The most popular news stories of 2018

Diageo releases Game of Thrones whisky

In October, we reported that Diageo had released an extended range of whiskies based on the TV series Game of Thrones, comprising the limited-edition White Walker by Johnnie Walker and The Game of Thrones Single Malt Scotch Whisky Collection.

Unsurprisingly, this news has proved a hit with fans of the HBO fantasy drama, with the eight series of the programme due to be aired next year.

Jeff Peters, vice president, licensing & retail at HBO, said: “We knew there was fan appetite for a Game of Thrones whisky and once we saw the vision from Johnnie Walker for a way to collaborate we knew the idea was perfect and the time was now.

“From the beginning, they understood that we wanted to create something special, and they’ve accomplished that with White Walker by Johnnie Walker. We’re confident fans will enjoy sipping this delicious whisky as they wait for season eight and beyond.”

This website tells you if you have a drinking problem

It seems many of our readers are a little concerned that they overindulge a bit too often.

Back at the start of the year, we reported on a new website launched by US health officials that claims to be able to tell users if they have a drinking problem, and how to get help.

Users are invited to take a short survey which determines their level of use or misuse.

The questions list symptoms of the drinking disorder. The more symptoms a user exhibits, the more urgent their need for change, according to the website.

“We now know that there’s a full spectrum in alcohol use disorder,” George Koob, the director of the NIAAA told NPR.

“A lot of people struggling with alcohol problems do not know where to turn. 90% of adults in the U.S. with an alcohol use disorder don’t get any treatment whatsoever.

Storing wine on its side is nonsense, says scientist 

The words of Amorim’s director of R&D, Dr Miguel Cabral, provoked a bit of a debate on thedrinksbusiness.com back in June.

Cabral told db‘s editor-in-chief, Patrick Schmitt MW, that the headspace of a sealed bottle of wine was so moist that there was no need to place bottles on their side to keep the cork damp.

“The cork will never dry out with almost 100% humidity in the headspace, so it is a myth that you need to store a bottle on its side,” he said.

Continuing, he said that such humidity would ensure that the cork “won’t dry out if you store the bottle upright.”

He also said that creating moist ambient conditions during wine storage was unnecessary for bottled wine (although for barrel cellars it is important to reduce evaporation).

Conor McGregor launches whiskey label

MMA champion Conor McGregor’s whiskey label also caused quite a stir when it was finally released back in September.

Proper No. Twelve Irish Whiskey, produced by Eire Born Spirits, is a blended Irish whiskey made by master distiller David Elderman. McGregor is the majority shareholder, CEO and chairman of the brand.

The spirit flew off shelves in Ireland following its release, with Tesco stores being forced to ration customers to two bottles per purchase. The store also posted a warning to customers on Facebook that supplies were running low.

According to media reports, fans are now flogging their empty bottles on eBay for more money than they bought the bottle for…

Wine condoms now a million dollar business

You have to applaud their ingenuity. In August, we reported than an entrepreneurial mother and son duo are laughing all the way to the bank, as their quirky ‘wine condom’ business has amassed over a million dollars in sales.

Founded in 2014 off the back of a successful Kickstarter campaign by entrepreneur Mitch Strahan and his 51-year-old mother Laura Bartlett, the pair describe their novel product as “the ultimate protection for wine lovers”.

Aimed at drinkers looking to reseal their wine, each disposable latex “condom”, developed by a rubber company specialising in food, can be used on any bottle.

Sold in $15 packs of six, the portable stoppers provide “on-the-go protection”, and, unlike actual condoms, can be used more than once.

Beer company rescues Jamaican bobsleigh team with new sled

Back in February, the Winter Olympics brought news of a bizarre rescue mission involving the Jamaican bobsleigh team and beer company Red Stripe. After the Jamaican women’s bobsleigh team were left without a sled when a team coach quit just days before their first-ever Olympic appearance, Red Stripe stepped in, offering to fund a new sled on Twitter.

In a move that might just prompt a Cool Runnings sequel, Red Stripe said: “No bobsled, no problem. If you need a new ride Jamaican Bobsled team, put it on Red Stripe’s tab”. The brewer told the team to send a message to arrange the deal.

Later speaking to the Gleaner, JBSF president Chris stokes said: “We have been gifted a bobsled from Red Stripe. We have accepted their generosity and we are currently preparing the sled.

“The team is in competition mode and we are focused on one goal – coming to the start line prepared mentally and physically. We have had some challenges in Pyeongchang, but we stand united and thank our fans and colleagues for their unwavering support”

Jancis Robinson launches wine glass in response to ‘everyday frustration’

In response to an “everyday frustration”, the renowned Master of Wine wanted to create a glass designed to offer “the best tasting experience for every wine”, whatever its style or strength.

Robinson said: “I was looking for the perfect wine glass. I love white wine as much as red and have never understood why white wine glasses are routinely smaller than those designed for red wine.

“White wines can be just as complex, and just as deserving of what you might call aroma enhancement as reds. It just seems so obvious and sensible to have one single wine glass for all three colours of wine – especially when so many of us are short of storage space.

“On my travels around the world of wine, it has become really noticeable in the last few years that producers of Champagne and other sparkling wines, as well as those making sherry, port and other fortified wines, want their precious liquids to be appreciated in just the same way as table wines.”

The product of a partnership between Robinson and London-based product designer Richard Brendon, the new range called ‘1 Collection’ includes the wine glass, a water glass, young wine decanter and old wine decanter.

Pair of 1926 Macallan whiskies sold for record $1.2m

C&C and AB InBev acquire Matthew Clark and Bibendum

With the collapse of UK wholesaler Conviviality earlier this year, news that Matthew Clark and Bibendum were to be acquired by Magners cider maker C&C Group received many hits from readers.

Completing the purchase on 4 April, C&C, which was provided with financial assistance from the world’s largest brewer, AB InBev, acquired Matthew Clark, Bibendum PLB and subsidiary businesses Catalyst, Peppermint, Elastic and Walker & Wodehouse.

Conviviality troubles began after it issued its first profit warning on 8 March in which it declared that a “material error” in its financial forecasts had meant that its profit would be £5.2 million less than expected.

This was followed by an update on 14 March in which it added that it was facing a £30 million tax bill and had suspended trading in its shares. CEO Diana Hunter later stepped down from the board on 19 March.

Conviviality’s retail division, including Bargain Booze and Wine Rack, were later sold to UK grocery retailer and wholesaler Bestway for £7.25 million.

Heineken-owned Laguintas has launched a non-alcoholic cannabis ‘beer’ infused with THC

This year has also seen a number of high-profile drinks companies express interest, or indeed actually invest, in the cannabis sector. As an off-shot of this, many brewers are increasingly experience with low alcohol and non-alcoholic drinks that are infused with substances including THC and CBD.

The latest investment was announced just yesterday, when the world’s largest brewer, AB InBev, and Canadian cannabis company, Tilray, are to invest US$50 million each in a new research partnership to develop a “deeper understanding” of non-alcoholic beverages containing THC and CBD in order to “guide future decisions”.

Among those investing is Heineken, the owner of US craft brewer Lagunitas, which has launched an “IPA-inspired, THC-infused sparkling water”.

Hi-Fi Hops, which was launched on Tuesday 26 June, is available in two versions – one with 10 mg of THC, and one with 5 mg of THC and 5 mg of CBD. The new product will be sold in California’s cannabis dispensaries.

Johnny Depp spent ‘far more’ than £30k on wine

In June, in a bizarre, illuminating interview with Rolling Stone, troubled actor Johnny Depp admitted to spending “far more” than $30,000 on wine, as had been previously reported.

During a red wine-fuelled, 72-hour interview with Rolling Stone, which ran with the headline: ‘The Trouble with Johnny Depp’, the actor seemed keen to set the record straight about just how much cash he’d splashed on fine wine.

“It’s insulting to say that I spent $30,000 on wine. Because it was far more,” Depp told interviewer Stephen Rodrick, who compared the actor to “a late-era Marlon Brando” and “a worn Dorian Gray”.

Allegedly Depp has managed to fritter away almost all of his $650m fortune on sprawling mansions, old guitars, Andy Warhol artworks, designer clothes, luxury cars, private jets, a 40 strong entourage, a cluster of islands in the Bahamas and vintage wine.

“It’s my money. If I want to buy 15,000 cotton balls a day, it’s my thing,” Depp told The Wall Street Journal last year.

EU slaps 25% tariff on US whisky and bourbon

Also in June, the EU Commission confirmed that it would be imposing a tariff on imports of Bourbon and American whiskey from July, in retaliation to president Donald Trump’s decision to impose a 25% tax on imports on steel.

In March, president Trump imposed a 25% import duty on steel and a 10% duty on aluminium in Europe, Mexico and Canada, claiming that such imports threatened its own national security and put US jobs at risk.

The US and China have also been embroiled in a bitter trade tariff dispute, however, this month the two countries agreed to pause the ongoing tit-for-tat trade war for the next three months to negotiate deals.

Trump agreed that the US government would hold off on raising tariffs on US$200 billion worth of goods to 25% from a current level of 10%, which would otherwise take effect from 1 January next year.

Xi promised an unspecified increase of purchases of American goods, and according to Trump’s immediate tweet, China would also lower the current 40% tariff on US car imports.

The truce, however, does not mean that the two countries have agreed to remove punitive tariffs so far.

Ryan Reynolds buys Aviation Gin

As an increasing number of celebs buy into booze, it was news that actor Ryan Reynolds had bought a “significant” stake in the US-based Aviation Gin, back in February, that proved particularly popular.

The Deadpool star purchased an “ownership interest” in the US gin, based out of Portland in Oregon, its co-owner Davos Brands has confirmed.

Since then, he has appeared in a number of tongue-in-cheek marketing promotions for the brand, including one in which he talked viewers through the gin’s ‘production process’, which includes four hours of silent mediation, an ordination by the Unitarian Church and citrus fruits misted with his tears.

In September, Reynolds and Virgin boss Sir Richard Branson announced a partnership that will see Aviation Gin served on Virgin Atlantic flights

Diageo rumoured to be lining up cannabis deal

In another Cannabis story, in August, we covered the news that UK-based alcoholic drinks giant Diageo was reported to be in talks with at least three leading cannabis producers as it considers adding marijuana-infused drinks to its portfolio.

As reported by BNN Bloomberg, which stated that it received the information from “multiple sources familiar with the matter”, Diageo has held “serious discussions” with at least three major cannabis producers.

It met with several Canadian companies to discuss a possible investment or collaboration to create new cannabis-infused drinks, according to BNN Bloomberg.

A spokesperson from Diageo refused to comment on the reports, but did add: “As we’ve said before, we are monitoring this space closely”.

Man in coma after Champagne bottle explodes between his legs

Champagne bottles must be opened with care, as they can contain pressure as high as 90 pounds per square inch – more than the pressure found inside a typical car tire.

This unfortunate incident took place at the beginning of the year during the New Year celebrations. A Danish man was left in a coma after the bottle exploded between his legs as he tried to open it.

He was injured on New Year’s Eve when a bottle exploded between his legs and a shattered shard of glass cut through an artery in his leg, causing him significant loss of blood, as reported by The Local.

While Champagne-related injuries are rare, they are most commonly caused by dislodging of a cork at high speed rather than shattered glass.

Famous examples include in 2015 when tennis player Novak Djokovic hit himself in the face with a cork after winning the Italian open, and in 2014 when an Italian council official caused €1,000 of damage after a cork shot through an 18th-century Italian oil painting.