The boundary between the on and off-trade gets increasingly blurred, and nowhere more so than among independents. Most specialist wine shops supply pubs or restaurants … and an increasing number are going the enoteca route, serving wine on their own premises.

So there are compelling reasons for a visit to Imbibe Live next week. The show runs at Olympia on July 1-2.

The event, unsurprisingly, has a strong spirits (and beer) element but wine is well represented too. Exhibitors include Berkmann, Concha y Toro, Enotria, Hallgarten Druitt, Louis Roederer, Negociants UK and Wines from Rioja.

Master Sommelier Ronan Sayburn is hosting a wine faults masterclass; Ruth Spivey (of Wine Car Boot fame) is running a workshop on staff training; and Michael Sager-Wilde is offering advice on how to target the elusive Generation Y consumer.

As a reader of The Wine Merchant you can also register for the exclusive Sommelier Hub packed full of invaluable wine sessions, plus access to the UK film premiere of Jason Wise’s Somm.

Click here to register and to find out more about this year’s show.

Not surprisingly, we devote a lot of space in our June issue to the winners in The Wine Merchant Top 50. The full details will appear in a supplement in the July edition – along with the names of our five trophy winners and more than 100 highly commended wines.

But while we celebrate the success of these worthy winners, there’s the hint of a dark cloud on the horizon.

Independents are used to competition from online rivals. We hear a lot about the “race to the bottom”: punters can shop around the virtual marketplace and seek out the cheapest price for the wines they want. It’s a fact of life in modern wine retailing, and it’s part of the reason so many merchants have recognised the need to differentiate their offer using tactics other than price.

But if those prices are massively cheaper than those your business is able to offer, and the wines are being shipped direct from producers, the game changes. Amazon is currently talking not just to UK suppliers to boost its wine offer, but to producers themselves. Some of the prices that can be found online are so cheap that the conclusion has to be that either the shipper is selling at a loss, or avoiding the inconvenience of duty.

HMRC points out that distance sellers to the UK are obliged to pay duty and VAT in this country. But how exactly is this policed? How many boxes of wine will be opened, checked for compliance, or seized? What powers do the UK authorities have to go after overseas tax dodgers, and what kind of resources? We await answers.

The winners of this year’s Wine Merchant Top 50 awards were unveiled this week at a tasting at the London Wine Fair.

They are listed below. The winners’ supplement, which will appear with the July issue of the magazine, will contain much more information about all the wines and why they won.

This is also where the 100-plus Highly Commended wines will be named – along with a few Trophy wines.

Congratulations to all 50 winners. The wines attracted a ­­­lot of attention at the fair this week and the line-up was praised for its diversity and, in many cases, exceptional value for money.

 

Sparkling wines

France

Charles Heidsieck Brut Réserve, Champagne NV (£42, Liberty Wines)

Charles Heidsieck Rosé Réserve, Champagne NV (£55, Liberty Wines)

 

White wines

Austria

Domäne Wachau Grüner Veltliner Federspiel Terrassen, Wachau 2013 (£8.58, Alliance Wine)

Domäne Wachau Grüner Veltliner Smaragd, Achleiten, Wachau 2013 (£17.92, Alliance Wine)

 

Australia

Hill Smith Estate Chardonnay, Adelaide Hills 2012 (£18.99, Negociants UK)

 

Chile

Viña Casa Silva Cool Coast Sauvignon Blanc, Paredones, Colchagua Valley 2013

(£12.95, Jackson Nugent Vintners)

Cono Sur Los Gansos Gewurztraminer, Central Valley 2013 (£7.99, Concha y Toro)

 

France

Jean-Claude Boisset Les Ursulines Bourgogne Chardonnay 2012 (£14.99, Liberty Wines)

 

Greece

Domaine Gerovassiliou Malagoussia, Epanomi, Macedonia 2012 (£14.99, Hallgarten Druit/Novum)

 

Italy

Agricola Punica Samas, Isola dei Nuraghi, Sardinia 2012 (£13, Armit)

Cavit Terrazze della Luna Nosiola, Trentino 2013 (£7.80, Boutinot)

 

Portugal

Luis Pato Vinhas Velhas, Beira Atlantico, Beiras 2012 (£12.99, Raymond Reynolds)

 

South Africa

Delheim Vineyards Barrel-Fermented Chenin Blanc, Simonsberg, Stellenbosch 2013
(£12.95, Jackson Nugent Vintners)

Jordan Unoaked Chardonnay, Stellenbosch 2013

(£11.90, Awin Barratt Siegel Wine Agencies)

 

Sweet white

Glen Carlou The Welder, Paarl 2012 (37.5cl; £10.99, Liberty Wines)

 

Spain

La Bascula Catalan Eagle White, Terra Alta 2013 (£9.86, Boutinot)

Casal de Arman Blanco, Ribeiro 2012 (£15, Alliance Wine)

Pazo de Señorans Albariño, Rías Baixas 2012 (£17, Rhône to Rioja)

Santiago Ruiz, Rías Baixas 2012 (£14.99, Stevens Garnier)

 

Red wines

Argentina

Altos Las Hormigas Malbec Classico, Mendoza 2013 (£12.99, Liberty Wines)

Matias Riccitelli The Apple Doesn’t Fall Far From The Tree Malbec, Mendoza 2011 (£15.99, Hallgarten Druitt/Novum Wines)

 

Australia

Dalrymple Tasmania Pinot Noir, Pipers River, Tasmania 2011 (£28, Negociants UK)

Onannon Pinot Noir, Gippsland, Victoria 2011 (£34.11, Boutinot)

Teusner Riebke Shiraz, Barossa 2011 (£21.95, Hallowed Ground)

 

Bulgaria

Domaine Bessa Valley Enira, Bessa Valley 2008 (£19.99, Alliance Wine)

 

Chile

Cono Sur Single Vineyard Block 21 Viento Mar, San Antonio 2012 (£11.95, Concha y Toro)

 

France

LGI Monastier Shiraz, IGP Pays d’Oc 2013 (£7.99, House of Townend)

Les Domaines Paul Mas Clos des Mures, Côteaux du Languedoc 2012
(£12, Les Domaines Paul Mas)

Les Domaines Paul Mas Château Paul Mas Clos de Savignac, Côteaux du Languedoc 2012
(£17, Les Domaines Paul Mas)

Les Domaines Paul Mas Les Tannes Syrah, IGP Pays d’Oc 2013
(£7.95, Les Domaines Paul Mas)

Château Viranel Le V de Viranel, Saint-Chinian, Languedoc 2011 (£13-15, Bancroft Wines)

 

Italy

Cavit Terazze della Luna Teroldego Rotaliano, Trentino 2012 (£7.80, Boutinot)

Poggio Al Tesoro Sondraia, Bolgheri Superiore 2010 (£31.99, Liberty Wines)

 

Lebanon

Château Ksara Reserve du Couvent, Bekaa Valley 2011 (£10.99, Hallgarten Druitt/Novum)

 

New Zealand

Crossroads Winemaker’s Selection Cabernet Franc, Gimblett Gravels, Hawke’s Bay 2010
(£15-£20, Mentzendorff)

Delta Wines Hatter’s Hill Pinot Noir, Marlborough 2009 (£22.99, Liberty Wines)

Sileni Estates The Triangle Merlot, Hawke’s Bay 2011 (£14.09, Boutinot)

 

Portugal

Aliança Vinhos de Portugal Aliança, Dão 2011 (£7.63, Boutinot)

Caves São João Porta dos Cavaleiros Reserva, Dão 2012 (£14.99, Marta Vine)

Quinta das Maias Maias Tinto, Dão 2011 (£9.99, Raymond Reynolds)

Quinta dos Murcas Assobio Tinto, Douro 2011 (£11.49, Barwell & Jones)

Quinto do Portal, Portal d’Ouro, Douro 2011 (£9.43, Awin Barratt Siegel Wine Agencies)

 

South Africa

Eikendal Classique, Stellenbosch 2010 (£18.99, Barwell & Jones)

 

Spain

Azul y Garanza Graciano, Navarra 2011 (£12, Vintage Roots)

Bodegas Borsao Selección Tinto, Campo de Borja 2013 (£7.48, Boutinot)

Capçanes Peraj Petita Montsant 2012 (£13, Rhône to Rioja)

Evohe Garnacha, Bajo Aragon 2013 (£11-£13, Rhône to Rioja)

Finca Moncloa Cabernet Syrah, Cádiz 2009 (£14.49, Gonzalez Byass UK)

Perelada Finca La Garriga, Empordà 2008 (£22.50, Barwell & Jones)

La Rioja Alta 904 Gran Reserva, Rioja 2001 (£35.99, Armit)