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Australia’s Endeavour Group acquires Cape Mentelle from LVMH

12 January 2023 By Jessica Mason

LVMH has sold one of Margaret River’s founding five wineries, Cape Mentelle, to Australian retail and hospitality business Endeavour Group.

Completion of the acquisition, which will see Cape Mentelle joining the Endeavour Group subsidiary Paragon Wine Estate for an undisclosed sum, will take place in due course, pending licensing approval.

As part of the deal, Paragon Wine Estate will retain key personnel at the winery including estate director Penny Dickeson, viticulturist Dave Moulton, and senior winemaker Eloise Jarvis.

The move, which is set to see the group boosting its fine wine portfolio with a premium presence in Western Australia, is being positioned as an evolution for the Endeavour Group business.

Endeavour Group CEO and MD Steve Donohue said: “I’m delighted to welcome Cape Mentelle to the Endeavour Group and paragon Wine Estates families and to see it continue to grow on a global scale while giving more people across Australia access to its fantastic range of wines.”

“Cape Mentelle founder David Hohnen once said, ‘wine is a journey’,” said Donohue, and added: “Anyone who has tried a Cape Mentelle Cabernet or Chardonnay knows just how special this winery is.”

Cape Mentelle was founded in 1970 and is considered a pioneer of many of the Margaret River region’s most revered wine styles. The winery is also a member of Sustainable Winegrowing Australia and was the first Western Australian winery to achieve an Entwine accreditation for its sustainability activities.

Paragon Wine Estates was established in 2019 following the acquisition of McLaren Vale’s Chapel Hill winery. Within the Paragon Wine Estates’ portfolio, Cape Mentelle will join: Chapel Hill Winery, Krondorf Wines, Riddoch of Coonawarra, Shingleback Wines, Oakridge Wines in Victoria, Isabel Estate in Marlborough New Zealand and Josef Chromy Wines in Tasmania.

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