Soracco family sells 81-acre Russian River Valley vineyard for $8 million

An 81-acre Russian River Valley vineyard property that’s been in the same family for 89 years has been sold to a Sonoma investor.

The Soracco family on Sept. 8 sold the Valley View Ranch property at 3714 Westside Road to C and F Company LLC, led by Mark Couchman, according to public records. The family had purchased the prune orchard in 1934 and later converted it to grapes.

The sale price was $8.1 million, or $117,391 or each of the 69 planted acres, according to Will Lance, a W Real Estate agent who listed the property. That price per vine acre is on par with recent sales, said Lance, an in-law of the Soraccos and a vineyard and ranch agent for over a decade.

“The current vineyard sales market has been hampered by rising interest rates and increased vineyard redevelopment costs due to inflation,” Lance said. “However, prime vineyards in high-demand (American Viticultural Areas) with abundant water and fertile soils like the Valley View Ranch are still demanding top dollar and are receiving multiple offers.”

For more than two decades, Couchman was a partner in and later led a Napa-based vineyard investment firm ultimately called Silverado Investment Management Co., which was acquired by Westchester Capital Management and then by Virtus Investment Partners. Five years ago, he started Couchman Company LLC in Sonoma, investing in vineyards and other real estate, according to public records.

Brothers John “Jack” and Robert “Bob” Soracco were active in the prune industry but later converted the property to wine grapes, according to Bob Soracco’s 2002 obituary in the Healdsburg Tribune.

Lance said the brothers started into wine grapes by first planting a few zinfandel vines on the hillside, but most of the property continued to be covered with prune trees. In the 1970s came some test vineyard blocks. Then in the 1980s, they started phasing out the prunes, 10- to 12-acre new vineyard blocks at a time.

Today, the property is planted to chardonnay, merlot, zin and sauvignon blanc vines.

Jack and his wife of 67 years, Sharon, Soracco died within weeks of each other in May and June of last year, according to their funeral notices.

Jeff Quackenbush covers wine, construction and real estate. Reach him at jquackenbush@busjrnl.com or 707-521-4256.