There are more and more: these wineries belong to the LVMH luxury group

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Founded in 1743, the champagne house produces more sparkling champagne than anyone else, with more than 30 million bottles a year. In 1971, Moët & Chandon merged with cognac producer Hennessy, and in 1987 it merged with luxury brand Louis Vuitton. This gave rise to the luxury group LVMH, which has been majority-owned by Frenchman Bernard Arnault (74) since 1989.

Although it is owned by luxury champagne brand Moët & Chandon, it is marketed separately. The Champagne house is named after the monk Dom Pierre Pérignon (1638–1715), who managed to press white wine from dark grape varieties for the first time, thanks to the invention of the Coquard basket press. How many bottles of Dom Pérignon are bottled each year is a well-kept secret.

Founded in 1729, Ruinart is considered the oldest champagne house ever. The impressive chalk mines beneath the earth’s surface stretch for a total of eight kilometers and offer ideal conditions for the production and storage of premium champagne.

Madame Clicquot (1777–1866) literally shook the champagne world with the invention of the so-called shake. After the second bottle fermentation, moving Champagne bottles from a horizontal to a vertical position takes up to eight weeks for the yeast sediment to accumulate in the neck of the bottle.

Lovers of fine champagne cannot escape the magic of this champagne house. Krug is at the absolute top in terms of quality, especially with wines from Grand Cru vineyards such as Clos du Mesnil or Clos d’Ambonnay. Krug was founded in 1843 and has been part of the LVMH group since 1999.

Some of the world’s best dessert wines come from this Bordeaux winery. However, LVMH’s acquisition did not go completely smoothly. After some family members sold their shares in LVMH, others wanted to prevent a takeover at all costs and prohibit other family members from selling their shares in LVMH as well. For what it’s worth, Château d’Yquem has also been owned by LVMH since 1999.

New Zealand’s flagship Sauvignon Blanc has also been part of the LVMH Group’s portfolio since 2003. Cloudy Bay is a good example of what happens when LVMH invests in a winery: the quality of the wines increases, but unfortunately the price level also increases.

LVMH also began operating in Spain, acquiring the Bodega Numanthia Termes winery in the Castilla y León region in 2008. Strong red wines are made here from organically grown grapes. To save energy, the winery recently installed solar panels on the roofs.

This almost nine-hectare winery in Burgundy has been part of LVMH since 2014. Following extensive investments in cellars and vineyards, not only the quality of the wine but also its price level has increased significantly.

LVMH’s most recent acquisition in the wine sector took place in 2022. American winery Joseph Phelps owns vineyards in Napa Valley and Sonoma and produces approximately 750,000 bottles annually. The winery’s flagship wine is Insignia and was first bottled in 1974.

LVMH Group also has other investments in Château Cheval Blanc in Bordeaux, Colgin in Napa Valley and Cheval des Andes in Argentina, among others.

Source : Blick