The Napa Valley Wine Train – which was caught in the middle of a public relations nightmare after a group of mostly-black women were booted off it for being too loud – has been sold.
The family of Vincent Michael DeDomenico – the wine train’s founder – has sold the train to Noble House Hotels & Resorts, a collection of luxury hotels and resorts that entered into a partnership with California-based real estate development and investment company Brooks Street for the purchase.
Tuesday's announcement of the sale had no mention of the wine train controversy. Instead it focused on the future.
“We are thrilled that the Napa Valley Wine Train has been purchased by Noble House Hotels & Resorts. The Wine Train is an iconic and treasured attraction in the Napa Valley, and we are confident that the Noble House family, with its proven hospitality expertise, will not only preserve this wonderful institution, but ensure its continued growth and enhancement,” the wine train’s CEO Tony Giaccio said in a statement.
Giaccio personally apologized to the women after their less than pleasant experience aboard the train, which one of them documented on Facebook through videos that went viral. It also prompted the #LaughingWhileBlack.Giaccio offered the women a chance to be his guests on the train along with their friends and family and promised more diversity training for his staff.
The apology didn’t help, with many saying they would boycott the train for what they claimed was racist behavior. The Wine Train's Facebook page continues to receive criticism from visitors.
The backlash resulted in the creation of a Napa Valley Soul train, which will start offering rides to Latino and black-owned vineyards in the fall. The eleven women – who are all part of the same group – have also hired a civil rights attorney and may even sue the train.
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“Noble House is extremely excited about the future of the Napa Valley Wine Train,” Nobel House CEO Jake Donoghue said. “We look forward to deepening our great relationship with the Napa Valley community and to embracing this treasured icon with the goal of giving our guests a memorably wonderful on-board experience.”
DeDomenico died in 2008 at age 92. The current wine-train travels on the original rail line built in 1864.
It takes a 39-mile round-trip journey from Napa to Helena past well-known wineries. Tickets start at $124 and can get as high as $234, based on the kind of experience guests choose.
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