Colgin Cellars in Napa Valley.
Colgin Cellars in Napa Valley.
(Image credit: Colgin Cellars)

LVMH, the French luxury goods group that includes Krug and Dom Pérignon Champagne, has signed a deal to buy control of cult Napa winery Colgin Cellars, in the latest in a string of wine estate deals this year.

LVMH said last night (21 November) that it had agreed to buy 60% of Colgin Cellars, which has around 10.5 hectares of vines.

Colgin’s founder, Ann Colgin, and her husband, Joe Wender, will retain the other 40% of the wine business. A fee was not disclosed.

It marks a significant move in Napa Valley for LVMH and its owner, Bernard Arnault, who regularly features at the top of France’s rich lists and already has names such as Krug, Clos des Lambrays and Château d’Yquem.

Colgin’s wines, such as Tychson Hill Cabernet Sauvignon from the historic vineyard of that name near Calistoga, have developed something of a cult status among fine wine lovers since the estate was founded 25 years ago.

Others include Cariad and ‘IX Estate’ Syrah, and Colgin bottles are regular fixtures in wine lists in top restaurants.

Ann Colgin said, ‘After a social introduction to Mr. Arnault several months ago and discussions with the LVMH team, I realised that I could not find a better partner for Colgin Cellars to preserve our founding spirit and our exquisitely handcrafted red wines, into the future.’

LVMH indicated that little will change in the day-to-day running of Colgin, at least in the short-term.

‘Their talented winery team will continue to be led by Ann Colgin & Joe Wender along with COO, Paul Roberts and Winemaker, Allison Tauzie,’ it said.

The winery is located at the northern end of IX Estate in the Pritchard Hill area of Napa Valley.

It is the latest of several wine estate deals this year across California, France and Italy, in particular.

Chris Mercer
Chris Mercer

Chris Mercer is a Bristol-based freelance editor and journalist who spent nearly four years as digital editor of Decanter.com, having previously been Decanter’s news editor across online and print.

He has written about, and reported on, the wine and food sectors for more than 10 years for both consumer and trade media.

Chris first became interested in the wine world while living in Languedoc-Roussillon after completing a journalism Masters in the UK. These days, his love of wine commonly tests his budgeting skills.

Beyond wine, Chris also has an MSc in food policy and has a particular interest in sustainability issues. He has also been a food judge at the UK’s Great Taste Awards.