Bello Family Vineyards Rutherford estate property set for bankruptcy auction

Amid  court allegations of fraud and financial misdeeds, the multi-million-dollar Rutherford estate owned by Southern California contractor Michael Ru Bello and his family is scheduled to be auctioned August 4.

 

The residential property —  still known as the Bello Family Vineyards — is located at 8424 Saint Helena Highway south of Rutherford and adjacent to St. Supery Winery. The 5,710 sqft house has 5 bedrooms, 6.5 baths. It sits on 5 acres which includes approximately 2 acres of vineyard planted to Cabernet Sauvignon, Cabernet Franc and Petit Verdot.

 

The property will be sold in an online, sealed bid auction conducted by Premiere Estates Auction Company in cooperation with its partner company, WorldBid Auction Services.

 

Property available as part of bankruptcy liquidation process

The estate is among a number of assets owned by a wide variety of Bello trusts, corporations and other entities with a variety of financial cross-ownerships entangled  in the bankruptcy proceedings.

 

According to both the bankruptcy court and the auction company, the property will be sold clear of all liens and other claims. Michael Bello has not filed for personal bankruptcy.

 

The bankruptcy court’s Unsecured Creditor’s Committee lodged a writ of attachment against the property on March 23, 2015. That writ also covered four other properties and wine which had been custom-crushed at The Ranch Winery and stored at Valley Wine Warehouse.

 

One of those four properties was sold in late 2014: Yao Family Wines Buys Bello’s Former St. Helena Tasting Room.

 

The complete court-approved liquidation plan document is available at this link for Wine Executive News premium subscribers.

 

Wine Executive News subscribers please click here to read the complete 965-word article.

Also In This Article:

The full text of the following sections is available to premium subscribers of Wine Executive News.

• Bello bankruptcy notorious for “clawbacks.”

• Selling price may be affected by 8% buyer’s premium.

• Mortgage holder, airplane dealer, Bello Construction have priority on auction proceeds.

• Auction details: $100 K registration for a virtual auction paddle.

Previous Wine Industry Insight coverage of the Bello bankruptcy

• Bello’s SoCal bankruptcy causes waves in wine country

• Bello bankruptcy clawback victims strike back with their own lawsuits

• Yao Family Wines Buys Bello’s Former St. Helena Tasting Room

Wine Executive News subscribers may access these full court documents:

• The complete court approved liquidation document

• The list of 82 clawback victims in Bello’s WallDesign Bankruptcy

• Bella Casa Superior Court Complaint

• Abreu Superior Court Complaint

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