Gallo snaps up Napa vineyard

US-based wine producer E&J Gallo Winery has acquired Stagecoach, a 1,300 acre vineyard in Napa Valley in California, for an undisclosed sum.

The purchase of the Pritchard Hill-based winery, which lies within the Atlas Peak appellation, is the latest in a series of acquisitions as the company strengthen its premium portfolio and Napa landholding.

Stagecoach Vineyard is one of the largest contiguous vineyard in the Napa Valley with more than 600 acres of vines set on red, volcanic soils with boulder-strewn clay loam and solid rock outcrops that were blasted to create a more uniform soil base. It currently supplies grapes to more than 90 wineries ranging from small boutique wineries to larger-scale producers, with many bearing the vineyard’s name on the label. Gallo has agreed to honour all of the existing contracts, it confirmed.

Stagecoach was founded in 1995 by Jan Krupp, who said the decision to sell had not been simple.

“I am pleased that Gallo will honor all existing grape contracts in effect at Stagecoach and will continue working with our fantastic team. Additionally, we are looking forward to the benefit of working with Gallo’s viticulture research department,” he said in a statement.

Roger Nabedian, Senior Vice President and General Manager of Gallo’s Premium Wine Division said the purchase affirmed Gallo’s commitment to compete in the luxury wine segment. “It provides us the opportunity to continue making and selling luxury wine offerings such as Louis M. Martini, William Hill Estate and Orin Swift,” he said.

The acquisition is the latest in a long line of deals undertaken to strengthen its Napa holdings and boost its premium wines. In June last year, the company announced its purchase of Orin Swift in Napa, following the earlier purchase of Ranch Winery the preceding year. In 2014 it purchased Talbott Vineyards in California’s Santa Lucia Highlands and sparkling wine specialist J Vineyards & Winery, including the Healdsburg winery and 121 hectares of vineyards in Sonoma and the Russian River Valley, as well as two vineyard sites in the Napa Valley – Cypress Ranch and part of the Palisades Vineyard near Calistoga.