Languedoc wines delivered to the United States by sailing boat

n November 10, 1,200 bottles of Château Maris, the first European estate to be certified BCorporation, set sail on the cargo ship ‘Grain de Sail’, bound for the United States. On 3 December the wines arrived safely in New York. For Château Maris, a brand of Cordier by Invivo, the initiative has two objectives, one of which is to respond to increased interest by Americans in wines that make a statement.  

With maritime freight suffering from congestion, Château Maris decided to choose a more environmentally-friendly way of transporting goods. The Languedoc château therefore chose Grain de Sail, the owner of a cargo ship that sails twice a year to America. This form of transport is carbon-free and more environmentally friendly, emitting seventeen times less CO2 per tonne than a container ship.

Hennessy, too, has committed to the principle of using a “sailing cargo ship”, due to be designed by a ship owner from Nantes, for some of its shipments to the United States. Its aim is to significantly reduce its environmental impact. The Neoline sailing cargo ship, powered mainly by clean, renewable wind energy, with 4,200 m² of sail, will carry 4 million bottles of Cognac from Saint-Nazaire to Baltimore. The first sailing cargo ship is expected to come on-stream in 2023, between Montoir and Baltimore.

Similarly, Martell Mumm Perrier-Jouët, in conjunction with Pernod Ricard North America, is expected to ship its first exports by sailboat to the United States also in 2023. By using wind power to export more than 400,000 bottles of Cognac and Champagne to New York each year, Martell Mumm Perrier-Jouët is expected to save over 30g of CO2 per bottle.