Co-founders Andre Grundy, David Kinloch, and Justin Wages sold out of the first shipment of bottles just five weeks after launching Don Luchi.
Three friends are behind the newest Black-owned prosecco brand on the market. Co-founders Andre Grundy, David Kinloch, and Justin Wages sold out of the first shipment of bottles just five weeks after launching Don Luchi. Luckily, there’s more on the way.
It’s been an incredible journey for the group of friends who wanted to shake up the wine and spirits industry with a Black-owned brand. They officially launched Don Luchi in June 2024, but sparkling wine was not the original plan.
“We wanted to get into beer,” the trio tells BLACK ENTERPRISE. “We just couldn’t get distribution based on the type of beer we had because it was a fruity beer. By the time we finished the beer, distributors said our fruity beer wouldn’t work in the winter.”
The friends didn’t let the naysayers stop them. Wages convinced Grundy and Kinloch to invest in sparkling wine after he fell down a rabbit hole after a friend introduced him to quality sparkling wines.
“When I went out and ordered champagne before, I never looked at what I was ordering. If the champagne was bad, I would just deal with it,” he says.
But the variations his friend introduced him to were something he hadn’t experienced or tasted before. It left a lasting impression—one that would kick start their purpose and dreams of diversifying the space. Wages began researching different flavor profiles and digging deeper into why some brands were better quality than others.
Getting The Greenlight From An Italian Vineyard
After successfully getting Grundy and Kinloch onboard with sparkling wine, their next task was securing a supplier. They contacted suppliers in Champagne, France, but they met some challenges. Wages says there’s a lot of gatekeeping in the region, which makes it a tough market to tap into.
A vineyard in Italy, however, was willing to hear them out when they inquired about the prosecco.
“We told them about our vision, which is to bring a quality product back to the United States, introduce it, and educate more people on it. I also told them how the Black-owned market was untapped here for sparkling wines. The only people with ownership are celebrities,” he says.
The vineyard was more than happy to work with the co-founders. They flew to Italy in March 2024 to close the deal, and by June 30, it was on shelves across South Carolina.
Wages says Don Luchi has an intense and fragrant flavor profile, with notes of golden apple, peach, roses, and hints of almonds. It’s dry and lively, clear yet complex, and according to Wages, pairs with everything nicely.
“This is one of those proseccos that you don’t have to put juice with it if you don’t want to,” he says.
Wages says he hopes their journey in launching a Black-owned prosecco brand inspires others to pursue their dreams, even if they seem unattainable.
“We came into this space knowing absolutely nothing. We’ve been working on this for more than a year, and we’ve learned so much about wine. Now, we can walk into any room and speak highly of our product and the region the wine is from.
Don Luchi can currently be purchased in stores across Charleston and Florence, South Carolina. Wages says the team plans to launch shipping nationwide by the fall.
