Keeping up appearances

ENAR

What were you doing the moment you heard Rafik Hariri was dead? Ramzi Ghosn was selling his wine at a trade fair in Dubai. “Ronald Hochar [co-owner of Chateau Musar] came over to our stand and told me about the explosion,” recalls Ghosn, who with his brother, Sami, in 1996 founded Massaya, the winery that has been credited with being a major force in Lebanon’s wine revival. “One hour later I was sitting, funnily enough, with Laurent Rigaux, who was the F&B manager at the Phoenicia when it reopened, and I received a text message confirming the sad news. I did not say anything. I wanted to keep it minimal, but I knew we were not selling wine anymore. We were saving the image of Lebanon and protecting a brand, and I don’t just mean Massaya, but Lebanese wine in general.” Ghosn is painfully aware how perceptions can change. “Before