Vineyard set up by two migrants in San Diego sold for $1 billion

A California vineyard founded by two brothers has been sold to an Australian wine company for up to $1 billion. DAOU Vineyards, owned by Lebanese brothers Georges and Daniel Daou, has agreed to be bought by Australia’s Treasury Wine Estates, one of the largest vintners in the world.

The Daou brothers fled Lebanon with their family after a missile sent shrapnel through their Beirut home in 1973, during the country’s civil war. The family went to France , first to Paris and later to Cannes, where Georges and Daniel became interested in wine.

‘In France, Joseph [their father] developed a passion for wine, and it was here, surrounded by vineyards and centuries of winemaking tradition, that Georges and Daniel first dreamt of a life in wine,’ the brothers wrote on their website.

The brothers moved to San Diego in the early 1980s ‘to pursue their American dream’ and enrolled in UC San Diego. Daniel spent years experimenting with winemaking in his garage in San Diego, using his one-acre vineyard of Cabernet Sauvignon.

The brothers decided to join together as business partners and buy a property in Paso. Their vineyard in Paso Robles now sells wines under the DAOU brand, some of which are priced up to $275 a bottle.

Treasury Wine, which has a market value of $5.56 billion, has agreed to buy the business for $900 million upfront.

Yet it could pay up to $100 million in additional earn-outs linked to growth targets over the three years through 2027.

The Australian company, with a market value of $5.56 billion, believes the acquisition will aid its move into luxury wines.

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