Valuation & structuring — Expertise at the heart of the deal

VITACEAE values wine estates on their full asset base — vineyard land and leases, operating business, brand, stocks, equipment and planting rights — and structures the transaction economically with the client's legal and tax advisors, using fourteen structuring levers.

Three benchmarks. In Champagne, the prevailing market value of one hectare of vines ranges from €947,000 in the Aube to €1,689,000 in the Côte des Blancs (2025 official price schedule, Journal officiel of 19 August 2026 — VITACEAE Market Data). In Burgundy, a Côte-d'Or premier cru white plot is valued at €2,700,000/ha and a premier cru red at €1,150,000/ha under the same schedule (Burgundy vineyard prices). A sitting tenant under a French farm lease and the choice between asset deal and share deal (Sempastous control) are the two factors that most change what a price actually pays for (a vineyard is not real estate).

VITACEAE provides no legal, tax or wealth-planning advice: the firm coordinates the transaction with your notary, lawyer and accountant, whose analyses remain decisive.

The value of a wine estate is not “surface area × price per hectare”. That shortcut ignores what really drives value — and risk: the farm lease and tenant rights, the operating business, the brand, stocks, equipment, planting rights, yield history and the quality of the terroir. Two estates of comparable size can be worth very different amounts.

Our role is to objectify value through an independent, multi-scenario approach, cross-referencing several methods rather than relying on one. Valuation then becomes a negotiating instrument, not a mere estimate.

Our valuation methods

• Revalued Net Assets (RNA) — land, equipment and stocks less debt. Suited to asset-heavy estates and share deals.
• Capitalisation of farm rent — reconstituted rental yield with an appellation coefficient. Informs the value of leased land.
• DCF (Discounted Cash Flow) — seven-to-ten-year projection discounted at a sector WACC. Suited to cash-generative operating estates.
• EBITDA multiples — benchmarking against transaction references, as a complement.

The 14 structuring levers

1. Choice of vehicle (assets vs. shares)
2. Farm lease — term, rent, clauses
3. Split ownership
4. Earn-out
5. Representations & warranties
6. Conditions precedent (SAFER, financing, lease)
7. Non-compete clause
8. Transitional support by the seller
9. Allocation of costs
10. Treatment of stocks
11. Treatment of equipment
12. Supply and commercial contracts
13. Payment terms (vendor loan, escrow)
14. Closing timetable

Further reading

Valuation underpins our Sell-side and Buy-side Advisory. See our references.

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Frequently asked questions

How is a wine estate valued?

By cross-checking several methods: revalued net assets, capitalisation of the farm rent, DCF and EBITDA multiples. A multi-scenario approach makes the value objective.

Why is value not simply “surface × price per hectare”?

Because the farm lease, the operating business, the brand, stocks, equipment, planting rights and the yield history make the real value vary widely.

What is capitalisation of the farm rent?

A method that reconstructs the rental return of land under lease, weighted by an appellation coefficient, to estimate its value.

Does VITACEAE provide tax or legal advice?

No. VITACEAE identifies the economic and technical impacts; recommendations fall to the client's own advisers (notaire, lawyer, accountant).