A luxurious Napa Valley hotel is swapping one winemaking proprietor for another. Wine Spectator has learned that Juan Pablo Torres-Padilla, owner of Sullivan Rutherford Estate and CEO of PA Capital Management, has bought Poetry Inn in the Stags Leap District from the Lede family of Cliff Lede Vineyards. The purchase price was not disclosed.

“As a family group, we [strive] to demonstrate our passion for generous hospitality, genuine service and the highest level of purpose,” Torres-Padilla told Wine Spectator. Torres-Padilla credits his upbringing in Mexico and his young adult years in France with that passion. “European hospitality is impeccable execution,” he said. “Hispanic hospitality is a love to make the guest happy.” He wants to elevate Poetry Inn using both principles.

A Small Inn with Perfect Views

Poetry Inn sits high up on the eastern hillsides of the Stags Leap District at the end of a steep driveway that traverses Cliff Lede’s Poetry Vineyard below. Designed by architect Howard Backen, the five-room inn includes wood-burning fireplaces, large soaking tubs and private decks with outdoor showers in each room. They all enjoy west-facing views of Stags Leap and Yountville that stretch to the Mayacamas Mountains on the far side of the valley.

The property was an aging B&B when Lede purchased it in 2003 and began renovating. “We wanted people to feel like they were coming home,” Lede said of the inn’s design.

He’s selling now because he wants to focus solely on Cliff Lede Vineyards. “Our passion is and has always been winemaking, grapegrowing and sharing our critically acclaimed wines,” he said. Cliff Lede Vineyards will retain the Poetry Vineyard and will continue using the grapes for its Cabernet Sauvignon Stags Leap District Poetry.

[article-img-container][src=2024-08/ns_torres-padilla-barrels-082024_1600.jpg] [credit= (Photo by Sullivan Rutherford Estate)] [alt= Juan Pablo Torres-Padilla holds a glass of red wine in a barrel cellar.][end: article-img-container]

A Growing Operation of Tequila, Wine and Hotels

Torres-Padilla arrived in Napa Valley in 2018 when he purchased Sullivan Rutherford Estate. His PA Capital management group is family owned and produces Loco Tequila, a blue agave spirit launched in the U.S. in 2023. Torres-Padilla founded Loco Tequila in 2012 and purchased the agave estate and distillery Hacienda La Providencia in 2018. Based in El Arenal, Jalisco, Loco owns 200 acres of blue agave and distills its tequila in the 200-year-old hacienda. La Providencia is currently undergoing renovations to provide hospitality and hotel accommodations.

After having looked at 20 other wineries in Napa, Torres-Padilla jumped at the opportunity to purchase Sullivan Rutherford when it came up for sale in 2018. The winery owns 26 acres in Rutherford, including 22 acres under vine. The following year, Torres-Padilla purchased 9 acres of land on Soda Canyon Road in the broader Napa Valley AVA, and in 2021 he picked up another 9-acre parcel in St. Helena along Crystal Springs Road. Today Sullivan Rutherford produces roughly 5,000 cases annually.

Poetry Inn will remain open during the transition, and the current staff will remain. “[We] are not in a hurry to launch other stuff,” said Torres-Padilla about the hotel. Though Torres-Padilla plans to eventually change the name and will inevitably provide Sullivan wine tasting experiences, nothing is slated to be dramatically altered. Torres-Padilla said he is mindful of “being respectful of the past—the same way we are respectful of the 50 years of legacy [at Sullivan].”

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