This week’s Sonoma County scuttlebutt is that Constellation Brands, which purchased Fortune Brands’ Beam Wine Estates division in December for a reported $885 million, is poised to sell off some of its new acquisitions.
Don’t be surprised if Constellation jettisons the Buena Vista Carneros, Gary Farrell and Geyser Peak wineries/brands based in Sonoma County, and Napa Valley’s Atlas Peak label, which loses its winemaking facility and 500 acres of vineyards to Piero Antinori when its lease with the Tuscan owner expires in November 2008.
Potential buyers include usual suspects Diageo, which kicked the tires on Beam before Constellation...