CHANEL GOES TO NAPA 

A bit of haut couture is making its way to the States. French fashion house Chanel is taking the plunge and entering the US wine business with the purchase of Rutherford’s St. Supéry Estate Vineyards & Winery in Napa Valley. The purchase appears to be the company’s first in the country. Both of the current owners, brothers Alain and Gerard Wertheimer, are serious wine lovers and owners of French wine estates Rauzan-Ségla and Chateau Canon. St. Supéry specializes in Sauvignon Blanc and Cabernet Sauvignon, producing about 1OO,OOO cases a year. The winery calls itself “the largest family-owned, sustainably-farmed and estate-produced winery in Napa Valley”.

The Chanel deal is one of an increasing number of winery sales, a trend predicted to escalate. One reason is that the US wine market is the world’s largest and growing, with 375 million cases consumed last year. Moët Hennessy, part of LVMH Moët Hennessy Louis Vuitton recently announced a new line of wines made with Sonoma County grapes. The company, which owns Napa sparkling wine house Domaine Chandon, launched the wines under its new Smoke Tree brand.