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The luxury goods group LVMH pays 15.5 million euros for 1.3 hectares of Grand Cru vineyards on the Côte d'Or (Burgundy). With the purchase of the Domaine Poisot group, which also includes the Domaine des Lambrays**** in Morey-Saint-Denis, the company acquires half a hectare each in Corton-Charlemagne and Romanée-Saint-Vivant, as well as 0.3 hectares in Corton Bressandes. The Domaine Poisot will continue to manage the vineyards.
The purchase price has sparked discussions and outrage among local winemakers, according to local news. They lament that more and more renowned wineries and sites are falling into the hands of investors because family businesses cannot afford the inheritance taxes. This is also the reason for the sale to LVMH, confirms Rémi Poisot: "The inheritance taxes are so high. We are not millionaires; we had to find a solution." The inheritance tax system dating back to Emperor Napoleon and the capital gains tax have led to family-run wineries often needing to be divided or sold. The high purchase prices also meant that property taxes would be adjusted to the new amounts. The chairman of the Burgundy Protection Association (CAVB), Thiébault Huber, commented: "A piece of land that would be worth 100,000 euros is ultimately worth a million. And instead of being taxed on 100,000 euros, you will be taxed on a million euros. There is no longer any relation to the labor value and the economic profitability of a property."
Recently, the purchase price for the William Fèvre estate in Chablis was revealed. Domaine Barons de Rothschild, among other owners of Chateau Lafite Rothschild in Bordeaux, paid 99 million US dollars to Domaine Artémis for the Chablis estate with 75 hectares of vineyards, according to Bloomberg.
(al / Sources: wine-searcher, drinksbusiness)