddich.

Bacardi buys St-Germain

08 January, 2013

Bacardi today announced plans to "internationalise" the elderflower liqueur St-Germain, after buying the brand from Cooper Spirits International.

The Wine & Spirits Wholesalers of America (WSWA) has joined a coalition of 107 organisations calling for President Obama to take action to prevent a strike at ports spanning the coast from Houston to Boston.

Beam has acquired Irish whiskey brand 2 Gingers for an undisclosed sum.

The Craft Distillers Alliance has criticised a brewery in East Anglia for breaking the rules governing the production of whisky after it launched a new spirits product made with one of its beers.

Olivier Bernard of Domaine de Chevalier and Financière Bernard, is the new president of the Union des Grands Crus de Bordeaux.

Marisco Vineyards owner Brent Marris has bought the Leefield Station property in the Waihopai Valley, Marlborough.

New Zealand Winegrowers has announced the appointment of Chris Stroud as its new marketing manager – Europe.

Stock buys Slovak company

17 December, 2012

Stock Spirits Group has acquired Slovak spirits company Imperator and an ethanol manufacturing plant in Germany.

Inter Beaujolais calling for entries for this year’s International Gamay competition, now in its third year.

Diageo has announced shareholders of United Spirits Limited have approved the preferential allotment to Diageo, at a price of INR1440 per share, of new shares amounting to 10% of the post-issue enlarged share capital of USL.

The Scotch Whisky Association (SWA) has announced two trade agreements with Colombia and Peru and its Association Agreement with Central America.

James Cluer MW of Fine Vintage has announced the opening of a Wine & Spirit Education Trust (WSET) - approved wine school in Tuscany, in partnership with the Consorzio Chianti Classico.

Attracting younger wine drinkers and in-country representation is key to success in Asia, says research commissioned by Messe Düsseldorf, the company behind ProWein.

SPI Group has appointed Andreas Ioannides to the role of regional director of the Middle East, Africa and India.

Diageo cuts Cuervo ties

11 December, 2012

Diageo has terminated discussions with JB y Compania SA de CV and Lanceros SA de CV over the sale of Jose Cuervo tequila.

Diageo is to launch US$10 million strategy to "empower" two million women in 17 countries in Asia-Pacific by 2017.

Diageo and Suntory have held talks about bidding $10 billion for American drinks giant, Beam, according to reports in today’s Sunday Telegraph (December 9).

Gin sales have peaked in the UK, while tequila, bourbon and rum are on the rise, according to Mangrove Spirits.

US distillers closer to Russia

07 December, 2012

The Distilled Spirits Council of the US (DISCUS) has applauded the Senate's approval of legislation that will extend permanent normal trade relations (PNTR) to Russia.

Château Bernadotte from the Haut-Medoc, Bordeaux, has been acquired by Hong Kong group King Power Group from Louis Roederer.

Tourism, not agriculture, is the future for the Western Cape, according to Charles Back, whose Fairview farm is one of the most popular tourist destinations in South Africa.

Pernod Ricard Chatter

04 December, 2012

Share a new idea every day is the catch phrase of Pernod Ricard Chatter, its first corporate social network.

Drunk children

04 December, 2012

UK: Children of parents who drink above the Government’s unit guidelines are more likely to have been drunk than children of parents who drink less, according to Drinkaware.

One direction for LIWF

03 December, 2012

Brintex, the organiser of the London International Wine Fair, has announced new initiatives to reinvigorate the 2013 show.

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