Duckhorn Wine Company has acquired a 76,000 square foot winemaking facility and 32 acres of vineyards in the Mendocino town of Hopland.
Image: © Cephas Picture Library / Alamy
The facility has been home to the Rack and Riddle wine company since 2007, which operated on a long-term lease agreement from the real estate company Entertainment Properties Trust, which owned the property.
‘We are very excited about this acquisition,’ said Duckhorn President and CEO Alex Ryan. ‘We have a footprint in several counties in Northern California: Napa, Sonoma and Mendocino.’
Located just north of Sonoma County, Ryan says ‘the central location makes it the ideal home for Decoy, while enhancing our production capabilities in all three counties.’ Decoy is Duckhorn’s entry-level brand.
While Rack and Riddle hopes to ‘maintain some presence at the Hopland facility for the foreseeable future’ according to a spokesperson, Ryan says Duckhorn, maker of the iconic Napa Valley Merlot and owners of the Paraduxx, Goldeneye, Migration and Decoy brands, ‘plans to fully utilise it for our own winemaking needs,’ beginning in 2014.
In addition to its own brand, Rack and Riddle makes wine for an estimated 150 clients, much of that methode champenoise sparkling wine. The company told Decanter.com that they are currently ‘bursting at the seams’ and have been looking for additional space for over a year. ‘We are in expansion mode,’ a spokesperson said.
While there have been no discussions yet with regards to renewing its lease, it is thought that the acquisition will prompt Rack and Riddle to begin looking for additional space soon.
Ryan says Duckhorn ‘will be working very closely with Rack & Riddle throughout the transition at the Hopland facility.’
Written by Courtney Humiston
