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ARROWOOD, BYRON AND FREEMARK ABBEY WINERIES SOLD TO
KENDALL-JACKSON AND JACKSON FAMILY WINES
Chanin Capital Partners serves as Exclusive Financial Advisor
LOS ANGELES, CA, September 13, 2006 -- Legacy Estate Group LLC (“Legacy”) today completed the sale of substantially all of its assets to Kendall-Jackson Wine Estates, Ltd. and/or its assignees (“Kendall-Jackson”). Legacy was the owner of three highly-acclaimed luxury and ultra-premium wineries: Arrowood Vineyards & Winery, a Sonoma Valley, California winery founded by Alis and Richard Arrowood and previously owned by Robert Mondavi; Byron Vineyard & Winery, a Central Coast of California producer founded by Ken Brown and previously owned by Robert Mondavi; and Freemark Abbey Winery, an historic Napa Valley, California producer whose wines were chosen to be part of the famous Paris Wine Tasting of 1976. Chanin Capital Partners, a specialty investment bank, served as exclusive financial adviser and structured and negotiated the transaction on behalf of Legacy.
Following the acquisition of Arrowood and Byron and a change in marketing and distribution, Legacy's lower than anticipated first eight months of combined sales was insufficient to cover the acquisition debt service. As a result, Legacy filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection on November 18, 2005. After an extended bidding process, FAB Acquisition Company (“FAB”), controlled by Bill Price (a founding partner of Texas Pacific Group) and the Agustin Huneeus family (owners of Quintessa and other wine industry assets), emerged in July 2006 as the stalking horse bidder for a section 363 sale in the restructuring of the Legacy business. The FAB bid of $90 million included the additional assumption of a distribution contract with, and substantial liability to, Wilson-Daniels Ltd. On August 16, 2006, the section 363 hearing and auction was held before Judge Alan Jaroslovsky of the U.S. Bankruptcy Court, Northern District of California, in Santa Rosa, California. After renewed bidding, Kendall-Jackson emerged as the winning bidder with an all-cash bid of $97 million, plus the assumption of the Wilson-Daniels liabilities.
In addition to Chanin, Legacy was represented by Murray & Murray as bankruptcy counsel, Morrison & Foerster as corporate counsel and Hinman & Carmichael as special counsel on alcoholic beverage issues. Chanin was represented by Jeffer, Mangels, Butler & Marmaro.
About Kendall-Jackson
Jackson Family Wines is a family-owned wine company with three divisions, some 1,200 employees globally and about 28 wine brands. The three divisions are Kendall-Jackson Wine Estates, Artisan & Estates and Jackson Wine Estates International. Kendall-Jackson's Artisan & Estates division is expected to add Napa’s Freemark Abbey Winery, Sonoma County’s Arrowood Vineyards & Winery and Santa Barbara’s Byron Vineyard & Winery to a portfolio of brands that include Cambria, Cardinale, La Crema, Matanzas Creek and Murphy-Goode.
About Chanin Capital Partners
Chanin Capital Partners is a top-ranked specialty investment banking firm that provides financial advisory services, including for Mergers & Acquisitions; Fairness, Valuation and Solvency Opinions; Financial Restructurings; and Capital Raising. With offices in Detroit, London, Los Angeles and New York, Chanin Capital Partners is one of the largest, independent, specialty investment banks providing financial advisory services for the middle market and for distressed transactions. Since 1984, the professionals of Chanin Capital Partners have consummated more than $29 billion in mergers and acquisitions mandates, completed more than $146 billion in financial restructuring transactions, and delivered hundreds of fairness and solvency opinions and valuation reports. Chanin Capital Partners, a specialty investment bank, provides a wide range of services, including mergers & acquisitions, financing, financial opinions and advisory services, and financial restructuring.
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