WHITE SPIRITS is our focus this month. The db team has sniffed out everything from vodka to pisco in our quest to bring you up to date with the developments in this fast-changing category.

Of course, that’s not to say we haven’t covered anything else, the issue is bursting with opinion, update and news from every corner of the globe.

This month, we kick off with alcohol legislation in our top story. The British alcohol trade is feeling feisty over some of the government potentially ruinous proposals which have been drawn up in an effort to combat alcohol abuse and alcohol-related illnesses.

In the news, we see that Tesco, the UK’s largest wine retailer, has unveiled its long-awaited and much talk-about Value wines, the launch of which conveniently coincides with the growing financial burden on tightening purse strings.

3 Oceans Wine Company has taken over troubled Australian Group Palandri Wines, which went into administration last month. And drinks giant Diageo has launched a cautiously positive statement regarding its performance in the three months leading up to October.

In our interview this month, Patrick Schmitt meets the COO of buoyant spirits company Patrón and discovers the secrets behind the success of brands such as Pyrat rum. 

Spirits consumption in The United Arab Emirates goes under the Euromonitor microscope this month. With a luxury image and high per capita consumer spending, brands are licking their lips at the potential of super-premium products.

From one lucrative consumption market to another, the US Drinks Conference 2008 in London last month discussed whether the US is still an attractive market for new drinks brands. Gabriel Savage reports that while it is still a land of opportunity, this is only the case if correct research is completed.

Awards and competitions are all the rage at the moment, but is entry into a competition worth the cost and effort, and what does it mean for a winning product? Does success at awards translate into increased sales? Alexis Hercules finds out.

People are starting to sit up and take notice of German red wine. Now the governmental incentives regarding producing wine with higher sugar content are no more, Robin Akhurst reveals there is more to Spätburgunder (Pinot Noir) than just Burgundy and New Zealand.

Beer in general is benefiting from people’s focus on ingredient provenance; however, our focus on real ale demonstrates that this is the beer that is beginning to capture the imagination of a public beyond stuffy old men in sweaty jumpers, much to the brewers’ delight, who believe that real ale is the hallmark of quality beer.

We then head off to the Golden State of California to discover who has been making the region a success beyond all the usual names. We take a look at six of the region’s most interesting characters.

Patience Gould eases us into the white spirits focus, which reflects on the success of vodka together with those categories playing catch-up, namely gin, Tequila and rum.

Meanwhile Fionnuala Synnott takes a look at Tequila, the spirit that’s enjoying a whole new renaissance, thanks to endorsements and costly marketing campaigns.

In truth, Cachaça wasn’t going to feature on so many pages in this issue. But, once we got digging on the subject, it turns out there’s an interesting story to tell. So Alexis Hercules probes into the spirit that was once the stuff of Brazilian paupers. He takes us on a tour of the spirit’s rise to export-dom.

Our marketing campaigns are rich and varied this month. The Vladivar billboard advert complete with gorilla and naked man (we kid you not) raised a few eyebrows in db towers. Slightly more docile campaigns have been launched from Beefeater gin, which is offering an underground guide to all the London nooks and crannies that are worth knowing, from shopping to food.

Products that are making the headlines this month include Rémy Martin’s ice box, cunningly called the Rémy Iceboxx, South African producer Vergelegen has launched the 2004 vintage of premium cuvée V, and in the spirit of winter, Red Squirrel ale is also coming onto the market.

Our green pages continue to thrive with news, facts and figures on companies’ initiatives and people’s opinions. This month, UK merchant Vintage Roots, which specialises in organic and biodynamic wines, takes a look at how times have changed in the wine retailing world. Neil Palmer and his partner used to get laughed out of buyers’ offices when trying to push organic wine – but not any more.

From London to Melbourne, we take a tour of new openings as well as the latest news in our on-trade pages.

Our people news charts the arrival of stand-in CEO to permanent CEO of Foster’s in the shape of Paul Johnston.

Talking of people, Woody Allen, Phil Tuck MW, Manchester United striker Berbatov and Spandau Ballet star Tony Hadley all grace Salut this month.