A promising vintage, 2022 will also have been a year rich in emotions for the wine world. Here are 5 events to keep in mind in 2022.
1. Saint-Emilion 2022 classification: Château Figeac joins Château Pavie at the top
In September 2022, the new classification of properties in the Saint-Emilion appellation is revealed. In the small world of wine, this new classification is not really a surprise. It consecrates the evolution of a single top property - Château Figeac -, and confirms the position of Château Pavie, which had joined the super category in 2012.
2. Death of Louis-Fabrice Latour, head of the Louis Latour wine merchant house in Burgundy
On September 5, Burgundy, and more generally the wine world, lost a great man. Louis-Fabrice Latour, owner of the Louis Latour house. He was, since 1999, the head of one of the most important wine houses in Burgundy. Founded in 1797, it was, two centuries later, still in the hands of the same family, which was a great source of pride for him. He represented the 11th generation and each of his actions, each of his decisions were guided by this heritage and the will to inscribe the house even more in the wine history of Burgundy. On December 14, his brother Florent Latour was appointed new president of the board.
3. Death of Claude Taittinger, an emblematic figure of the famous champagne house
On January 5, the Champagne region bid farewell to an elegant, cultured, epicurean, passionate man who loved champagne and loved to sing its virtues. Claude Taittinger, former president of the eponymous family group, who for some forty years made the beautiful days of the champagne house, now directed by Vitalie Taittinger shines again in the family bosom ... "Claude Taittinger has made of a family name an international brand of champagne," wants to remember nevertheless the "savior" of the house, who passed the baton to the younger generation while remaining honorary president.
4. Bernard Arnault, magna of wines and spirits, becomes again the richest man in the world before Elon Musk
A lover of great wines, the chairman and CEO of the luxury group LVMH has an incredible collection of estates, each more prestigious than the next. The duel between Elon Musk, the tempestuous boss of Tesla and Twitter, and Bernard Arnault for the title of richest man in the world keeps on going. One overtaking the other by a short head in the course of stock market quotations. But the CEO of the luxury group LVMH has an asset that his American competitor does not: he is a lover of fine wines. And not just any wine...
5. Artémis Domaines, owned by the Pinault family, merges with Maisons & Domaines Henriot
A thunderclap in the wine world. No one expected a merger of Artémis Domaines and Maisons & Domaines Henriot. On June 23, during a party at Clos de Tart (property of Artémis Domaines), in Morey-Saint-Denis, the presence of Gilles de Larouzière Henriot, CEO of Maisons & Domaines Henriot, along with Frédéric Engerer, director of the wine branch of Artémis, and a member of the Rothschild bank specializing in financial operations in the wine sector, had hardly put the chip in the ear of guests. On September 30, the official announcement established Artémis Domaines as a leading player in the wine world.
