Canadian security czar buys Napa winery for $57 million. It’s not his first

globalnews.ca:

Canadian billionaire entrepreneur Stephan Crétier, founder of the GardaWorld global security empire, has acquired a historic family winery in Napa, Calif., for more than $57 million.

California property and corporate records show that a Crétier-controlled company, SCW Fund Corp. of Delaware, acquired the 100-acre Vine Cliff Winery on a hillside east of the Silverado Trail.

The vineyard is situated in a wine area officially known as the Oakville American Viticultural Area.

The deal, quietly registered in August, included the winery, which can produce up to 48,000 gallons of wine a year, including Cabernet Sauvignon, Cabernet Franc, Pinot Noir, Zinfandel, Malbec and Reisling vintages.

The property also includes 23 acres of planted vineyards, caves, a pond and a residence on a hill.

Crétier did not immediately respond to a request for comment sent to him through GardaWorld’s media relations department.

Crétier’s latest winery purchase has generated attention and buzz in the Napa region, generating stories in The Wine Business and The Wine Spectator.

That’s because it is the Canadian businessman’s second deal for a winery in California’s most well-known wine region, one of the most popular in North America.

His personal deal also comes on the heels of a deal that saw the Quebec government pump $300 million into Montreal-based GardaWorld through a private placement deal, made through its Investissements Quebec investment arm.

Crétier and his wife, Stephany Maillery, have also been the very publicly-identified owners of the Roy Estate winery on Soda Canyon Road in Napa county since 2017.  That 42-acre estate’s wines sell for $500 a bottle and more, and you have to be on a waiting list.

Vine Cliff is historic and cherished in