PERNOD Ricard is to consolidate its global wine operations, including the Jacob's Creek brand, into a single business based in Sydney.
The new structure, to be known as Premium Wine Brands, will also house New Zealand's Brancott Estate, which was formerly known as Montana, as well as Spain's Campo Viejo and Argentinian wine brand Graffigna.
PWB will be responsible for global brand and supply strategies as well as co-ordinating production, viticulture and the supply chain.
PWB chairman and chief executive Jean-Christophe Coutures said the move would create a "complementary portfolio of premium wine brands representing the signature varieties for each country -- Australian shiraz, sauvignon blanc from New Zealand, malbec from Argentina and tempranillo from Spain".
Pernod Ricard first entered the Australian market in 1989 with the purchase of Orlando Wines, owner of the Jacob's Creek brand.
The following year it bought Wyndham Estate to form the Adelaide-based Orlando Wyndham Group, which housed brands including Richmond Grove and Morris, and in 2001 it purchased the Montana wine group in New Zealand.
Pernod Ricard also owns Absolut Vodka and Chivas Regal whisky.
