Overview
- The family-owned Sonoma winery filed for Chapter 11 on Wednesday, September 23, 2026, listing roughly $37 million to $39 million in liabilities and naming Tiverton and American AgCredit as its largest secured creditors.
- Court papers say debt from the February 2020 purchase of a 60-acre Abbot’s Passage estate was the immediate cause of distress after COVID-19 closed tasting rooms and reduced tourism.
- The winery will stay open during the restructuring and is working with a potential family-oriented investor, with the Bundschu family expecting the process may produce a new majority owner.
- Before filing, the family cut costs, sold non-company real estate, reduced staff from about 102 to 63, and submitted three sale or investment offers that lenders rejected, after which Tiverton sought and won a receiver in court.
- Industry analysts say this case reflects a broader California wine downturn driven by falling demand, higher borrowing costs, excess inventory and tighter lender underwriting, and it could lead to more bankruptcies or distressed sales that affect jobs and local tourism.