The Bollinger Family Buys First American Winery With Oregon’s Ponzi Vineyards

Photo Credit: William James Photography

The Bollinger family, owners of iconic Champagne Bollinger in addition to four other historic estates in France — Bollinger and Ayala in Champagne, Chanson Père & Fils in Burgundy, Delamain in Cognac and Langlois-Chateau in the Loire Valley — are breaking into the American market with the acquisition of their first U.S. winery, Oregon’s famed Ponzi Vineyards.

Photo Credit: Ponzi

The purchase includes the winery and hospitality facilities 40 minutes from Portland, Oregon in the state’s Willamette Valley, in addition to 35 acres of vineyard land in the newly established Laurelwood District AVA. The winery has been an introduction to the region for countless numbers of people through not only visits but major events that the Ponzi family has been instrumental in creating and supporting, such as the International Pinot Noir Celebration, Oregon Pinot Camp and the Salud Pinot Noir Barrel Auction. The Ponzi family will retain 100 acres of vineyard land and will grow and sell the grapes to Ponzi Vineyards under a long-term contract.

Photo Credit: Ponzi

Bollinger family holding group Chairman & CEO Etienne Bizot comments, “The United States is such an important market for luxury Champagne, Burgundy, Sancerre, Cognac, and other regions in which our family owns wineries. If there was anywhere outside of France where we felt it was critical to invest, it is in the U.S. We have quietly considered opportunities for a number of years, but it is finally with the Ponzi family that we feel we have found the ideal fit. Their bold vision to come to Oregon, the subsequent decades of recognition for continually innovating and improving – we have so much respect for what the Ponzis have achieved, and look forward to building on it together, and connecting all our brands more closely with the U.S. market.”Photo Credit: Gershon Wolfe

The alignment is a perfect pairing for the family-owned Ponzi, which established itself as one of Oregon’s original wineries, leading the success and growth of the region’s Pinot Noir for the past 50 years, given that Bollinger — James Bond’s bubbly of choice — has been owned and controlled by the same family since 1829. It will celebrate its 200th anniversary in 2029.

Photo Credit: Jeremy-Wade-Photography