Opi D'Aqui
Philippe Formentin, a natural artisan wine producer, founded Opi d'Aqui in 2012. While Formentin is originally from Montpellier, the Languedoc's "capital" on the Mediterranean coast, he travelled the world making wines before settling in Clermont-l'Hérault, just an hour north of his hometown.
He began his winemaking career in Beziers, also in the Languedoc, where he earned a degree while working part-time for Alain Chabanon. After graduation, he worked for Chabanon for five years before embarking on a global wine adventure that took him to India, Napa, Russia's Black Sea coast, and Corsica. When he returned to France, he met Alain Coumont, the founder of the bakery Pain Quotidien, and they formed Opi d'Aqui together.
Cynthia Chua, founder of Spa Esprit Group, and Benjamin Darnaud have purchased the estate and will continue the tradition of cultivating vines using organic and biodynamic methods. The name "Opi d'Aqui" means "opium from here" in Occitan, a language that evolved from Latin, the Roman Empire's spoken language.
