If the pandemic year of 2020 year forced merger and acquisition activity in the wine industry into retreat in the interest of “living to fight another day”, then 2021 has been the celebration of the arrival of that day, and then some. The 2021 wine industry transaction market has been marked by the announcement of one big deal after another. This year’s market through October has been dominated by bold moves revolving around three themes: think big, go public; think big, acquire scale; and refocus strategic priorities and rationalize portfolios. Think Big, Go Public The wine industry’s greatest success stories of 2021 involved the public market listings of Duckhorn Wine Company and Vintage Wine Estates. We have...