Qualified in winemaking from the University of Bordeaux, with a Masters degree in International Wine and Spirits Trade and a level 3 Wine And Spirit Education Trust diploma (ESC Dijon), he succeeds Guy Sarton du Jonchay (in charge of Maison Vidal-Fleury over the past 13 years).
Wine was a natural choice for Antoine Dupré. Following several internships in Bordeaux and Rivesaltes (most especially at Domaine Cazes), he went on to become Cellar Master for producers in Entre-Deux-Mers (Vignobles Boudon), South Africa (Head Winemaker for Morgenster Wine and Olive Estate) and finally in Burgundy (Technical Manager with Maison Bouchard Ainé et fils) from 2006 to 2014.
Opportunities then allowed him to switch over to the business side of wine for Maison Louis Jadot in Beaune and then Maison Gabriel Meffre in Gigondas (Purchasing Manager), before becoming New World Wine Buyer in January 2019 with the Grands Chais de France group in Alsace.
Highly attached to the region and impressed by the diversity and the complexity of its different terroirs, he is delighted about this new challenge and collaboration with historic Vidal-Fleury (the oldest Maison in the Rhône Valley), the roots and the DNA of which, are located in the magnificent terroir of Côte-Rôtie. Antoine Dupré stressed that the entity “remains autonomous and independent, despite belonging to a famous family, recognized for winegrowing at home and abroad.”
Founded in 1781, Vidal-Fleury became renowned quickly afterwards in 1787 (notably due to a visit of Thomas Jefferson) as 70 % of the company’s wines were shipped to numerous countries.
Thanks to his technical and business skills, Antoine Dupré “will focus on the production of top quality wines, the development of overseas exports in markets where we need to expand our presence (China, Russia, Brazil…) and the revival of the company’s local sales force – a key element to a prestigious French wine house’s image. In addition, we will explore new solutions in view of improving upon our environmental strategy in line with our outlets.”
VIDAL-FLEURY – 48 route de Lyon – 69420 Tupin et Semons – +33 (0)4 74 56 10 18
contact@vidal-fleury.com – www.vidal-fleury.com www.facebook.com/VidalFleury
