Edition: U.S. / Global

LVMH Buys Stake In Chateau d'Yquem

Published: November 29, 1996

A major producer of luxury goods, LVMH Moet- Hennessy Louis Vuitton, said today that it would acquire a majority stake in Chateau d'Yquem, a French vineyard known for its sweet white Sauternes wines.

Named after Sauternes, a town near Bordeaux in southwest France, where they are produced, the wines can fetch high prices at auctions; a rare bottle of Chateau d'Yquem recently sold for $8,200. LVMH is known for its Champagne, and this deal is its first acquisition of a French vineyard that produces only nonsparkling wine.

''LVMH is the creme de la creme in the world of luxury goods so there's a continuity and logic to the acquisition,'' said Alain Raynaud, chairman of the Union des Grands Crus de Bordeaux, an association of winemakers.

LVMH bought approximately 55 percent of d'Yquem.