Pedro Domecq Lembeye

Pedro Domecq Lembeye (Tabaille-Usquain, France, October 15, 1787 – Jerez de la Frontera, February 11, 1839) was a Spanish-French nobleman and businessman who founded the Domecq wineries in Jerez de la Frontera in the 19th century, acquiring the facilities and brands of the company "Juan Haurie y Sobrinos," which had previously been owned by Jean Haurie Nebout and originally founded by Patrick Murphy Woodlock in 1730. Today, the company is known as Bodegas Fundador.

Pedro was the son of Jean de Domecq and Catalina Lembeye and the great-nephew of the founder of the wine company "Juan Haurie y Sobrinos." He left France with his family, fleeing the French Revolution that began in 1789.

He started working at a young age in London for the company "Gordon, Murphy and Co." In 1809, he founded, together with John James Ruskin—father of the writer John Ruskin—and Henry Telford, the company "Ruskin, Telford & Domecq," buyers of sherry and exclusive agents in England for the Jerez firm founded by his great-uncle, "Juan Haurie y Sobrinos." He arrived in Spain in 1816, initially settling in the city of Cádiz, and two years later signed the deed acquiring the rights to the "Jean Haurie y Sobrinos" firm in Jerez de la Frontera from his uncle Juan Carlos Haurie, as the business was on the verge of bankruptcy. Thus, in 1822, the company "Pedro Domecq" was established.

Under his leadership, he implemented the necessary measures to save his uncle's business, recovered the Macharnudo vineyards, and acquired the Parpalana vineyard. Ruskin continued as Pedro Domecq's agent in London, and the business thrived. The company positioned itself at the top of the Jerez wine trade and achieved solid financial stability. He brought from France a revolutionary rectifying device for high-quality brandies, bringing Pedro Alegre from Paris to install it in the area known as Puerta de Rota.

On October 12, 1823, King Ferdinand VII of Spain visited him and, a year later, appointed him Gentleman of the Royal Chamber and official supplier to the royal household.

Pedro Domecq married in London in 1814 to Diana de Lancaster, with whom he had five daughters (Diana, Adela, Cecilia, Alicia, and Carolina), all of whom were educated in France, married aristocrats there, and became disconnected from the family business. This situation led him to invite his brother, Juan Pedro Domecq Lembeye, to become his partner in the business.

Pedro Domecq died in 1839 at the age of 52, as a result of burns sustained after accidentally falling into a vat of boiling water. After his death, his brother Juan Pedro took over the management of the company, eventually purchasing his nieces' shares and becoming the sole owner of the family business.

See Also

• Domecq