Douglas Blyde walks through a forest of 70,000 mosaic tiles to the recently reopened Yong Yi Ting restaurant in Shanghai, where he experiences a "Negroni-scented" tea and "the best red wine in China". “This tastefully furnished restaurant comes with lush garden views and a charming water terrace,” praised Michelin of Yong Yi Ting, which has retained a star since the guide arrived in China in 2017, while Fodor’s described the experience of dining here as “nothing less than exquisite…” Design Turning eleven in May, the five-star tower overlooks the Huangpu River and its misty, leafy promenade ..read more

The word 'wine' should be removed from alcohol-free wine products, according to Italian agricultural minister Francesco Lollobrigida, who is also the brother-in-law of Italian prime minister Giorgia Meloni. Lollobrigida, who works at the department for agriculture, food sovereignty and forestry (Masaf) made the comments at the opening of the country's annual wine trade fair, Vinitaly. He said: “Let’s make non-alcoholic drinks, but not call them wine." "Our wine is worth more than 8 billion in exports and is chosen on the domestic market because it expresses quality and gives safety. The best ..read more

Bordeaux château Branaire-Ducru has opened a new vat house, which had doubled the number of tanks to allow for greater precision vinification, becoming the first suspended vat house in Médoc. The project is the culmination of three year’s work, in which the team worked in collaboration with Bordeaux-based designers Atelier des Architectes Mazières using local companies for the construction of the new vat room. The new vat room has expanded the number of tanks from 38 to 75 stainless tanks, with 65 of those suspended, allowing for 100% gravity-fed vatting. The new vats replace the previous 237 ..read more

In the second of his two-part vintage report, Bordeaux correspondent Colin Hay looks at the main features of a growing season that was notable for the significant challenges it posed and looks at what this means for the quality.  As noted in part one of this Bordeaux vintage report, 2023 is a vintage that is likely to be judged favourably – a good and perhaps even a very good vintage, but it is not one that would not have turned out well even a decade ago. Its heterogeneity prevents it from being regarded as exceptional even it if is likely to have produced a number of truly exceptional ..read more

Lottery winner Adrian Bayford, who won the EuroMillions jackpot in 2012, has planted a vineyard on his estate in Suffolk. EuroMillions winner Adrian Bayford, who pocketed £148million, is rumoured to have planted Meunier vines on his property's estate in the Suffolk town of Haverhill, leading to speculation that he is about to enter the world of English sparkling production. Any wine business he starts would be neighbours with fellow English sparkling producers Flint, Giffords Hall and Coopers Croft. But he could be sitting on the ideal terroir for English fizz. Vineyards in Suffolk are known ..read more

Monster Beverage's recent moves to lay off brewery staff and consolidate its craft beer operations are being eyed from across the sector. The drinks giant originally made its name in the energy drinks category before acquiring the CANarchy craft beer platform in January 2022 in a US$330 million deal which marked its first foray into alcoholic beverages. Despite the promise that the category has shown over the years, Monster has reportedly laid off a dozen staff members at its Cigar City Brewery, just two years after taking ownership of the business. The move, according to Brewbound, to d ..read more

Customers at the Al Condominio restaurant in Verona, Italy can cash in on a free bottle of wine. All they have to do is hand over their phones. Angelo Lella, the owner of Al Condominio, opened the restaurant in the Northern Italian city of Verona in March. He said he wanted to mark the restaurant out as being "different from the others", and decided to push for customers to leave their smartphones at the door. “We picked this format – customers can choose to renounce technology while enjoying a convivial moment together," he said, according to The Guardian. "Technology is becoming a problem ..read more

No- and low-alcohol drinks will generate 50% of Asahi's beverage sales by 2040, the Japanese multinational's chief executive has said. Atsushi Katsuki, head of the company which produces beers including Asahi Super Dry, Peroni Nastro Azzurro and Pilsner Urquell, has said that lower ABV drinks offer a big opportunity for the company. Japanese consumers, in a bid to be more health-conscious, are rejecting beer, wine and spirits, creating a gap in the market for drinks in the no- and low-alcohol category. “It’s a big opportunity as long as we can go down the premium path,” Katsuki told the ..read more

Wavey Ice has said it is “breaking the stereotype of whiskey being a sophisticated flavour” by launching a new Irish whiskey ice pop. The new 6.25% ABV ‘Twisted Tropical & Whiskey’ flavour ice pop is being positioned as the “perfect this adult summer treat” and muddles “tropical fruits like mango, orange, pineapple, and passionfruit” with “the smoky notes of whiskey”. Speaking to the drinks business, Wavey Ice Inc head of marketing Alex Alderdice said that to create the new flavour Wavey uses “a white labelled Irish whiskey” and pointed out that the creation is “a trendy way to enjoy whis ..read more

Chilean producer VIK believes its 'circular wine' is a world first. db discovers the intimate connection to the terroir behind Stone VIK. Stone VIK, like many innovative projects, began as a challenge. Specifically, it began with the barrels. As a producer of fine red wines, VIK had always recognised the importance of high-quality barrels. Its oak, sourced from a renowned French cooperage, was everything you would expect from a top producer. In short, it fit the archetype of a world-class Chilean producer. Yet the 20-year-old company also puts particular emphasis on its vineyards and terroir ..read more