Washington-based Sainte-Michelle Wine Estates has recently been sold. The tobacco company Atria (which owns Philip Morris, among others) has owned the company for 40 years but has now sold it to a venture capital company. The deal is expected to be finalised during the second half of this year.
Ste Michelle is one of the big names in the US wine industry. They say that they are the country’s third-largest wine producer and are the largest by far in Washington in the Pacific North West. Here they account for around 60% of the state’s wine sales in volume. They are said to be the world’s largest producer of riesling. They make wine on approximately 12,000 hectares in Washington, Oregon and California.
Among their well-known brands are Chateau Ste Michelle, 14 Hands and Columbia Crest. In 2007, the company acquired the well-known Stag’s Leap in California. The headquarters are in Woodinville, just outside of downtown Seattle.
Read more: seattletimes
