Episode description

Today in Wine News

The Duckhorn Portfolio became the first publicly traded wine company on the New York Stock Exchange in 2021, a major breakthrough for both the company and the wine industry on the whole. Earlier this week, it was announced that private equity firm Butterfly Equity had purchased The Duckhorn Portfolio for an all-cash bid that values the company at $1.95 billion dollars, a move that would automatically delist The Duckhorn Portfolio from public trading.

How does Duckhorn’s return to private ownership affect the way wine is perceived and handled in financial circles? And what are the larger implications on the American wine industry now that Duckhorn is no longer publicly traded?

Keep listening to learn more.

Further Reading

* “Butterfly Equity to buy US wine group The Duckhorn Portfolio” (Dean Best/Just Drinks)

* “Duckhorn Acquired by Butterfly Equity at $1.95 Billion” (Karen Roman/Yahoo! Finance)

* “Duckhorn Debuts on New York Stock Exchange” (Kim Marcus/Wine Spectator)

In Other News

Here are some additional highlights from the week:

Michelin starred restaurant Aphotic will close in December after less than two years in business. The seafood staple of the SOMA neighborhood in San Francisco first opened its doors in March 2023, and accrued both a Michelin Star and a Michelin Green Star for sustainability practices within its tenure. Aphotic’s head distiller and bar director Trevor Hutchins was also awarded the Michelin Exceptional Cocktails Award in 2024. The final day of service will be Saturday, December 21. 

* “‘Miracles do not last forever’: Michelin-starred SF restaurant announces closure” (Madeline Wells/SF Gate)

Lebanese winemakers are struggling to fully recover their crops after the recent missile strikes in the Bekaa Valley. Lebanon has been making wine for over 5000 years, and the Bekaa Valley is known as the premiere wine region of the country. In addition to the ongoing conflict in Palestine, the Israeli Defense Force has dropped missiles throughout the Bekaa Valley since September 23. Lebanese authorities state that over 1,000 people have died, and over 1 million people have been displaced due to the air strikes in Lebanon. United Nations Secretary-General Antonio Guterres has called for an immediate ceasefire in Gaza and Lebanon, warning that the conflict in the region is “getting worse by the hour” and worsening the suffering of millions of civilians caught in the middle.

* “Lebanon Winemakers Pray for Peace” (Barnaby Eales/Wine-Searcher)

And finally, 113 members of the United States Congress have signed a petition to stop the alcohol study in progress for the current U.S. Dietary Guidelines update. Last week’s podcast mentioned a study by ICCPUD that is being used as the basis for new alcohol guidelines. On October 7, Representative Mike Thompson (a Democrat from Napa) and Representative Dan Newhouse (a Republican from Washington state) wrote a public letter to the Secretaries of Health and Human Services and US Department of Agriculture. Among the 113 Congressional representatives who signed the letter are Representative Eric Swalwell, a Democrat from Dublin, California, and Representative Lauren Boebert from Colorado. You can read the full letter and see the list of signatures in the show notes for this episode  at Brunello Bombshell dot Substack dot com. 

* U.S. Congress Letter to HHS and USDA

* “Lawmakers Demand Halt to Controversial Alcohol Study in U.S. Dietary Guidelines Review” (Felicity Carter/Wine Business)

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That’s all the news this week. Thank you for listening to The Wine Press!

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We’ll be back next Thursday with a new crop of wine news. Until then, cheers and happy drinking!