Understanding how members of the public use your website is essential in ensuring that it’s really working for you. Jeremy Anderson from digital design agency Obergine looks at how and why you should get to grips with google analytics

his heart might belong to spirits, but Marcis Dzelzainis also has a soft spot for fortified wines

Duty rises are inevitable – the industry should stop whining

How about a bit less quizzing and a bit more camaraderie, dear bartenders?

hey managers! there’s a difference between delegating and passing the buck you know, says our woman on the inside

Rum mix topped with bubbly

Has the UK market lost its appeal for foreign wine producers?

What is it about competitions that makes some bartenders think they are God, asks our girl on the inside?

The whole concept of house wines is a recipe for an uninspiring night for your customers – and lower profits for you

Can the pull of the exotic lead us to pass over excellence at home?

what is it that makes websites worth reading? holly davis from digital design agency Obergine tells you how to write great online copy, In the second of our new series

Would a more structured approach to training raise standards and attract more young Brits into sommeliering as a career? James Lawrence talks to the trade both here and abroad to find out

It’s often overlooked, but Marcis Dzelzainis tells us why calvados is the apple of his eye

Any Port in the storm of Martinis

River Café's Emily O'Hare writes to us from her trip down under, of victory lunches and beach cricket