Jack Ma has bought the Chateau Perenne in Blaye Cotes de Bordeaux, a move that expands his wine estates in the region.

Ma, the second richest man in China and founder of retail giant Alibaba, already owns the Château de Sours in Bordeaux, France.

The deal to purchase the estate was completed last month for about $18 million. With this, Ma added another 64 hectares to his already expansive French portfolio. Merlot grapes are the main plants grown on the property.  

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Ma's first purchase of a winery in Bordeaux earlier this year caused some buzz among the locals.

The decision of the Chateau Perenne's owner to let go of the property is due to financial reasons. Bernard Magrez, who has owned Perenne since 1997, wants to focus more on making high-end wines.

"This continues our strategy of moving our emphasis away from wines that have a consumer price of €8 and below. I am still looking to buy further classified estates within the Bordeaux region," Magrez said in an interview with Decanter.com.

Perenne's estate is also where the grapes of Gerard Depardieu's wine Confiance grow. The French actor is a long time friend of Magrez.

With Ma's purchase of the estate, he gets to own a sprawling grounds with a lovely château built in the 1870s where both red and white wines are produced.

However, Ma did not directly purchase the property but through buying Château de Sours. He bought the property in Entre deux Mers earlier this year. 

Château de Sours is now undergoing renovation. The neighboring buildings are set to be turned into Ma's home, while Château de Sours will be used for business operations.

Since his purchase of the Bordeaux estate in February 2016, Ma has organized a partnership with some Chinese owners in Bordeaux to form the négociant company, Cellar Privilege.

TagsJack Ma, Chateau Perenne, Chateau de Sours