History
The story of the wine merchant company Louis Vialard did not begin in Pauillac, along the Gironde estuary. It all began in London, on the banks of the river Thames. In 1951, Louis Vialard was 32 years old and the owner of Château Cissac – a Cru Bourgeois (Haut-Médoc) in the 1932 classification. His plan was both ambitious and pioneering: to launch his wines into the English market. In a daring move he settled in London, incorporated a commercial enterprise under British law and spent the rest of his life travelling tirelessly between his vineyard and the British Isles.
He was one of the first advocates of sustainable viticulture, constantly striving for excellence – not least on his own estate. The early success in marketing Château Cissac led Louis to explore every corner of the terroir in search of the best French vineyards, and their wines, for his friends in London to enjoy.
Several years later, he established the Louis Vialard company – wine merchants in Bordeaux since 1969 - in order to increase his supply of fine wines and expand their distribution to other markets across the world.
In the late 1980s, Louis Vialard and his children, Danielle and Pascal, introduced me to the art of trading wine. More than 70 years after it all began in London, Maison Louis Vialard upholds the same values and ethics, with a constantly renewed range of wines: a taste for sharing and sharing good taste.
Selection of the wines, development of business relations as well as the executive management function held by Mrs Fanny Alos, are all coordinated from “La Villa de l’Estuaire”, the head office of Maison Louis Vialard. Situated on the banks of the estuary in Pauillac, the building dates back to 1880, and was recently restored in 2020.
To ensure its continued development, Maison Vialard is equipped with a storage and logistics warehouse in full compliance with the highest, current standards (ISO 22000:2018 and FR-Bio -21). This enables the company to manage 4,000 Skus and control a significant, permanent level of stock in a highly secure environment.
The site is designed to offer optimal ageing conditions for the finest wines as well as ensure their shipment around the world according to the customers’ instructions.
The story of Maison Louis Vialard continues to be written each and every day.