Wine consumers in the UK are just as frivolous as ever, but at least that means everyone gets a chance. Research compiled by the country's biggest wine group, Accolade Wines, shows that two thirds of wine drinkers in the UK will typically buy bottles from at least nine different countries over a 12-month period.

I suppose that one could read this two ways: either that most people buy whatever wine is lying in the bargain bin, or that consumers are open to new experiences. It's probably a bit of both, seeing as the most frivolous consumers on the scale are the so-called 'engaged explorers' and 'experts' - in other words, people you wouldn't expect to find sniffing around the discount basket.

Accolade's Wine Nation report also guards against complacency in the industry. Half of the regular wine drinkers surveyed by the group didn't know that Cabernet Sauvignon is a red wine. Predictably, the report also draws attention to duty. Since 2002, 80% of the rise in wine prices is directly attributable to duty tax. Next year, the average price of a 75cl bottle of wine in the UK will rise above GBP5 for the first time, mainly because of tax. Wine Nation puts some meat on the bones of a well-known problem for the UK wine trade: how to satisfy obvious demand for wine at acceptable profit margins. Discuss.

It's been a pretty quiet week on the news for just-drinks, but we did manage to create a mini-storm with Ian Buxton's comment piece on investing in Scotch whisky. Let's just say that not everyone agrees with Ian. See what you think. Deputy editor Chris Mercer also took a look at the rising cost of obesity and what this might mean for regulation.

In other news, we have devised plans for a four-part briefing series on sustainability for early next year. We're going to cover such weighty matters as greenhouse gas emissions, water efficiency, waste, recycling and packaging, and sustainability in raw material supply chains. To do this, we need as much information as possible from drinks companies about their activities in the environmental sustainability field. So, do get in touch.

Finally, a belated happy Thanksgiving to all of our US readers

Until next time...

Olly Wehring
Managing Editor
Web: http://www.just-drinks.com
Email: editor@just-drinks.com
Twitter: http://twitter.com/just_drinks