The average cost of a bottle of wine has risen to its highest-ever figure of £5.11 on the back of escalating taxation – but there are signs consumers are still prepared to trade up, according to new Nielsen data.

The Co-operative Group’s new wine boss plans to move away from discounts and overhaul its own-label range.

Oddbins is set to undergo its first overhaul in 17 years with a new look across stores as its owner pledges to make the chain profitable by 2015.

Tesco has launched a website that allows customers to buy cases of wine at discount prices through an emerging e-commerce model called co-buying.

Suppliers have reignited the debate over the approach taken by retailers’ buying teams with calls for them to spend more time in-store and less at head office or visiting wineries abroad.

Australian Vintage has vowed to put Aussie Riesling in the spotlight in a bid to revive the varietal on the back of its successful repositioning of Semillion.

Selfridges promises its customers “an Aladdin’s cave of new, boutique, exclusive one-off products and gifts” after opening a new wine store.

Westons Cider has introduced a price-marked pack for Stowford Press to build on volume growth of 69% in the off-trade (IRI Volume MAT to April 27, 2013).

Sainsbury’s has upped the ante in the own-label wine battleground with the launch of the next phase of its Winemakers’ Selection range.

Wine Australia’s chief executive Andrew Cheesman has resigned to “pursue other opportunities within the wine sector”.

C&C has reported a small decrease in net revenue for the business year to the end of February 2013 but operating profit rose 2.4 per cent.

Australian media tycoon Rupert Murdoch has bought a 6.5ha vineyard in Bel Air, California, for a fee believed to be in the region of £19 million. 

HMRC officers raided 49 off licences in Edinburgh and seized 5,641 litres of counterfeit booze. 

Portman Group chairman Seymour Fortescue will step down on 18 June after four years in the role.

Winemaker Katie Jones has started believing in angels after 2,500 Naked Wines customers came to her rescue when vandals destroyed her entire white vintage.

Laithwaite’s Wine has signed former England cricket captain David Gower as its new brand ambassador.

Health secretary Jeremy Hunt insists the omission of minimum unit pricing laws from the Queen’s speech does not amount to a final nail in the coffin for the planned legislation.

The London International Wine Fair will return to Kensington Olympia in 2014, with cheaper rates designed to attract exhibitors that have deserted the event in recent years.

Global sensations The Three Tons of Fun have been confirmed as the headline entertainment for the Off Licence News and Origin Wines VIP industry bash taking place at this month’s London International Wine Fair.