Burgundy stirred, not shaken by sale to US billionaire

Pernand-Vergelesses, France

HE may be American and own a major football club, Arsenal, but Stanley Kroenke, the new boss of a prestigious Burgundy vineyard, says he knows his wine and won't mess with tradition - and locals say they believe him.

The Bonneau du Martray vineyard "shares the same philosophy as ours in California, based on the quality of the land and the wines", said his manager, Armand de Maigret. "We are winemakers, not a marketing machine." A point well taken by Louis-Fabrice Latour, head of Burgundy's wine federation BIVB, who says he is "reassured" by Mr Kroenke's status as a wine professional who makes some of the world's most expensive wine.