The Shanken News Daily published an interesting interview with Bill Foley today. It was an exclusive in which Foley discussed a number of acquisitions, from the recent purchase of Sawyer Cellars in Napa and what he's going to do with it, to a few deals he’s got cooking.

This is the paragraph that got my attention:

Foley: I’m trying to fill out appellations where we’re not present. I’m working on a couple things over in Dry Creek, and something in Russian River, where we have a vineyard but no winery. I’m working on something of pretty good size up in Lake County, which would be a little less expensive a product. And I’m looking in Oregon. If I fill those out, I’ve pretty much got what I need in terms of base coverage. Then I’d just be opportunistic. I bet I’ll have three or four things wound up in the next couple months.

So what winery could he possibly have been referring to in Lake County?

That would be Guenoc, also known as Langtry Estate and Vineyards. Foley has been rumored to be eying Guenoc for some time, but it was on again, off again, and there were other suitors. Now, however, the word is Foley is in the final stages of securing a controlling interest in the winery and brand. That deal doesn’t include the 23,000 acres, or so, of land surrounding Guenoc that are poised for development, however. Lake County's biggest ever land development is another story. As the wine writer Jerry Mead used to say at the end of a conversation: "to be continued."