During the pre-crisis period, the creation of new wineries and appellations proliferated. There was no self-respecting entrepreneur who did not have a stake in a winery. Now the time has come for the sector to be reorganised and the entrepreneurs with winemaking experience will remain.<\/p>\n
Last year, according to Capital & Corporate, 6 deals were registered in the wine sector as a preview of what is to come.<\/p>\n
LAN Wineries: \u20ac50 million venture capital exit<\/strong><\/p>\n Mercapital and minority partners sold LAN Wineries to Portuguese group\u00a0Sogrape<\/a><\/span>\u00a050 million.\u00a0Lan Winery<\/a><\/span>LAN, founded in 1970, is located in the municipality of Fuenmayor (La Rioja) and is dedicated exclusively to producing crianza reds, reserves and single vineyard wines with DOC Rioja, mainly. \"The participation of private equity since 2002 allowed Bodegas LAN to strengthen its management team and accelerate its international expansion, mainly in the United States and Latin America, and the entry into other appellations of origin\", says Diego Gutierrez, corporate finance expert at\u00a0ABRA INVEST<\/a><\/span>.<\/p>\n Sogrape Vinhos, founded in 1942, is Portugal's leading wine group. Originally a producer of Mateus Ros\u00e9 wine, it is present in various Portuguese wine regions, particularly in the Douro. It also has vineyards and wineries in Argentina (Finca Flichman), Chile (Los Boldos) and New Zealand (Framingham), managing more than 1,500 hectares of vineyards. In Spain, Sogrape had until now a presence in Jerez de la Frontera (C\u00e1diz), where it acquired the Sandeman Jerez winery in 2002.<\/p>\n The medium sector: for mergers and acquisitions<\/a> 100% of companies in the sector<\/strong><\/p>\n Bodegas El Cidacos, founded in Tudelilla in 1958, and whose reference brands are Conde Oti\u00f1ano and Marqu\u00e9s de Abad\u00eda, has been acquired by the Russian alcoholic drinks group\u00a0Lagoda.<\/span>\u00a0\u00a0It currently produces more than 3 million bottles a year. The winery exports its products to Europe, Russia, China and the United States. \"The operation is an example of how attractive Spanish vineyards can be for foreign companies. It should also be noted that the Russian market is not usually one of the preferred markets for Spanish companies, which is why good opportunities are being missed,\" says Diego Gutierrez.<\/p>\n The Galician winery specialised in albari\u00f1o Adegas Galegas has been acquired by the Galician company\u00a0Mart\u00edn Codax<\/a><\/span>\u00a0in the insolvency proceedings. In this way, Bodegas Mart\u00edn C\u00f3dax has now the ownership of the brands, being the most representative Veigadares, Gran Veigadares, D. Pedro de Soutomaior and Dionisos. The total amount of the operation will suppose for Bodegas Mart\u00edn C\u00f3dax a total investment of 3.600.000 euros.<\/p>\n Similarly, Pazo de Villarei (DO R\u00edas Baixas), was acquired by HGA Bodegas y Vi\u00f1edos de Altura from the Domecq group. This group is in the process of selling non-premium brand assets and has currently reached an agreement with the Reserva de la Tierra Group to acquire the table wine division with effect from 1 February 2013.<\/p>\n