2011 PART INVESTMENT INCOME

Pronunciation

Various mispronunciations of Moet are known, including "mo-way" and "mow-ee". The correct pronunciation is "mo-wett" or "m-wet" (IPA: [mo?t]), as the word is pronounced in Dutch, not French.

Milestones in the 20th century
During World War I, France suffered much destruction. Moet et Chandon lost the offices and guest houses, where Napoleon I had stayed, to bombing raids.[1] After the war, the company re-established its position in the market by introducing the Dom Perignon brand of vintage champagne in the late 1920s.[1] The introduction of the Dom Perignon label set a trend in which many other champagne houses came to introduce their own premium label of champagne intended to surpass their regular vintage champagne. Nevertheless, it was Dom Perignon which came out to be the most successful brand. Dom Perignon was recognized by connoisseurs as the most perfect champagne available, and was also the most expensive on the market.[1] During World War II in which France fell under occupation of Nazi Germany, business was negatively affected.[1] However, due to the modernization of operations within the firm, it managed to recover well.[1] The goals of fairness and efficiency were emphasized in all aspects of production, from the installation of new wine presses to a comprehensive system of work incentives.[1]
Count Robert-Jean de Vogue, a prominent figure in wine purchasing, became the leader of Moet et Chandon in the 1950s. Transformed from a family-owned business into a Societe Anonyme (or corporation), Moet et Chandon under de Vogue gained great success and an expansion rate never before experienced. In 1962 it became the first champagne house to be listed on the French stock market.[5] That same year, the company acquired full rights to France's oldest wine maison and main competitor of Moet et Chandon, Ruinart Pere et Fils.[1] Another rival wine house, Mercier, was taken over by 1970. Soon afterwards Moet et Chandon purchased an interest in Parfums Christian Dior, the first out-of-winery investment by the company, which was soon taken over by Moet.[1] The company took a milestone step in 1971 when it merged with the cognac producer Jas Hennessy & Co. to create Moet-Hennessy.[1] The decision was made as a result of a 1927 statute which limited the champagne growing region to 34,000 hectares.[1] De Vogue believed that the supply of land under cultivation (less than 25,000 hectares) would be exhausted by the demand for champagne by 2000. Thus it seemed logical to merge with Hennessy who could supply diversification and a stable future for Moet. Together, both houses grew greatly financially and were able to, as a group, "stimulate the growth of their interests abroad."[1]
In 1973, the company launched Domaine Chandon, a winery subsidiary in California. The company undertook its final merger; with Louis Vuitton, a prominent luxury goods purveyor whose goods remain renown as status symbols. This final merger gave birth to the largest luxury group in the world, Moet-Hennessy • Louis Vuitton (LVMH), netting over 16 billion euros in fiscal 2004. In 2006, Moet et Chandon Brut Imperial issued an extremely limited bottling of its champagne named "Be Fabulous", a special release of its original bottle with decorative Swarovski crystals, marking the elegance of Moet et Chandon. Also in 2006, Moet et Chandon illuminated the Statue of Liberty on its 120th anniversary.
In 2007, the company opened its Grand Vintage 2000 European Launch at the Musee de l'homme in Paris.

Dublin's planning on rails
The Dublin Area Rapid Transit (DART) is the rail line running along the coast of Dublin, from Malahide and Howth southwards as far as Greystones in the County of Wicklow – well known for the Wicklow Mountains of course. The DART forms part of the Dublin Suburban Rail network. DART’s system is administered by the national rail operator, Iarnrod Eireann (Irish Rail).

On its inauguration in 1984, the DART was operated by Coras Iompair Eireann (CIE) of whom IE is now a subsidiary. Part of the DART route, from the city centre of Dublin to Dun Laoghaire (a coastal town to the south of Dublin), is of historic importance as it was the first railway in Ireland. It was opened as the Dublin and Kingstown Railway, on 17 December 1834.

The original DART service ran from Howth which is north-east of Dublin, through the city centre and south to Bray in County Wicklow. This remained the route for 15 years, until more and more incremental extensions were realized. However, nowadays the Irish Government has ambitious plans to significantly expand the DART service. Under the Irish Government's Transport 21 investment program, the DART is to be extended with a new tunnel under the city from Heuston Station to the new Docklands station in Spencer Dock. This tunnel, known as the Interconnector or DART Underground, will allow for a much more effective integration with other elements of Dublin's transport system once complete. The plan will also significantly expand the DART service to the west of the city. But rest assured, The DART operation on the marvelous Connolly Station will still be there for quite some time, as the existing DART line will be modified to handle (even) more traffic.

Here you see two of the tree classes used by Iarnrod Eireann on the DART network. The total fleet numbers a total of 17 four-car trains, all of which were constructed by the Tokyu Car Corporation (??????); a manufacturer of heavy rail cars in Japan. Beside suburban stock, this company also produces the EMU cars for the High speed Shinkansen or bullet train.

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