Wine merchants are becoming ever-more experimental in their wine sourcing but some things don’t change.

France scooped a quarter of the prizes in this year’s Wine Merchant Top 100, despite competition from Spain, New Zealand, Italy and nine other nations who made the cut in this year’s contest.

We poured all 100 winners at last week’s London Wine Fair, to a great reception from the independents who stopped by to taste. We’re particularly pleased with this year’s line-up of winners – not only does it illustrate the breadth of what’s available in independent merchants, it recognises that quality and value can intersect at below £10, but also at £150.

The winners’ brochure will be published soon, with full details of all our Top 100. Meanwhile take a look at our May edition, which offers a good spring snapshot of the state of play in an independent trade that looks more vibrant, and more diverse, with each passing month.