Wine
High-Altitude Argentine Winemaker Is Profiting From Peso’s Fall
- Swiss multimillionaire exports 65% of wine, mostly to U.S.
- Operation recovers from years of losses with peso down 78%
The Grupo Colome vineyard in Cafayate, Salta province, Argentina.
Photographer: Eilon Paz/BloombergTwo decades after acquiring vineyards in the foothills of the Andes, Swiss multimillionaire Donald Hess is finally turning a profit in Argentina, helped in no small part by the peso’s dramatic collapse.
Seeking expansion beyond his Napa Valley assets, Hess bought Bodega Colome in the picturesque Calchaqui valley in June 2001 to produce wine at up to 3,100 meters (10,170 feet) above sea level. For years, the export-led operation ran at a loss. But there’s been better luck recently, with the peso plunging 78% since President Mauricio Macri took office in December 2015.