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Patricia Kluge
Donald Trump buys Kluge winery
Donald Trump spent $6 million at auction to buy most of the 800-acre Kluge Estate Winery and Vineyard outside Charlottesville, Va., reported the Washington Post. The 800 acres, which were once owned by Virginia socialite Patricia Kluge, were purchased by a Trump representative at a bank auction. “I’m really interested in good real estate, not so much in wine,” Trump said. “This place had a $28 million mortgage on it, and I bought it for $6.2 million.” The vineyard was valued at $70 million before the recession. Trump said he is likely to keep Kluge, 62, who has won accolades for her wines, in charge of the operation. “She has a great instinct for wine, which I don’t,” he said. Some of the wines will keep the Kluge label, he says, but he didn’t rule out the possibility that some bottles in the future will wear the Trump brand. The full estate, including the Albermarle House, was listed for $100 million last year, but after failing to sell, dropped prices, and foreclosure, Bank of America bought the home last month at auction.
Trump Bids on Patricia Kluge’s Virginia Estate
The latest wrinkle in Patricia Kluge’s dispursal of fortune involves another famed billionaire: Donald Trump. This Wednesday, Trump had two lawyers representing him at the auction of Albemarle House, Kluge’s luxe estate on 300 acres in tony Albemarle County, Va. Shortly before the auction began, Steve Blaine and Les Goldman announced to the crowd of approximately 60 gathered in front of the Albemarle County Courthouse that they represented Donald Trump. What others might not have realized is that Trump had already purchased the adjacent 200 acres which, because of conditions outlined when Kluge gained the property in her divorce, would grant him right of first refusal on Albemare House.
Those 200 acres, the tract of rolling hills in front of the home, at one time had a nine-hole golf course designed by Arnold Palmer. And it’s not the only other piece of Kluge’s pie Trump’s been eyeing. According to Goldman, he’s been making offers on every part of Kluge’s empire including the Vineyard Estates housing development and the winery. At Wednesday’s auction, Trump made the first bid at $2 million. He had some competition: A woman bidding on behalf of local developer Tom Sullivan bid several times, ultimately getting Trump’s reps to rise to $3.6 million before Bank of America bidded in with $15.26 million. The bank is owed $22.5 million on the estate, so by stepping in it took a $7.24 million loss.
The question on everyone’s mind now is what Trump wants to do with the properties – a British-country-house-inspired Georgian mansion, a winery and vineyard complex, and a luxury residential development. Goldman says it’s too soon to tell. “Part of it depends on what gets.”One possibility for reinventing Albemarle House: Transforming it into a luxury private club similar to his Mar-a-Lago on Palm Beach, built around the historic estate once home to Marjorie Merriweather Post. Though one Charlottesville insider points out that Trump may have a fight on his hands if he hopes to develop the estate. Historic preservationists are fierce in Albemarle County.
Kluge Estate Goes Under the Hammer
Winery and Vineyards of Kluge went under the hammer due to the unwillingness of bidders to start with the opening bid of $19 million was in the hands creditors. The auctioned property has 907 acres in southern Albemarle, including 164 acres vineyards, farm Shop and tasting room of wine, production buildings, the offices, six residences of employee, and a former carriage museum of 34,000sq/ft, including a barrel storage cave. The Kluge Estate has to pay a loan of $34.8 million to Farm Credit Bank which was taken in 2007.
Patricia Kluge had struggled and worked hard for the wine business of Virginia, and the winery is the largest in the region and very popular for its traditional tasting in a relaxed, nice atmosphere of quiet wooded area. In spite of its growing popularity the business did not pick up properly.
The troubled business of Patricia Kluge was facing a legal notice to a debt of $34,785,000. So the initial step was to dismantle the business to their disappointment. The Albermarle House, a mansion of 45-room, fetched $15.2 million auctioned off this year. Patricia Kluge’s jewelry was also auctioned to fetch $5milllion., John Kluge, her second husband died in September.
World’s rarest and exclusive jewelries to be soon up for sale at Sotheby’s
Sotheby’s New York will be selling the world’s most rare and exclusive jewelries in Hong Kong and New York on April 7 and 20 respectively.
The sale includes 7 glittering accessories being parted by British philanthropist Patricia Kluge which include a 1984 Cartier platinum, diamond and sapphire Panthƒ¨re wristwatch, a pair of platinum and diamond pendant-earclips estimated to sell for ‚£530,000, a platinum and diamond ring set with a 20.15 carats of pear-shaped diamonds valued at ‚£132,000, a pinkish-orange diamond which weighs 7.67 carats , framed and flanked by round diamonds mounted in platinum and 18 carat pink gold expected to fetch ‚£2.3million and a rare Burmese ruby ring and a rich collection of Kashmire sapphires.
The sale will also include a rare, large blue diamond that was once part of the legendary De Beers Millennium collection, expected to sell for ‚£3-‚£3.8million
According to Terry Chu, deputy head of Sotheby’s jewelry department for China and Southeast Asia, diamonds were particularly appealing to new Asian buyers because of stable prices and assured quality. There have been a lot of new diamond buyers from mainland China, Hong Kong, Singapore, Taiwan and elsewhere in the region.
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