French powerhouse Les Grands Chais de France (GCDF) has purchased Maison Desvignes Ainé et Fils near Chablis. According to the company, the September acquisition “will increase the Group’s scale and capacity in the appellation, as well as help to stabilise supply in challenging vintages”.
“This key purchase of Maison Desvignes Ainé et Fils has enabled the Group to bolster our capacity of premium wine production in Chablis, as well as providing an ongoing supply of wines to help us to ride the waves of vintage fluctuations,” said Mark Kears, Les Grands Chais de France MD for UK & Ireland in a press statement. “We are delighted to welcome them to Les Grands Chais de France.”
Bought through François Martenot, the Burgundian subsidiary of Les Grands Chais de France, Maison Desvignes Ainé & Fils is located in the small wine village of Ligny-le-Châtel, at the northern tip of the Burgundy vineyards. A negotiant with 36 hectares of their own vines, they are specialists in Chablis and Burgundy and make cuvées in partnership with well-known Burgundian winemakers.
According to Society.com, Maison Desvignes Ainé & Fils had a 2018 turnover of €6,961,600. The purchase price was not disclosed.
Grand Chais de France, founded in 1979 in Alsace by Joseph Helfrich, is France’s largest wine and spirits company by volume and an export success. In 1984, the company launched JP Chenet, one of France’s most commercially successful branded wines. Today, the company owns numerous properties, giving it a presence in nearly all of France’s major wine regions.
Via press release with additional notes.
