Sale of Petit-Village Delayed for a Year

Buyer Gerard Perse reconsiders $44 million price tag in light of downturn in sales of Bordeaux.

Posted: August 12, 2002

Gerard Perse's $44 million purchase of Château Petit-Village, a well-known Bordeaux wine estate in Pomerol, has been postponed for a year, after the vintner agreed to pay what was reported to be the highest price per-hectare ever for a vineyard in the region.

"We have agreed to give him time to complete the purchase," said Christian Seely, managing director of AXA Millésimes, which owns and manages Petit-Village. "If Mr. Perse completes the purchase in the time frame we have given him, he will become the owner."

Perse has publicly said that he was reconsidering his record-breaking purchase in view of the downturn in the global economy and the general decline in the sale of expensive Bordeaux wines. He is the owner of several high-end wine producers in St.-Emilion including châteaus Pavie, Pavie-Decesse and Monbousquet.

If Perse declines to buy Petit-Village, Seely said AXA would not seek a new buyer. "We were not looking for a buyer in the first place -- the overture came from Mr. Perse," he said.

--Wine Spectator staff

Check our recent ratings of Petit-Village wines.

Read previous news on this subject: