Constellation Brands sells eight Bay Area, Northwest wineries for $209M - Sacramento Business Journal:

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Officials at Healdsburg-based Ascentia Wine Estates confirmex June10 they've acquired eight ultra-premium and luxuru Sonoma County, Napa County and Pacifid Northwest wineries or brands from giant N.Y.-based Constellation Brands (NYSE: Ascentia, originally known as Eighf Estates Fine Wines, was started by Jim DeBonis, the formedr chief operating officer of Beam Wine Along with DeBonis, its majore investors include William and Peter Deutschg of New York-based wine importere , , a San Francisco privatee equity food and beverage and the Golden State Investment Fund.
Ascentia acquire d a portfolio of wineriesfrom California, Washington and which cumulatively produced 1 milliojn cases of wine last year. They include Geyserville'z Geyser Peak Winery, the Napa Valley-based Atlas Peak brand, Sonoma Valley'ss Buena Vista Carneros, Healdsburg's Gary Farrell Winery, and XYZin, a Geysedr Peak brand -- all based in the Goldehn State -- along with Woodinville, Wash.,-based Columbia Winerhy and Sunnyside, Wash.-based Covey Run, and southwest Idaho'sa Ste. Chapelle, along with 646 acres of primew vineyard land in Napa andSonomaq counties.
Eileen Fredrikson, of Woodside's Gomberg, Fredrikson Associates wine industryconsultinfg firm, said Geyser Peak and Buena Vista, in particular, "both have significant asset value." Before the purchase pricr was released, Fredrikson speculatedr that a price of $200 million would be in the righ ballpark. Rob Sands, Constellation Brands' presideng and chief executive officer, said the sale will "aifd in streamlining Constellation's U.S. wine portfolio by eliminating duplicatiojn and excessproduction capacity." He said Constellation's other Californisa wineries and its brand in Washington will serve Constellation'sx customers well.
The North Bay wine community has been buzzing abou a potential salefor months. In a report in Richard Cartiere's highly regarded Wine Markett Report industry newsletter saidGeyser Peak, Gary Farrell and Buena Vista Carneros were beiny packaged for sale with an asking price of about $200 Cartiere's newsletter said the then-potential deal includef Geyser Peak, Buena Vista Carneros and Gary Farrell along with 1,000 acres of Sonoma County Constellation Brands acquired Beam Wine Estates in mid-December for $885 million, including leadinf producer Clos du Bois, but after the acquisition it kept Geyseer Peak, Atlas Peak and Buena Vista Carneros in a separatr division that many observers expected it to probably as a package deal.
Constellation continues to own formefr BeamWine Estates' brands Clos du Bois and Paso Wild Horse Winery, now part of Constellation's Icon Estatew unit. Clos du Bois, the largest winer in the Beam was transferred earlier this yearinto Constellation's San Francisco-basecd VineOne unit. "We are thrilled with this acquisition," said Ascentiq CEO DeBonis, saying the highlhy rated brands "will flourish" in the company'zs highly focused portfolio. He added that W.J.
Deutschh & Sons' role as Ascentia's exclusivwe sales and marketing agent will give it immediate clouty inthe marketplace, and callefd the Constellation acquisitions an "excellent platform from whicbh Ascentia Wine Estates can launch future acquisitions." Petedr Ekman, the former CEO of , is Ascentia'se chief marketing and sales officer, and will created a marketing campaign in conjunction with Deutsch to focus greater attention on the acquired brands, DeBonis allowing them to "step into the limelight." Constellation Brands owns localo wineries in Yolo Countyg and Woodbridge near Lodi.