South Africa harvest at record high
May 16, 2013 Wine production in South Africa is expected to reach an all-time high this year after the 2013 grape harvest outstripped expectations to reach nearly 1.5m tons. Overcoming a late and slow start to the growing season, every region except Robertson...
CARICOM defends intention to take rum issue to WTO
Caribbean Community (CARICOM) countries say they will continue to oppose subsidies being granted to UK-based Diageo, one of the world's biggest producers of rum, because of the impact the subsidy is having on rum producers in the Caribbean. CARICOM Secretary General...
National Transportation Safety Board urges lowering drunken driving threshold to 0.05
May 15, 2013 - States should cut their threshold for drunken driving by nearly half – from 0.08 blood alcohol level to 0.5 – matching a standard that has substantially reduced highway deaths in other countries, a U.S. safety board recommends. That’s about one drink...
Campari Q1 results disappointing – US spirits business positive highlight with organic sales up 7.6%
Poor results in small first quarter 2013 mainly due to the 'one-off' destocking in Italy " Contribution after A&P: € 115.1 million (-1.6%, organic change -13.8%, 36.5% of sales) " EBITDA pre one-offs: € 57.1 million (-20.0%, organic change -26.6%, 18.1% of sales)...
Moet Hennessy launched its third winery in China, expected to produce the best quality red wine in China
Moet Hennessy, the wine and spirits division of the French luxury group LVMH, has launched a new winery in Deqin county, in Yunnan province, and officials said the company is planning to boost its presence further in China. "China is expected to stay as our largest...
Caribbean calls for ‘amicable solution’ in rum dispute with US producers
The Caribbean Community (CARICOM) Council for Trade and Economic Development (COTED) has reiterated the need for an amicable solution to the rum dispute with the United States. The Guyana-based CARICOM Secretariat in a statement following the meeting of regional trade...
Missouri lawmakers advance liquor franchise legislation
The Missouri House has advanced liquor legislation that has been the topic of intense lobbying and several lawsuits recently, by tying the proposal to a homebrewed beer bill that — in contrast — has drawn relatively little attention this session. The move just the...
Michigan Senate OKs expansion of wine, beer sales
Legislation expanding the list of places where Michiganians can buy bottles of wine or jugs of beer won approval Tuesday in the Michigan Senate. The three bills are the first in a series of beer, wine and liquor law changes the Snyder administration and lawmakers are...
Diageo names Ivan Menezes CEO starting July 2013
The list of Indians going on to head global multinationals has a new addition. Ivan Menezes will take as the CEO of Diageo, the world's largest spirits company, from July 1, 2013. Paul Walsh, who will step down from the Board at the September 2013 Annual General...