Lake George Winery sells for more than $4 million at auction to group of investors

The property at 173 The Vineyards Road sold at auction on Saturday for $4.15 million plus the value of the stock, about $400,000.

Three bidders registered for the auction, which initially had a reserve price of $4.97 million.

Seller Sarah McDougall listed the almost 112-hectare property and the winery business for sale in June, following the loss of her husband Anthony to suicide in 2022.

Frank Walmsley of Auction Advantage was the selling agent for the property and said the interest in Lake George Winery was "phenomenal".

"During the campaign we had in excess of 60 inquiries and buyers ... from interstate and overseas," he said.

It was a complicated sale due to a lack of reliable financial data on the business, Mr Walmsley said.

Ultimately, the initial reserve price was reduced based on buyer feedback throughout the campaign.

The top bidder was able to meet the updated price expectation to secure the property under the hammer on Saturday.

The sale included the working winery, cellar door and restaurant, four tiny homes, a five-bedroom home with a detached guest house and a function space.

Four business partners based in Canberra and Queanbeyan were the successful bidders. Jagjit Singh, Amardeep Singh, Avtar Singh and Sarabjit Singh will take over the winery after settlement in December.

Jagjit Singh, who owns Hamilton's Queanbeyan Motel, said the group was new to the wine industry but had extensive experience running accommodation and hospitality businesses.

He said the group had been looking for a business opportunity like this one.

"We saw the ad last Sunday and yesterday we bought the property, so it was that quick," he said.

"The opportunity came and we didn't want to miss it."

Jagjit said the group was excited about their plans to expand the business, starting with the function space.

"Currently they have a function centre that can cater up to 120 people, but I think there's a good demand within Canberra to have a venue that can cater up to 500 people," he said.

They will look to either build a new function centre or extend the existing one, with a goal to attract large weddings, corporate functions and community events.

Next on their expansion plans was the accommodation. Jagjit said the group would like to increase the offering to 10 or 15 tiny homes.

"We are trying to create a venue that can be [suitable for] a destination wedding," he said.

The restaurant would continue to operate for lunch service, with the potential for future dinners. The new owners also want to continue working with the current winemakers and expand the cellar door activities to include workshops.

Solar panels and electric vehicle chargers were also on the wish list.

Jagjit said anyone with an existing booking for a wedding or event could rest assured their booking would be honoured. He encouraged the local community to continue making future bookings, too.

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The group will aim to continue the "hard efforts" Sarah McDougall had put into the business, he said.

"We will take on this legacy. It's an asset for the community, the local region," Jagjit said.

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