VIN ET CIE

What VIN ET CIE does

Cuve à Vin et Cie, operating as VIN ET CIE, is a privately held Montreal-based specialty retailer founded in 1986 that sells home wine-making and beer-making ingredient kits, equipment, and accessories to individual hobbyist consumers in the Greater Montreal area. Its core merchandise comprises wine kits (Selection, Vintners Reserve, Island Mist, Limited Editions LE25/LE16, Dessert and Ice Wine lines, sourced through a longstanding WINEXPERT partnership) and beer kits (MicroBrew, Festa Brew, Coopers, and seasonal releases), alongside winemaking equipment, bottles, corkers, aerators, corkscrews, and gift accessories. Distribution runs through one physical retail location at 5081 Boul. Saint-Jean-Baptiste in Montreal, complemented by an owned e-commerce boutique at boutique.cuveavin.ca for remote orders.

Beyond kit and equipment retail, the company operates several service lines that materially differentiate its offering. La Vinerie is an on-site winemaking center where customers rent equipment and workspace to make wine under expert supervision, billed at C$50-C$52 per batch including all inputs and guidance. Ancillary services include reverse-osmosis filtered water sales (11L and 18L formats), SodaStream CO2 cylinder refills, K-cup coffee capsule sales across nearly 100 varieties, and a personalized bottle-label printing service for weddings, baptisms, anniversaries, and corporate events. Revenue is generated transactionally across all of these streams at pay-as-you-go unit pricing, with no subscription, licensing, or enterprise contracts.

The go-to-market is direct-to-consumer via the storefront, the e-commerce site, blog content marketing, and an email newsletter. The customer base is a horizontal long tail of hobbyist winemakers and home brewers seeking cost savings versus store-bought beverages and an experiential, event-driven product (personalized labels for occasions). The company has 1-10 employees (named team members Joëlle, Yvon, Jonathan, Kim, Robert), is privately held with no parent, no disclosed funding rounds, and no subsidiaries, and has operated continuously in the same niche for four decades.

Name

VIN ET CIE

Legal name

Cuve à Vin et Cie

Website

https://cuveavin.ca

Company type

Private

Founded year

1986

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

1–10 employees

Short description

VIN ET CIE (Cuve à Vin et Cie) is a Montreal specialty retailer founded in 1986 that sells home wine and beer making kits, equipment, and accessories to individual hobbyist consumers via a single physical storefront and e-commerce boutique.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Home Winemaking & Brewing Supplies Retail

NAICS

Wineries (31213), Beer, Wine, and Liquor Retailers (445320)

SIC

Beverages (2080)

akta.pro primary industry

Wine Production & Winemaking (AFAFAAAB)

akta.pro secondary industries

Wineries & Vineyards (Tasting Rooms) (THAFALAE), Wine Retail (Bottle Shops & Wine Merchants) (CRANABAB)

Keywords

• Home winemaking kits
• Home brewing kits
• Winemaking equipment
• Supervised vinification center
• Custom wine labels

Headquarters

HQ city

Graveson

HQ country

France

HQ region

Europe

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2C

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Supply Chain, Personnel, Operations, Marketing or Sales

Revenue model

1. Wine and Beer Kit Sales: Sale of winemaking and brewing ingredient kits including wine kits (Selection, Vintners Reserve, Island Mist, etc.), beer kits (Coopers, Festa Brew, MicroBrew), and accessories
2. La Vinerie Winemaking Center Rental: Rental of winemaking equipment and space at La Vinerie center for supervised winemaking, includes equipment, space, filtered water, sterilization, filtration, and expert guidance
3. Water Sales: Sale of reverse osmosis filtered water in 11L and 18L formats, with bulk pricing options
4. Equipment and Accessories Sales: Sale of winemaking and brewing equipment including bottles, carafes, corkers, aerators, corkscrews, water coolers, CO2 refills, and K-cup coffee capsules
5. Personalized Label Services: Custom wine bottle label printing and mounting service for special events (weddings, baptisms, anniversaries)

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels3 records

Marketing channels5 records

Core offering

VIN ET CIE (legal name Cuve à Vin et Cie) retails wine making kits and beer making kits from brands such as Winexpert, Selection, Vintners Reserve, Vignoble du Monde, Island Mist, MicroBrew, Festa Brew, and Coopers, along with the carboys, corkers, filters, and accessories needed to make them. It also runs La Vinerie, a supervised winemaking facility where customers rent equipment and space to produce their own wine on-site, and offers supporting services such as reverse osmosis filtered water, SodaStream CO2 refills, K-Cup capsules, and personalized bottle labels.

Product overview

VIN ET CIE (Cuve à Vin et Cie) operates as Montreal's largest specialized wine and beer making supply store since 1986, functioning as a retailer and service provider rather than a software platform. The core offering consists of wine making kits (under Selection, Vintners Reserve, Vignoble du Monde, LE25/LE16 Limited Editions, Winexpert, Island Mist, and Dessert/Ice Wine brands) and beer making kits (MicroBrew, Festa Brew, Coopers, Best Case, and Seasonal varieties), all available through their online boutique. Services include La Vinerie wine-making facility with equipment rental and expert supervision, reverse osmosis water filtration, CO2 refilling, personalized bottle labels, and a water cooler sales/maintenance division. The company positions itself as a proud Winexpert partner, offering nearly 100 varieties of K-CUP coffee products and diverse wine/beer accessories including aerators, carafes, and corkscrews. The product portfolio is organized around the complete home wine and beer making experience—from kits and ingredients to equipment, services, and educational resources.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Brands

• La Vinerie: Vinification center where customers can make their wine under expert supervision with equipment rental

Products and services

• Home Wine Making Kits Wine making kits in 11L, 12L and 16L sizes featuring grape juices and concentrates from world regions including France, California, Australia, Italy, Chile, Argentina, Germany and New Zealand, spanning Selection, Vintners Reserve, Vignoble du Monde, Limited Editions (LE25/LE16), Winexpert, Island Mist and dessert/ice wine lines. Sold to home winemakers and event hosts.
• Home Beer Making Kits Home brewing kits including MicroBrew, Festa Brew, Coopers and Best Case brands, with styles ranging from IPAs to stouts and seasonal releases such as Marzenbier and Baltic Porter. Sold to home brewing hobbyists.
• La Vinerie Centre de Vinification On-site winemaking facility where customers rent equipment and workspace ($50 standard, $52 with grape skins) to make their own wine with filtered water, sterilization, filtration, electric corker, cap sealer, labeling tools and expert supervision included. For customers who lack space, equipment or technical confidence.
• Eau Pure Filtrée par Osmose Inverse Reverse osmosis filtered water (<5ppm purity) sold in 11L and 18L formats, marketed as NASA-derived technology for winemaking, brewing, coffee machines and health uses. Available at the Montreal store with home delivery options.
• Remplissage de CO2 CO2 cylinder refilling service for SodaStream systems, covering gray 9oz (old model) and white 14oz (new model) cylinders, exchanged or refilled in 24 hours.
• Capsules K-CUP Single-serve coffee, tea, herbal tea, hot chocolate and decaffeinated K-Cup pods sold in nearly 100 varieties in open boxes allowing customers to mix and match across brands.
• Équipements de Vinification et Accessoires Winemaking and brewing equipment including primary fermentation tanks up to 32L, glass and plastic carboys (4L-23L), heating belts, filtering plates, corking machines, bottles, aerators (VacuVin, Vin-Air, Decantus), carafes, corkscrews, wine glasses, ice buckets, whiskey sets, water coolers and gift certificates.
• Personalized Bottle Labels Custom bottle label printing and mounting service for special occasions including weddings, baptisms, anniversaries and corporate events at $15.99 per pack of 32 labels plus a $30 mounting fee, with deposit required before personalization.

Segments2 records

Ideal customer profiles1 record

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Partnerships

One partnership is on record.

• WINEXPERT (Winexpert / Vinexpert)coreChannel Partner/ Reseller/ DistributorVIN ET CIE is a proud partner of WINEXPERT, a Canadian company that innovatively manufactures and distributes premium wine kits. As a WINEXPERT partner, the store offers their full range of wine kit products including Selection, Vintners Reserve, and Limited Edition lines. The partnership provides customers access to high-quality winemaking ingredients sourced from wine regions including Italy, California, Australia, and Spain.

Scale indicators2 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights4 records

Direct peers

• Northern Brewer: Large US specialty retailer of homebrewing and winemaking supplies, offering kits, equipment, and educational content. Same product category and hobbyist customer base as VIN ET CIE, though US-focused.
• Williams Brewing: Long-established US homebrew and winemaking supplies retailer offering kits, equipment, and accessories online. Similar long-tenured specialty positioning to VIN ET CIE with overlapping SKU breadth.
• Master Vintner: Specialty retailer of home winemaking kits and equipment, closely aligned with VIN ET CIE's product mix and target market of hobbyist winemakers in North America.
• Beer & Wine Hobby: Canadian specialty retailer of home winemaking and brewing supplies, with physical stores in Ontario. Directly comparable to VIN ET CIE in product assortment, customer base (hobbyist winemakers/brewers) and service-led retail model.
• Adventures in Homebrewing: Michigan-based retailer specializing in homebrew and winemaking kits, equipment and supplies. Overlaps with VIN ET CIE on core product lines and hobbyist target customer.
• MoreBeer: US-based homebrewing and winemaking supply retailer with both retail and online channels. Comparable in GTM motion (specialty retail + e-commerce + educational content) and customer segment.
• Midwest Homebrewing Supplies: US specialty retailer offering homebrew and winemaking kits, equipment, and ingredients. Comparable on assortment, customer base, and omni-channel retail/online model.

Emerging players

• Winexpert: Canadian manufacturer of premium wine kits and VIN ET CIE's core supplier partner. Comparable because Winexpert also sells direct to consumers online, partially overlapping with the same end-customer and SKU range.
• Brooklyn Brew Shop: NYC-based craft homebrewing kit maker and retailer focused on beginner-friendly small-batch beer kits. Comparable because it sells ingredient kits and educational content to hobbyist consumers, though with a more urban/DTC orientation.

Broad incumbents

• SAQ (Société des alcools du Québec): Quebec government alcohol retail monopoly that dominates finished wine/beer retail in the same Montreal market. While not a direct kit competitor, it defines the addressable market for hobbyist winemaking relative to cheap store-bought wine.

Market position

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles5 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 VIN ET CIE