Chateau Monbousquet owners Gerard and Chantal Perse sign 'alliance' with pensions firm.
A French pensions company has acquired an interest in Chateau Monbousquet in Saint Emilion, as part of a succession plan devised by owners Gerard and Chantal Perse.
The company, which remains anonymous, has agreed to form an ‘alliance’ with Vignobles Perse, Chantal Perse has confirmed to Decanter.com.
No financial details have been disclosed, but it is understood that the deal involves the sale of a minority stake in Monbousquet, the first chateau bought by Chantal and her husband, Gerard, in Saint Emilion in 1993.
‘This alliance is to pass on our heritage, the fruit of more than 40 years work, to our children,’ Chantal Perse said. The family also owns Pavie, a Saint Emilion premier grand cru classé A as of 2012, and grand cru classé Pavie-Decesse, plus Clos Lunelles in Castillon.
All Monbousquet wines will still be sold via the Bordeaux marketplace, she added.
Last week, Gerard Perse was quoted as telling a group of French journalists at the launch of L’Esprit de Pavie in Paris that he was ‘forced to sell’ the stake, to avoid paying French inheritance tax on transferring ownership of the estate to his daughter Angelique and her husband, Henrique da Costa.
Chantal Perse declined to comment on the amount of inheritance tax that was owed. However, she said the reported figure of EUR70m is ‘totally unrealistic’.
The Perses’ first vintage at Monbousquet was 1993, and the family has been living at the rejuvenated chateau ever since. The estate was promoted to Grand Cru Classé in 2006.
Written by Jane Anson in Bordeaux & Chris Mercer
