After completing a License diplomat in the Rhone Valley and an MBA in International Wine Trade in Burgundy, Etienne de Nantes worked in South Africa and Bordeaux to learn wine making before starting to work for a Bordeaux negociant.

In 2005, Etienne arrived in the US where he worked for the Tesseron family of Château Pontet Canet. In 2011 he started the Bordeaux/Grands Crus Classes Division of Maisons Marques & Domaines, affiliated to Château Pichon Longueville Comtesse de Lalande before joining Château Cos d’Estournel as North America Director.

In 2020, Etienne was hired by Barriere Freres, a Bordeaux based wine negociant specialized in Grands Crus Classes, to develop their US company.