In 2001, Jacques Berthomeau who died this month, shocked the French wine establishment by recommending the creation of a new classification called Vin de France that would enable producers to compete with varietal wines from the New World. Eight years later, his idea became reality. Today, it is a huge success - both for those exports, and - perhaps surprisingly for him - for many of the natural wine producers Berthomeau later wrote about in his blog.

Reading time: 5m 30s

Instagrammers and influencers are supplanting traditional wine critics. Robert Joseph suggests that this is less of a novelty than some might suppose.

Reading time: 3m 15s