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  Quaffers® Feature - June 2002
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| Keep it in the Family: Vinous inheritance |
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 Think of some of the great wines of the world…..and then consider how many come from family-owned operations stretching back decades or even centuries. It is no coincidence that some of the finest estates and most valuable parcels of land under vine in Europe remain resolutely under the control of the current generation of a wine dynasty. There are a number of common factors amongst the great family-owned wineries, which have ensured their continued success.
Commitment & Motivation - Unlike firms run by professional managers, those managed by family members tend to thrive even through terrible disasters, awful vintages or plain bad luck. There is an onus on a family to make it work, it is their inheritance and their legacy to pass on. Ronald Barton of Château Langoa, for example, returned to his home after the second world war faced with the task of trying to resurrect the vineyards after five years of neglect. He could have uprooted the lot and started again - it would have been simpler - but to maintain the quality he knew he needed to keep the old vines. It was a totally uneconomic enterprise, but it was his duty, his family business.
There is also an inherent passion and zeal in running one's own business. All the successes and failures are keenly felt and each high or low provides further motivation to continue. Successful family wine ventures are run by those who have this passion and who are driven by their responsibilities.
Family-run wine businesses also have the benefit of continuity. They are passed on from generation to generation and with ownership comes the benefit of years of experience, data, and older bottles of wine as proof of the success or failure of certain practices or vintages. Of course, in some instances there have been errant family members who have neglected the business and also some family wineries that decided to sell up to large corporations before buying them back again thus breaking the continuity, but many have certainly had the advantage that the constancy has brought.
Fortune - The best make their own luck and many of the most successful family-run wine enterprises have seen their fortune soar on the back of one crucial decision or some canny foresight. Valuable parcels of land that make up the family estate today were not always in such demand. In fact it was often purchased cheaply; considered too poor for agriculture or simply situated in the wrong place. New markets were opened up, new techniques introduced, all manner of opportunities seized. Humbrecht and Hugel in the Alsace bought their fabulous hillside vineyards at a time when others bought the flat land on the plains, for example. They understood the importance these sites would have in determining the quality of wine that they could produce.
The personal touch - Heads of family-run wine businesses are always intimately involved in the running of their operation. Whether this is just on the wine-making side or also in the marketing, sales or administration of the company (usually every aspect!) it ensures that they know exactly what is going on at any one time. Problems are solved, opportunities are spotted and innovations can be implemented under a watchful eye. It is the passion they have which prevents them from ever relinquishing too much control.
The long term view - A family business that has been in operation for centuries also has a long term view about its future. This affords the luxury of being able to experiment, take risks and not necessarily look for a quick return on investment. Practices that have worked in the past are recreated in new areas or different countries so that the winning formula is used to develop the business and keep abreast of changing environments. Torres, for example has vineyards in Chile and the USA and Antinori has taken a share in vineyards in the Napa Valley. Both of these businesses have introduced exciting new wines with blends of international varieties, a far cry from the traditional examples their families produced a hundred years' ago. They have implemented new techniques, have become better educated and are not afraid to take on the authorities, such is the confidence they exude.
Examples of great wine estates abound, but in this feature we have chosen to highlight just four of them:
Pol Roger
The Pol Roger family is based in Epernay and has made Champagne since 1849. Pol (Paul) Roger, the eponymous founder of the company created such following for his Champagne that the family changed its surname from Roger to Pol Roger to ensure its continued success. The history of Epernay and the Pol Roger family are intertwined, such is the tie between the two. Stories abound of daring antics and bravery during the Second World War, which together with the quality of its Champagne preserved the family's good standing amongst its peers. Today the relatively small operation (109,000 cases), which owns 85 hectares of vineyards, remains a top producer of Champagne.
 It is not for nothing that Pol Roger Champagne was beloved of Sir Winston Churchill. The affection between the families was such that after his death, bottles of Pol Roger Champagne began to carry a black band on their labels as a mark of respect. In 1983 the company brought out a prestige cuveé named after the former British Prime Minister to compete with the likes of Môet's Dom Perignon and Roderer's Cristal.
The success of Pol Roger is down to many of the factors noted previously. Through thick and thin the family have struggled to keep the business going. Experience and skill have been passed down the line. The current generation like those before it have a very 'hands on' approach to the business, personally overseeing the real art of Champagne - the blending- as well as appearing at marketing events, opening the doors for tastings, and travelling to spread the gospel. Family members have also taken the opportunity to train in Oenology, serve apprenticeships with other producers and travel the world to widen their experience. All of which has helped to maintain and improve the quality of the Champagne produced and assure the continued success of the business.
Hugel
Winemakers in Alsace since 1637, Hugel et fils knows a thing or two about producing a palatable drop. At the time the family business was founded, Alsace wines enjoyed favour in all the royal courts of Europe. Universal acclaim has not been so forthcoming in more recent years, however, but Hugel continues to dominate Alsatian exports to the UK market and sells its wares across the world.
Success for the Hugel empire has stemmed from the motivation and foresight inherent in a family business. Acquiring premium sites for the noble Alsace grape varieties (Riesling, Gewürztraminer, Pinot Gris and Muscat) on the hills of Riquewihr many years ago came cheap as growers then were planting vast vineyards on the plains by the river and ignored the hills. The Hugels, however, had done their research and spent time studying the 'terroir' and soils, carefully matching them with the grape varieties. Today the hill sites along the river are much in demand and are rarely up for sale.
 An emphasis on quality not quantity has always prevailed. Planting densities are high, yields from the vineyards are purposely low and, as one would expect in top wineries, the wines are carefully made in the best facilities available. Innovation has been a key element of Hugel's success too. It is to the Hugel family that we owe the introduction of sweet wines labelled as 'Vendage tendive' or 'selection de grains nobles'. Not everyone believes in sweet wines from Alsace but the conditions on those particular sites are perfect and the results speak for themselves.
Hugel has also been strongwilled and determined to do things its own way. Despite producing grand cru wines, none of the bottles carry the classification on the label. The family believes that the regulations and stipulations are not strict enough or exclusive enough on the one hand, and too limiting on the other. The Hugels produce an edelzwicker wine (i.e. a blended wine) of top quality, but because grand cru wines can only be made from one of the four Alsace noble varieties (see above) as a single varietal, no blended wine regardless of its quality may be classified as a grand cru.
The Hugels are also very 'hands on'. They oversee the winemaking, they are involved in all aspects of the business and they make sure that visitors are always welcome. Creating converts who will help spread the word is a key policy. Continuity and the advantage of years of experience being passed from generation to generation further help to maintain this family's legacy to the world.
Torres
Spain's largest independent wine company with some 930 hectares of vines, interests in Chile and the USA, its wines found on a large proportion of Michelin starred restaurants in France and the owner of one of the best known brands in the wine industry. Torres' achievements are not to be underestimated.
 Like so many of the successful wine dynasties, Torres created their own destiny when they saw a small opportunity, seized it and capitalised on it. Prior to the second world war the family had concentrated on selling its wines in bulk. However, Snr Torres spent time in the USA just before war broke out and realised that branded wine sold in a bottle could command substantial premiums. The family's fortune changed when the Germans occupied France in 1940. No French wines could be exported to the USA and the Americans were keen to find other sources. The Torres family began bottling their wine under the Torres brand and, through dogged persistence, managed to create a new and very huge market for themselves in the USA. Suddenly the company was catapulted on to the international stage and has never looked back.
Much of the continued success of the Catalan company is down to Miguel Torres who is in charge now. He spent his early years studying abroad, working in other wine companies and accumulating extensive knowledge on winemaking techniques. On his return to Spain in the 1970's he set about incorporating his new-found ideas. This involved an extensive re-planting programme. He realised that the white varieties should be planted high in the hills where the climate was cooler and the red varieties further down where they could ripen in the strong sun and soaring temperatures. He introduced international varieties such as Cabernet Sauvignon, Gewürztraminer, Sauvignon Blanc and Merlot. These he used to create blends with the more traditional Spanish grapes as well as in modern single varieties with which they have enjoyed much success. In fact the 1970 Gran Coronas Mas La Plana (formerly the Gran Coronas Black Label), made from Cabernet Sauvignon, won the 1979 Paris tasting competition, beating all the top Bordeaux Châteaux including the 1970 Château Latour.
Careful site selection, the introduction of modern winemaking facilities, French guyot training for the vines, the use of French barriques for ageing, experimentation with blends, extensive marketing and personal involvement in all areas of the business have all contributed to the Torres success story. In the 70's such innovation and international outlook was unheard of in Spain and set the family apart from its peers. Today the business continues to do well and the practices, which brought success in Spain, are being replicated in the company's holdings in Chile and in the USA.
Antinori
 The Marchese Piero Antinori is the current head of the Antinori dynasty - part of the old Tuscan aristocracy who turned their hand to winemaking in the fourteenth century. Piero represents the 26th generation to run the firm.
Like many of the family run estates, the Antinori holdings are in fabulous sites due to the foresight of ancestors long since dead. Vines are grown predominantly in Tuscany in the Chianti Classico region and in Bolgheri but the family have recently taken a share in a Sangiovese vineyard in Atlas Peak in the north of Napa Valley.
 Though the Antinoris have been in business for centuries, it is Piero who has done most to put the family firm on the world wine map. As with Torres, Piero had a vision to improve the quality of its produce. From the doldrums of the 70's when the majority of Tuscan wineries (Antinori included) were churning out poor quality, bulk Chianti, Piero turned the company around. He had studied abroad and had seen wine made in France and other countries. From his experience, he introduced malo-lactic fermentation so that the wines became less acidic. He got rid of the Italian botti and replaced them with French barriques in which to age the wines. Above all, he had a passion to produce wines with Italian character but which were exciting, different and had potential. The result was the introduction of the first 'Super Tuscan' wine, Tignanello. This was made with 80% Sangiovese, the red grape in Chianti, and 20% Cabernet Sauvignon. Despite its excellence and huge following around the world, the wine could only be classified as a table wine, vino da tavola, under Italian wine law. International grape varieties were not permitted. This was exactly what Piero deplored about the Italian regulations. Nevertheless the official lowly classification for such an outstanding quality wine ensured its celebrity status and the firm, as they say, has not looked back. Meanwhile, the Italian wine laws have since changed!
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| Coming up next month: Phylloxera Vastatrix - the scourge of the wine world. |
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