A group of Chinese investors has purchased the Paso Robles production facility that once housed Martin & Weyrich Winery, along with the Villa Toscana Inn, for $7.9 million.

Re/Max Parkside Real Estate handled the sale, which closed in April.

“Re/Max has a good strong presence in China and the Far East,” said Pete Dakin, owner of Re/Max Parkside. “Wine consumption is skyrocketing there. The Chinese who are looking are people who are peripherally in the business.”

That includes wine distributors and restaurateurs interested in producing wine in Paso Robles to sell in China.

The property at 4216 Buena Vista Drive includes 114 acres, the 8,200-square-foot winery and 5,000 square feet of storage.

The former tasting room for Martin & Weyrich Winery at Buena Vista Drive and Highway 46 was not part of the sale. It was purchased previously by San Antonio Winery.

Villa Toscana has eight suites, a 1,400-square-foot innkeeper’s residence and 3,500 square feet of offices. It was once the Italianate command center of David Weyrich’s local holdings.

The Paso Robles developer and businessman surrendered this property, along with others in the area, in early 2010 to Netherlands-based lender Aegon Group as collateral for $17 million in loans.

Dakin noted that an investment of this size also offers foreigners a “fast-track for citizenship,” though he did not say whether that was a motivating factor in this sale.