Wilson Daniels Wholesale completes acquisition of Oregon's Galaxy Wine

Young's Market Company, a major Western states beverage alcohol distributor that owns Napa Valley-based wine and spirits marketer Wilson Daniels, has completed the expansion of its family-brand wholesale subsidiary to Oregon.

Wilson Daniels Wholesale completed the acquisition of Portland, Oregon-based Galaxy Wine Company on June 30, a broker of the transaction announced July 2. The deal originally was announced in May. Financial terms weren't disclosed.

"The acquisition is extremely significant as it commences our expansion to the West Coast and establishes Wilson Daniels Wholesale as a bi-coastal wholesaler," said Rocco Lombardo, Wilson Daniels president, in an email. Revenues for the Wholesale division will exceed $70 million in 2018.

Galaxy's portfolio includes ultrapremium- and luxury-priced wines from domestic and international producers such as Penner-Ash Wine Cellars, an Oregonian brand owned by Santa Rosa-based Jackson Family Wines, and Tamarack Cellars, a Washington brand purchased earlier this year by Vintage Wine Estates, also of Santa Rosa.

Bob Liner and Matt Elsen stared Galaxy in 1999 after selling their fine-wine shop Liner & Eisen, according to the company website. They will be staying on with the Wilson Daniels fine-wine wholesale division, leading the existing Galaxy team, according to Zepponi & Company, a Santa Rosa-based wine mergers-and-acquisitions firm that was Galaxy's exclusive financial adviser in the deal.

Founders Matt Elsen and Bob Liner will continue working with the wholesale fine wine division of Wilson Daniels, while leading the existing Galaxy team.

Fully owned by the Underwood family behind Young's Holdings since 2003, Wilson Daniels launched the wholesale division in October 2015. The East Coast base of operations was intended as a balance to West Coast business, said Lombardo, to Market Watch magazine early this year.

The wholesale division had $26 million in revenues last year, up about 30 percent from 2016, according to Shanken News Daily. With the acquisition, division sales are expected to top $70 million this year, Lombardo told North Bay Business Journal.

Other Underwood family holdings are Young's Market, which distributes beverages in 10 Western states, and Infinium Spirits. Wilson Daniels and Galaxy also distribute small portfolios of spirits brands.

This story was updated with new comments from Rocco Lombardo.