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Magoon Estate to sell
By Russ Lynch
Northern Calif. ranch
Star-BulletinHawaii's Magoon Estate Ltd. is selling its 23,000-acre Guenoc Ranch in Northern California, including its winery, to a wine-making subsidiary of tobacco giant UST Inc.
UST, which made the announcement this week, did not disclose the price and said the deal is subject to regulatory approval and other conditions.
The Magoon family bought the property in the 1960s and Orville Magoon researched French vineyards before becoming the first in California to plant traditional Bordeaux. The ranch had become well known in the late 1800s and early 1990s as the residence of actress Lillie Langtry, who produced her own wines there and labeled them with her portrait. The painting is still a feature of the Guenoc label.
Stimson Lane Ltd., the UST subsidiary making the purchase, is based in Woodinville, Wash., and produces premium wines. UST Chairman Vincent A. Gierer Jr. said the company's wine business is poised for growth and obtaining the California property removes some impediments, such as a shortage of grapes and the cost of purchasing them.
Guenoc Ranch has 400 acres of vineyards, a wine-making facility and visitor center in Middletown, Calif., and 20,000 acres of grazing land that has vineyard potential. The property, 90 miles north of San Francisco, is nearly 1,000 feet above sea level.
Magoon Estate was formed in 1930 to manage assets left in the 1919 will of Emmeline M. Magoon, widow of Hawaii attorney and judge John Alfred Magoon. It branched out into the laundry business and became a significant owner of commercial property in downtown Honolulu and Waikiki.
The estate is headed by Eaton Magoon Jr., president, treasurer and director. Orville Magoon is vice president.
