Edmundo de Ayala Durand

Edmundo de Ayala y Durand was a Franco-Colombian entrepreneur and founder of the French champagne house Champagne Ayala. He was a pioneer in low-dosage champagne and one of the 18 founding members of the Syndicate of the Great Brands in France in the 19th century.

His company became one of the oldest Maisons de Champagne in the region. It was a supplier to the English and Spanish crowns as well as the royal courts of Great Britain and Spain, and they were also pioneers in introducing a drier style of wine. The company still exists after more than 160 years, enjoying international prestige.

Biography

Edmundo, also known as Edmund, approached the Viscount of Mareuil to learn winemaking. There he met his future wife, Gabrielle de Albrecht, the Viscount's niece. They married in 1858, and Gabrielle contributed as part of her dowry the family vineyards in Ay and Mareuil-sur-Ay, along with the family estate Château d'Aÿ, giving rise to the Maison Ayala. The house was officially founded in 1860. The Ayala brand was registered with the Commercial Court of Reims on November 5, 1875.

He was the son of Rafael de Ayala y Lozano, a Colombian diplomat, and Hortensia Durand, a Frenchwoman from a wealthy family that owned many vineyards in Champagne and the Champagne Durand brand. Edmundo de Ayala descended from two aristocratic and noble families from New Granada (present-day Colombia). His ancestors included royal officials of the Spanish Crown in the Americas and presidents of Colombia, such as his grandfather Luis de Ayala y Vergara, and nobles from the capital of the Viceroyalty of New Granada, like his great-grandfather, the Marquis of San Jorge of Bogotá, José María Lozano de Peralta. He had extensive knowledge of champagne production, having learned the family business from his father.