Abstract
Domaine de la Chouette is a young French wine company, founded in 2000 by Thierry Dumas and Valérie Hulot. The vineyard is located in the south of the Graves appellation, in the south west of France. 5 hectares are dedicated to the standard red wine AOC Graves rouge and 0.5 hectare produces the grapes for the dessert wine, AOC Graves supérieures, and a dry white, Graves sec. It is a quite little domain which was selected as one of the new talents in France by “The revue du Vin” thanks to the quality of its wines and its philosophy: The values of the South Gironde way of life, a traditional way of work (working with the environment and the rhythm of the seasons) associated with modern techniques, a unique terroir and a wine produces in a mixed environment with birds, insects and forests. Thierry and Valérie decided to use the slogan “a rare wine for unique people”, a catch phrase which reflects the positioning and the essence of the brand.
Although Fenella Davis (from New Zealand) and Peter Antkowiak (from USA) joined the partnership, DdlC stays a quite familial company with limited resources. The firm actually sells 95% of its wines directly to individuals at retails prices and 5% to restaurants of the region at small discount. Thierry and Valérie foresee a significant increase in volume: Whereas they was a production level of 7 000 bottles per year until 2008, there will be 16 500 bottles of 2009 Graves rouge available in summer 2011 for the classic (12 000 bottles) and summer 2012 for the premium (4 500 bottles). Moreover, 2009 is recognized as an exceptional year in South Gironde. Thanks to these positive factors, the owners would like to benefit from new opportunities and reach new objectives.
