Laetitia Vineyard and Winery has new owners — marking a turning point for the San Luis Obispo County vineyard that appeared on the brink of disappearing earlier this year after its corporate owners declared bankruptcy.
According to a news release, Laetitia Winery has been acquired from former owners Vintage Wine Estates by “three families with local ties and long-term plans for the winery and estate.”
The new owners are Eric Hickey, Ejnar Knudsen and Jeff Nicholson.
“The ownership change reconnects the winery with its 42-year San Luis Obispo County heritage,” the release said. “Everyone involved has their own unique ties to the community.”
Laetitia’s future was left in jeopardy in January after Vintage Wine Estates abruptly closed the Arroyo Grande winery’s tasting room off Highway 101. At the time, the company said the closure was a part of corporate restructuring.
Then in July, Vintage Wine Estates filed for bankruptcy and announced plans to lay off workers across its 10 properties, including at Laetitia.
The company auctioned off its California properties in September as part of bankruptcy proceedings, at which point Knudsen was able to secure Laetitia Vineyard and three other properties for $9.3 million, the San Francisco Chronicle reported Sept. 18.
Who are new owners of Laetitia Winery?
General manager and winemaker Hickey started working at the Arroyo Grande winery in 1988, helping during the harvest and working in the cellar alongside his father, who was a Maison Deutz production assistant at the time, according to the release. French winery Maison Deutz was the founder of what would eventually become the Laetitia vineyard.
“My father helped shape early Laetitia releases, and I’ve been involved with the winery for more than 30 years,” Hickey said in the release. “I’m thrilled to build upon this legacy as a Laetitia partner.”
Hickey was named Laetitia’s head winemaker in 2000, according to the release, and has since helped to oversee production at the winery with a focus on sparkling wine and pinot noir. He also helped to expand the property’s “long-standing sustainability programs,” the release said.
“I have always believed that sustainability centers on making decisions that are good for the environment, good for people and good for business,” he said. “I have a huge amount of respect for — and trust in — my Laetitia partners. Together, we look forward to re-engaging with old friends and welcoming new guests to the winery.”
Hickey is joined by Knudsen, “a partner in several agribusiness companies in the San Joaquin Valley with a family history of over 100 years in California agriculture,” the release said.
Knudsen first came to the area as a child during a visit to his extended family’s dairy farm in Santa Maria. While attending Cal Poly, he toured Laetitia in 1988 “and it was love at first sight,” the release said.
Knudsen and his family have since been key supporters of Cal Poly’s wine and viticulture center and program, and Knudsen also serves on the university’s Dean’s Advisory Council for the College of Agriculture, Food and Environmental Sciences, according to the release.
Nicholson, meanwhile, “brings extensive operations and logistics experience to his role as a Laetitia partner,” the release said.
He co-founded two food and agricultural distribution companies and is an active board member on several others in California. Like Knudsen, he also has a Cal Poly connection — this time through one of his children.
“Jeff and his family look forward to strengthening those ties and being part of building even a better winery,” the release said.