Belgian civil engineer, 6 years experience in construction and real estate and 9 years as a strategy consultant at McKinsey&Company. I am a wine entrepreneur since 2010 in Loire, starting with Chateau de Miniere in Bourgueil in 2010 and Chateau de Suronde in Quarts de Chaume Grand Cru 2016. I have turned both wine estates around, upgrading dramatically the quality of the wines, with extensive work in the vineyards, two new wineries and lots of new equipment. I make fine and pure organic wines and focus on fault-free wines. In Chateau de Miniere we organise high-end wine tourism, with visits, meals, seminars, lodging, etc, our estate is open daily. In Chateau de Suronde we are open on demand for small groups, and we rent out the residences on the estate. I have an artist residence at Suronde, and the art I collect is shown at Miniere.

Loire is an amazing region for wine and for tourism, so visit and come by at Miniere!

Wine with a story tastes better, from Loire with love, Kathleen

Primary area(s) of work: Wine production

Industry sector(s): Winemaking, Business owner, Wine tourism, Winery operations

Wine styles: Sparkling wine, Cremant, Sweet wines, Still white, Still red, Still rosé, Quarts de Chaume

Wine region expertise: Loire

Market expertise: Europe, France, Belgium

Specialisms: Acquisition of vineyards, Organic viticulture, Environmental impacts, Financial, Startup and profitability, Production of sparkling wines, Economics of wine production, Winery design and construction, Packing and labelling, Legal compliance on authorised packaging and labelling, Identifying and meeting consumer demand, Direct to consumer, Events, Wine tourism, Branding, Starting wineries