Brian Croser, founder, former chief executive and head winemaker of Petaluma Ltd, has been appointed by Petaluma’s new owner, Lion Nathan, as chairman of its wine group, although Paul Francis, who oversaw the company’s bids for Petaluma and Banksia, is its new managing director. Croser retains personal control of the Petaluma winery, its vineyards in various regions and the Bridgewater Mill restaurant and processing facility. Furthermore, Croser is also Chief Winemaker for the Lion Nathan Group, in which capacity he will report to Paul Francis, who would normally otherwise report to him. Got that? Former Lion Nathan wine group managing director Dominique Bach has not survived these latest changes, while Lion Nathan has still to win control over Banksia. Who’s stopping them? Their good friends at Allied Domecq, who refuse to part with their 15% stake in the business, saying it wanted to protect its distribution rights for some of Banksia’s brands in New Zealand.
