Make no mistake, it's Cabernet that has created the buzz. They are paying special attention to properties where there is a motive to sell or where there might be questions about succession of ownership in the future. Winery owners are flattered even by ordinary offers, and in lesser times, they receive few. But these days, they're seeing incredible offers, often in multiples, in what has clearly become a high-tide market. These and other feelers prompted Pine Ridge's owner, Leucadia Investments, to play the field and see just how many more bids would materialize.
Potential buyers have their eye on Pine Ridge for several reasons.
This is an 85,000-case winery with the potential to expand to 125,000 cases. Leucadia is an investment firm that buys and sells companies, so the buzz is right up its alley. Both wineries are essentially turnkey businesses, which is crucial to understand from a business standpoint. A start-up on the scale of Pine Ridge would take at least 10 years to establish itself. Even if you could buy prime Cabernet vineyard land, which is scarce and expensive, a newcomer trying to build a winery like Pine Ridge in the heart of Napa Valley would face a thick snarl of red tape.