The French Wine Review

What The French Wine Review does

The French Wine Review (La Revue du vin de France / La RVF) is France's oldest wine magazine, founded in 1927, publishing a monthly print and digital wine magazine, two annual wine guides, and a subscription-based digital platform with a database of 65,000-110,000 expert-rated wines and 300+ archived issues dating from 1970. The company serves wine enthusiasts, sommeliers, wine merchants, winemakers, and wine tourists through subscriptions, advertising, paid guides, the state-recognized RVF Academy, and events including Les Grands Prix de la RVF and Les Journées du vin. It operates as a private SAS subsidiary of Groupe Marie Claire, headquartered in Levallois-Perret with a subscription office in Pantin.

Name

The French Wine Review

Legal name

REVUE DU VIN DE FRANCE S.A.S.

Website

https://larvf.com

Company type

Private

Founded year

1927

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

11–50 employees

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Wine Media and Publishing

NAICS

Periodical Publishers (51312), Newspaper, Periodical, Book, and Directory Publishers (5131)

SIC

Periodicals: Publishing Or Publishing & Printing (2721), Books: Publishing Or Publishing & Printing (2731)

akta.pro primary industry

News, Politics & Current Affairs Magazines (MPAJAEAO)

akta.pro secondary industry

Wine Tastings & Vineyard/Winery Tours (THAJAGAD)

Keywords

• Wine magazine publishing
• Wine rating reviews
• Wine database subscriptions
• Wine education academy
• Oenotourism events

Headquarters

HQ city

Pantin

HQ country

France

HQ region

Europe

Offices2 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2C

Offering type

Digital Commerce or Content

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Technology or R&D, Others

Revenue model

1. Magazine Subscriptions: Monthly print and/or digital magazine subscription with access to wine reviews, articles, and premium content
2. Website Premium Subscriptions: Digital-only subscription for website access including wine database, archives, and exclusive content
3. Single Copy Sales: Individual magazine issues sold at newsstands/kiosks
4. Advertising: Advertising space sold to wine industry advertisers including champagne houses, wine merchants, and wine-related businesses
5. Wine Guides and Publications: Sale of specialized guides including 'Le guide des meilleurs vins de France' and 'Le guide des meilleurs vins à petits prix'
6. Events and Salons: Organizing wine events including Les Journées du vin, Les Grands Prix de la RVF ceremony, wine tastings, and championships

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels6 records

Marketing channels7 records

Core offering

La Revue du vin de France publishes a monthly wine magazine (print and digital) and operates a subscription-based website providing access to a wine database of 110,000+ rated wines, 40+ years of digital archives, and premium wine reviews and tasting notes. The company supplements its publications with annual wine guides, the RVF Academy wine education school, wine events, and a directory of French wine merchants.

Product overview

La Revue du vin de France operates as a comprehensive wine media platform combining print and digital products. The core offerings include the monthly La Revue du vin de France magazine (published since 1927), supplemented by two annual wine guides (Le guide des meilleurs vins de France and Le guide des meilleurs vins à petits prix). Digital services encompass a subscription-based wine database with 65,000+ rated wines, searchable archives spanning 300+ issues from 1970 to present, and La RVF Academy for wine education. The platform also organizes events including Les Grands Prix de la RVF awards, Les Journées du vin, and Le Prix des lecteurs competition. Additional services include an online directory of wine merchants and thematic special issues on wine tourism and cellar management.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Brands

• RVF Academy: Wine education school offering formations for amateurs and professionals, including certified training programs
• Le guide des meilleurs vins de France
• Prix des lecteurs
• Les Grands Prix de la RVF
• Championnats de dégustation

Products and services

• La Revue du vin de France (Monthly Magazine) Monthly print and digital wine magazine with wine reviews, winemaker profiles, terroir analyses, food and wine pairing suggestions, and tasting notes for wine enthusiasts and professionals.
• Le guide des meilleurs vins de France Annual wine guide featuring over 7,525 rated and reviewed wines, practical advice on wine conservation and service, top-wine rankings (best under €10, best whites, best rosés), and reference indexes for buyers.
• Le guide des meilleurs vins à petits prix Wine guide dedicated to value discoveries and lesser-known wines, aimed at budget-conscious consumers seeking expert picks at accessible price points.
• Base de données des vins (Wine Database) Subscription-based online database of wine ratings and reviews covering 110,000+ wines, with a search engine and vintage history compiled from every guide edition.
• Archives de La Revue du vin de France Digital archive providing premium subscribers access to 300+ archived magazine issues from 1970 to present, with searchable historical wine reviews and articles.
• La RVF Academy Wine education school offering three training pathways: pleasure-focused courses for wine enthusiasts, state-recognized certified training eligible for CPF funding, and career conversion programs using intuitive and geo-sensory tasting techniques.

Quantifiable outcome

• 110,000+ wines rated and commented in database
• +2 more outcomes

Segments5 records

Ideal customer profiles3 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature4 records

Scale indicators5 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights6 records

Emerging players

• GuildSomm: International sommelier education and content platform. Adjacent to RVF Academy's professional-training offering but targeting English-speaking sommeliers and hospitality professionals globally.
• Wine Folly: Digital-first wine education and content platform with strong visual content and an app. Competes with RVF for consumer wine education and discovery, but with a younger, more digitally-native audience and no print legacy.

Direct peers

• Decanter: UK-based wine magazine and digital platform. Most direct peer: long-established wine periodical offering expert ratings, news, events, and subscription content — directly comparable format and target audience to RVF, but with global English-language reach.
• JancisRobinson.com: Subscription wine ratings and editorial site from Master of Wine Jancis Robinson. Comparable subscription-content-plus-ratings model to RVF's digital offering, with strong international sommelier following.
• Wine Spectator: US-based wine magazine with global reach, ratings database, wine auction coverage, and industry events. Closest US analog and a direct competitor for international wine-content authority and wine-rating methodology.
• Bettane+Desseauve: French wine authority founded by Michel Bettane and Thierry Desseauve, publishing wine guides, a website, and organizing tastings. Operates in the same French market with a parallel guide-and-ratings model to RVF's.
• Wine Enthusiast: Multi-channel wine media brand combining a magazine, ratings database, e-commerce store, and education programs. Comparable to RVF in offering ratings, reviews, and consumer education, with a similar diversified revenue model.
• Le Figaro Vin: Wine content vertical of the Le Figaro newspaper group in France. Direct French-market competitor to RVF, covering wine news, tastings, ratings, and pairing advice under a major newsbrand.

Broad incumbents

• Robert Parker Wine Advocate (Wine Advocate): Internationally dominant critic-ratings brand with subscription access to 400,000+ wine reviews. Overlaps with RVF's tasting-committee ratings methodology but at a substantially larger global scale.

Regional players

• Gambero Rosso: Italy's leading wine and food publication, publisher of the Tre Bicchieri guide. Directly analogous business model to RVF — national wine magazine plus authoritative annual guide — but focused on Italian rather than French wines.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat5 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• Xx.com/LaRVF_mag

Compliance1 record

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles11 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about The French Wine Review