A new global wine company, Vinarchy, has been created from the combined assets of Accolade Wines and the Australian, New Zealand and Spanish wine businesses formerly owned by Pernod Ricard.
The Pernod Ricard wineries were acquired by Australian Wine Holdco Limited (AWL) in April this year, to create what it described as ‘a new global wine company and future industry leader’.
Out of this merger, Vinarchy arrives as one of the world’s largest specialist wine companies, with more than AU$1.5 billion in annual net sales revenue, across a multitude of top wine brands, distribution networks around the world, and more than 1600 staff globally.
The new company commands 11 wineries in Australia, New Zealand, South Africa, and Spain, producing more than 32 million 9LE cases annually, and owns Berri Estates, the largest winery in the Southern Hemisphere.
Its brands include Hardys, the number two Australian wine brand globally; Campo Viejo, the number one Rioja wine brand in the world; and Jacob’s Creek, which is in the top 10 of the world’s most valuable wine brands.
Vinarchy also holds the number one market position in New Zealand with Stoneleigh, Brancott Estate, and Mud House, and owns fast-growing Australian brands Grant Burge, Jam Shed, and Petaluma and a range of fine wines from all regions including St Hugo, St Hallett, Orlando, Church Rd, Ysios, and Tarsus.
The new company is being led by executive chairman Ben Clarke, who has held a similar role at Accolade Wines since September 2024.
Clarke said Vinarchy will bring ‘scale and innovation’ to global winemaking: “We believe Vinarchy can lead the future of the wine category.
“We will be a dedicated wine company, with scale, capability, reach, resources, talent, and an exceptional portfolio of leading brands. We want to redefine wine.
“The global wine industry faces serious structural challenges,” added Clarke. “Global wine consumption has been declining for years, driven by changing consumer preferences and a shift to lower-alcohol drinks.
“Vinarchy will be bold and imaginative in meeting these challenges. With our enhanced scale, brand investment program, innovation capability and industry-leading talent, we believe can meet many of the challenges that the industry faces.
“I’m excited to be joined at Vinarchy by more than 1,600 colleagues around the globe. We will be an agile, high-performance organisation,” he said.
AWL said that the combined entities of Vinarchy are ‘highly complementary, with limited overlap’.
“In areas where there is duplication, management has been careful to plan for an orderly combination with a focus on creating a sustainable global business for the long term,” said the company.
“It is expected customers and distributors will have minimal disruption. Pernod Ricard will continue to distribute the former Pernod Ricard Winemakers portfolio under transitional distribution agreements for a period of time to support a smooth transition.
“Accolade Wines employees will transition to the new business from their current roles, with a significant majority of Pernod Ricard Winemakers employees also joining Vinarchy.”
