The Duckhorn Portfolio Explained

Winery Name:The Duckhorn Portfolio
Location City:St. Helena, California
Coordinates:38.5295°N -122.4907°W
Location Country:USA
Appellation:Napa Valley AVA
Year Founded:1976
Signature Wine:Three Palms Vineyard Merlot, Calera, Kosta Browne
Varietal1:Merlot
Varietal2:Cabernet Sauvignon
Varietal3:Sauvignon Blanc
Varietal4:Chardonnay

The Duckhorn Portfolio Inc. is an American wine company producing varietal labelled and blended red, white, rosé, and sparkling wines from California and Washington State. The main winery, Duckhorn Vineyards, is outside St. Helena, California.[1] [2]

History

The company was founded by Daniel and Margaret Duckhorn as The St. Helena Wine Company in 1976 with eight co-investors. His background was in business and finance – he had consulted for the wine and spirits company Heublein and had managed a Napa Valley vine grafting and root stock business that supplied vines to vineyard owners, which brought him into contact with Napa Valley winemakers. As the Duckhorns raised more capital, the number of investors grew to 80 in all.[3]

In 1978, its first year, the company produced 800 cases each of Cabernet Sauvignon and Merlot wine, made from purchased grapes — the Merlot from Three Palms Vineyard near Calistoga, the Cabernet Sauvignon from Howell Mountain and the Stag’s Leap District. The wines were released in 1980.

In July 2007 a controlling interest in the company was sold to GI Partners, a private equity firm[4] [5] [6] which in 2016 sold its interest to TSG Consumer Partners, another private equity firm.[7] [8] The sale included six wineries: Duckhorn Vineyards, Goldeneye, Paraduxx, Migration, Decoy, and Canvasback, and vineyard property in Napa Valley, Sonoma County, Anderson Valley, and Washington State. In March 2021 the company was floated on the New York Stock Exchange.[9] [10]

Margaret and Daniel Duckhorn remained active in the management of the company until 2016. Alex Ryan has been company president since 2005, CEO since 2011 and Chairman of the board of directors since 2012.[11] [12]

The Duckhorn Vineyards label is based on a nineteenth-century French lithograph. The original label was created by an original shareholder and graphic artist, Bill Cain.[13] The company has taken legal action over the years against wine brands that use versions of the duck image or the word "duck".[14] In 2014 it sued Trinchero Family Estates for its marketing of a wine called Duck Commander, and Walmart, which retailed it. A settlement was reached allowing a limited amount of Duck Commander to be sold.[15]

Vineyards

The company planted its first vineyards in 1981 in Napa Valley. Subsequent purchases of vineyards and wineries include:

In 2021 the company owned ten wineries.[22] It owned 750 acres of vineyards, producing wine under a variety of names, among them:[23]

Recognition

Notes and References

  1. Web site: Christaldi . Jonathan . Duckhorn Portfolio: the billion-dollar empire . Decanter.com . Future Publishing Limited, Bath, UK . 18 April 2022 . October 14, 2021.
  2. Web site: SEC Form 13G . sec.gov . U.S. Security and Exchange Commission . 18 April 2022 . December 31, 2021.
  3. Web site: Laube . James . Sogg . Daniel . New Investor Takes Control of Duckhorn Wine Co. . winespectator.com . M. Shanken Communications . 11 April 2022 . July 31, 2007. With 80 investor families it seemed like a good time for us to look at how to monetize their position.
  4. Web site: GI Partners Completes Sale of Duckhorn Wine Company to TSG Consumer Partners, Oct, 14, 2016 . GIPartners.com . GI Partners . 13 April 2022 . October 14, 2016.
  5. News: July 2007 . . Duckhorn Wine Company sells controlling share . Steve Heimoff . 2007-08-01.
  6. News: . 2007-08-01 . 2007-08-01 . Napa Valley stunner - famed winery sold . Jon Bonné.
  7. Web site: Romano . Aaron . Private Investment Firm Purchases Control of Duckhorn Wine Company . winespectator.com . M. Shanker Communications . 16 April 2022 . August 30, 2017.
  8. News: Duckhorn Wine CEO: Planning for luxury market after boomers, coping with new Napa County regulations . North Bay Business Journal . Jeff . Quackenbush . April 15, 2019.
  9. News: Marcus . Kim . 2021-03-18 . Duckhorn Debuts on New York Stock Exchange . Wine Spectator . 2022-01-29.
  10. News: Hirtenstein . Anna . Wine Deal Making Surges as Investors Look Past Covid-19 Woes . 12 April 2022 . Wall Street Journal . Dow Jones & Company, Inc. . October 6, 2021 . Duckhorn Portfolio Inc., backed by TSG Consumer Partners LLC, another private-equity investor, went public in March, valued at nearly $2 billion..
  11. Web site: Clarke . Shana . Duckhorn Portfolio CEO Alex Ryan on Bringing Wine to Wall Street . Hemispheres . Hemispheres . 1 June 2022 . August 29, 2021.
  12. Web site: Wine Executive of the Year: Alex Ryan . winemag.com . Wine Enthusiast Magazine . 18 April 2022 . December 2018.
  13. Duckhorn, Daniel; Duckhorn, Margaret; Hicke, Carole (1996). Mostly Merlot: The History of Duckhorn Vineyards," an oral history conducted in 1996 by Carole Hicke, Regional Oral History Office. UC Berkeley, Bancroft Library.
  14. Web site: Bussewitz . Cathy . Duckhorn files lawsuit over Duck Dynasty wines . pressdemocrat.com . Sonoma Media Investments LLC . 12 April 2022 . January 10, 2014.
  15. News: Mobley . Esther . The not-so-secret reason California wineries are constantly fighting over name rights . 28 March 2022 . San Francisco Chronicle . Hearst Publishing . March 31, 2022.
  16. Web site: Sogg . Daniel . Exploring California Wine Country-Anderson Valley . WineSpectator.com . M. Shanken Communications . 18 April 2022 . June 15, 2008.
  17. Web site: Woodard . Richard . Duckhorn to launch Washington State Cabernet . Decanter.com . Future Publishing Limited, Bath, UK . 18 April 2022 . November 22, 2013.
  18. Web site: Duckhorn Wine Company Debuts Its Canvasback Washington State Red Mountain Cabernet Sauvignon . IntheMix.com . in the Mix Magazine (iMi Agency) . 18 April 2022 . September 8, 2014.
  19. Web site: Unfiltered: Eva Longoria Uncorks Mouton Cadet for a Cause at Cannes . Winsespectator.com . M. Shanken Communications . 18 April 2022 . May 21, 2015 . Duckhorn buys Three Palms Vineyard.
  20. Web site: Weed . Augustus . Duckhorn Buys Central Coast Pinot Noir Pioneer Calera . wine spectator.com . M. Shanken Communications . 10 April 2022 . August 15, 2017.
  21. Web site: Romano . Aaron . Duckhorn Buys Kosta Browne . wine-spectator.com . M. Shanker Communications . 12 April 2022 . October 15, 2018.
  22. News: Napa Valley wine group The Duckhorn Portfolio names chief marketing, DTC officer . 1 June 2022 . NORTH BAY BUSINESS JOURNAL . The Press Democrat . March 11, 2022.
  23. Web site: Linda . Murphy . Winemaker of the Year / Duckhorn Takes Wing . SFGate.com . Hearst Publishing . 16 April 2022 . December 8, 2005.
  24. Web site: Wine of the Year: DUCKHORN Merlot Napa Valley Three Palms Vineyard 2014 . winespectator.com . M. Shanker Communications . 18 April 2022 . December 31, 2017.

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