England is not always the first country that springs to mind when thinking about wine, but it has a long history of viticulture. It’s generally thought that the Romans brought wine and vines to Britain and by the time of the Norman Conquest vineyards and wine production took place in many monasteries, predominantly in the south of England. Production continued in varying amounts across the country over the next few centuries, however there was a dramatic decline in winemaking on a commercial basis in the period between the World Wars. There was a re-establishment of the English Wine Industry in the 1950s led by passionate pioneers using modern techniques and strain of grapes more suited to the climate. Fast forward to now and we are seeing a renaissance of English Wine Production with 80 wineries launched in the UK in 2017 up from 64 in 2016 according to accountancy UHY Hacker Young.

Raffles has announced the opening of the 21-villa Beach Island Experience in the rare Maldivian oasis of Gaafu Alifu Atoll. This is Accor’s fourth property in the Maldives and is the first under the Raffles brand.

The main island is home to Beach Villas and Beach Residences which opens on 9 May 2019, featuring private pools, generous living spaces and lavish marble bathroom with a sunken bathtub and outdoor shower. The Raffles Royal Residence and a secluded collection of Overwater Villas and Residences, which lies adjacent to one of the vibrant house reefs, which can be reached by a traditional Maldivian Dhoni boat, is set to launch during the last quarter of 2019.

CELEBRATING BRITISH PRODUCE & LONDON’S MEDITERRANEANS WITH GASTRONOMIC SANDWICHES, APERITIVO & VERMOUTH COCKTAILS

 Spelzini is an all-day restaurant and bar in the heart of Shoreditch, that celebrates the best of British produce and the culinary traditions of London’s Mediterranean community.

Open for breakfast, brunch, lunch, dinner and Aperitivo, Spelzini serves simple, quick and affordable dishes, from gastronomic Sandwiches to gluten-free Chickpea Flour Flat Bread Pizzas and Cicchetti-style sharing plates, alongside an eclectic drinks menu of wine, aperitifs and vermouth cocktails.

As the Food Standards Agency (FSA) Board backs mandatory full ingredient labelling for foods that are pre-packed for direct sale (PPDS), new research launched today by food safety experts Navitas Group highlights how confusion around existing food allergen labelling puts customers at risk.

Navitas research found that almost half (48%) of those who said they look for allergen information when eating out were not fully aware of the different labelling regulations around food freshly prepped and packaged in a food outlet for direct sale and food pre-packed offsite. This confusion is despite recent high profile tragedies linked to food allergens.

Leading independent hotel group, Elite Hotels, has selected the next budding hospitality professionals to join its exclusive Trainee Management Programme in 2019.

A rigorous application process was carried out to identify the brightest hospitality talents, which began in January with written applications, followed by telephone interviews and then a two-day assessment at Ashdown Park Hotel & Country Club in East Sussex.

One of the Lake District’s newest restaurants held a successful charity function on Friday night to raise more than £8,000 for The Swallows Head & Neck Cancer Support Group.  The event was organised by the Smith family, in recognition of Craig Smith, who died from Squamous Cell Carcinoma in October 2018.  Proceeds go directly to The Swallows Head & Neck Cancer Support Group, in addition to funding research into less intrusive forms of treatment.

The Meetings Industry Association (mia) is highlighting the importance of looking after employee mental health and wellbeing during Mental Health Awareness Week (13-19 May).

Raising awareness of mental health, compassion and resilience in the events and hospitality sector is an ongoing mission for the mia, which launched a campaign in 2017 to help support improvements in mental health care across the industry.

SodaStream International LTD. today unveiled its latest video campaign, “Say Goodbye”, featuring Game Of Thrones actors Thor Bjornsson AKA “The Mountain”, Hannah Waddingham AKA “Septa” and Kristian Nairn AKA “Hodor”.

Capitalising on the popularity of the programme, which is due to conclude its eighth and final season this coming Sunday, the video shows each actor struggling with single-use plastic bottles in everyday situations before realising that they should say goodbye to them. As the ninth video that SodaStream has created with the series’ actors in just three years, the collaboration has been key to engaging millions of consumers around the world in recognising the global challenge of single-use plastic waste and pollution and encouraging them to take action.