#@$%ing birds!!!!

So veriason has hit. It's the beautiful time of year where the grapes change color. It's so pretty when all the berries in the clusters don't change all at once, but they are all different shades between purple and green all in one cluster.
This year is a bit odd though. Usually when the berries change colors during veriason, I have a couple of weeks before the birds come and find them. This year, that is not the case. They are stripping every cluster right as it changes. They've found this buffet and they are stripping me clean already! It looks like the alfred hitchock movie with birds swarming my vines, plucking the ripe berries just as they turn.

If this is a little taste of what's going to happen this year, then we're in for an early harvest. If the sugars are good enough to eat right when they turned, then we must have had some magic in that constant rain of spring that broke into the 90 degree July heat. The vines are responding, the sugars are set, and 2011 vintage is really going to be an interesting one to see how it ends up in the bottle. I might name one wine Starling's Choice... well, if they leave me any to actually harvest this year.


Off to get that netting on! And quickly!!!!

Perspective.

Wow. We're open now.

This seems so weird. It seems like a concept that I had thought about and dreamed about and planned, but the actual execution of the whole thing just feels so new. It's weird how much I'm loving every minute of it.

It's just this wonderful feeling where I put so much into growing these delicious grapes and learning all about how to make the wine and watching this wine be made and bottled and hand labeled and now I get to stand on the other side of the counter and watch as people take their first sip and a smile just spreads across their face.

I feel like the excitement is infectious. It's this idea of growing your own, growing the best, just quality controlling these grapes to the point of exhaustion and then beating them, crushing them, pressing them, watching them, and then drinking the beautiful product at the end.
I love going to other local producers, farms, confection makers, bakers... talking with them about their passion and being able to put it on the menu for other people to enjoy.
I love showing my new hires how to tend the vines, properly grabbing their tendrils and placing them in just the right spot for sunlight to dapple through the growing leaves to the ripening clusters.
And I really love the taste testing of the new barrels that are fermenting and finishing wine to the edge of the bottle, which is coming up soon for our 2010 harvest so that we can get 2011 in the barrel and in the tanks. It's all coming so fast!!!!

Sometimes I focus on the details so much that I run around in circles, so it's nice to step back and see it all pan out. And I keep reminding myself that I need to take some time and step back and relax. I got the chance to ride a horse again, it's been years, but it's so amazingly relaxing and really puts things into perspective, especially since I spend all day on my feet. It's nice to use someone else's feet for awhile. Now it's back to the vines training my new workers, back to the farm stands picking up fresh blueberries, back to the barrels to see what's going into the bottles next.

pink nail polish and motor oil

I have dirt under my fingernails. It's that kind of stubborn dirt that despite scrubbing, soaking, coaxing, or poking, I cannot get out. I think my nails are just french tipped black with dirt.
Usually there's no problem with my dirty fingernails. My vines don't mind cosmetic things like that. But now I'm serving food and suddenly noticing my weathered hands are a bit unappetizing.
So as I prepared to work the tasting room, I called back to my feminine tendencies that I've so long ignored to think of a way to become more presentable again. Hair pins: check. Fresh new shirt: check. Nail polish.... hmmm. I don't think I've worn that since that homecoming dance in high school and I think I bit it all off on the way to the dance.
Alright, that sounds a bit neanderthal, but I guess it's been over a decade and I was ready to try again. I settled on a light shade called "Italian Love Affair" which both made me giggle at it's ridiculousness and have fond memories of Italy at the same time. I only once found myself biting it off when my nerves started getting the best of me later in the night.

So now I feel super and feminine again. I'm not busting out my old heels for serving wine this Friday or anything, but my Italian Love Affair pink polish looked really good covered in motor grease as I checked my oil on Monday morning. Next step - purchasing nail polish remover.

opening and blooming

The vines have already bloomed and have commenced their yearly stretch up to the sun until their little arms give in to gravity and start their beautiful canopy over the trellis.

The rain finally let up for a bit and the vines are really responding to the sunshine and plenty of water with lush green growth. At the same time, the fax came in and everything came down in a flurry of work and preparation and mulching and figuring out computers for our first opening of our doors.
The kitchen was buzzing for most of the night and meat and cheese trays were carefully arranged just as we'd planned. There was only one point in the night where Karl and I were staring at some Bruschetta that wasn't browning up at all and we were completely perplexed until we found that it wasn't even plugged in. Oops. But otherwise, the food went out pretty much on time.
The wine was flowing throughout the whole night. We had 3 people serving behind out little bar and Chad went out onto a table in the tasting room to pour for another group.

The tasting room is amazing when it's full of people. It just really comes alive and everything just clicks.

Oh man. I'm still exhausted. 12 hour days trying to get open were a bit rough. I started using the wrong words and my brain really got muddled by the end of the night. I'm not sure how doctors do their residency. That actually makes me more nervous than anything. Rest is really important and it took me all day on Sunday to get over the stun that was opening. On Monday it was back out to the vines to wrestle with the lush new growth that they are pushing out.

Fax?

My heart is in my throat and I'm running around like a chicken with it's head cut off. The anticipation in the air is as present as the stuffy humidity after these summer showers we keep getting pummelled with.

I've jumped through all the hoops, met all the inspectors, followed every request down to the T and now there's just one thing left before we can open..... a fax.

I didn't buy a fax machine. I bought one of those 3 in 1 printers, but it was super complicated and I thought, who the heck faxes anything anymore. So I took it back and went for a streamlined and wonderful wifi printer with a scanner. No fax.
So now the last step before getting a license and a green light to open is one more permit that got sent to Columbus and the fastest way to get it back to us.... a fax.

Anyway, I'm getting a fax machine today and trying not to sit by it, waiting on the confirmation that we're good to go. We've got bands booked this weekend, but it doesn't matter if we don't have this fax. The singer and guitarist may as well play for us as we wash bottles or maybe wash bottles with us if we don't have this fax. It's so funny to think we're so close.

The vineyard is the same as it's ever been, which is nice to go out to and just relax in the repetition of perfecting the pruning on one vine and tying it up and making sure all the blossoms of future grape clusters are where they need to be before moving on to the next vine and the next and the next for acre after acre. With all this rain it's going to be tough to keep the diseases at bay this year. It's crazy to think that we're just a few months away from harvest. Time has been flying in a flurry of work and perfecting the menu and making sure the apple crop will be a success and protecting the newly planted grapevines. And heck, even planting new vines to replace the ones that didn't make it over the winter.

I just can't imagine after 3 years of working here and talking about opening and planning for the opening and thinking about the opening.... I can't believe it's just about to finally happen.

Eek. The humidity is making my hair curl. Or maybe that's the anticipation.....

It's not you, it's me.

So I went to another local winery to see how other local places do things and I just left very disappointed.

I like really good food and think that eating and drinking should be a holistic experience. I like when people are passionate about cooking or wine making or beer brewing. It seems like if you start a place such as a winery, you are passionate about wine, which would make you want to talk to other people about it and share your passion and excitement about it.

I walked into this place and there was only two other customers there. I wanted to do a full tasting, to get their whole menu of wines and see what they were all about. The descriptions were amazing so I couldn't wait to get started.
I got a halfway greeting and then the woman behind the counter turned her back to me. It took a half an hour from the time I walked in until the time I was served. And then once my tasting was all poured, she rushed to cash me out. Um, wait, that's one way to make sure that I don't purchase a bottle to take home or a glass to enjoy while there.
The food was not really appetizing looking at all, but I ordered something anyway. They didn't even open it out of the package, but plopped it on a paper plate and asked me if I would go sit down away from the bar with my wines to taste. I felt like a kid snubbed at the lunch table who was asked to sit somewhere else.
I wanted someone to tell me about the wine, what they grow, what they love, how they age their Chardonnay or what wines they are most excited about. All I got was another request to step away from the counter. For what? The other two people that were there sitting in the corner? To make room for the crowd that was coming through soon? This was the second place that I went where the server wasn't engaging, which made me think that maybe it's not the places I'm going, but maybe it's me?

The winemaker came out and I was excited to ask him about his wine. I asked him about one of his wines and I got a hurried answer that was just him rephrasing my question.

A lot on their wine list was from California, which is always a bit of a let down.
We are Ohio. Our winters are cold. Our springs and summers are unpredictable and sometimes brutal. We are not the Bordeaux region of France or the beautiful wine country of Italy. But then again, neither was California a few decades ago. They built up to being the wine heavyweight that they are today.
While I'm in Ohio, I don't aspire to make Merlot because in short, we can't grow Merlot grapes. Why would I pay for something to get shipped from so many miles away? Wouldn't shipping just sour the grapes?
I want to care for my crop, watch it grow, make sure that I raise it right to the highest quality, and be able to press right as soon as I cut them from the vine.

I also can't wrap my head around the serving styles of Ohio. I think this all kinda falls back a little bit to my first winery experience in Virginia. Jason and I walked in to Keswick Vineyards after playing in the ocean in the morning and then driving all day so I'm sure we didn't look fresh as a daisy. We were surrounded by people in golf shorts and loafers and we stuck out like a sore thumb, but the lady behind the counter did an amazing job of explaining all the wines to us as we did a tasting. She explained the different techniques they were trying and where the grapes came from. It was amazing and informative and I loved the way I felt when I was leaving.

My goal for BRX is to go never make people feel alienated when they're there and for my menu and wine list to be as local as possible. I want our menu to reflect the amazing local people making delicious and fresh products with locally produced ingredients.
I'm happy that most of our wines come straight out of the vineyard on the grounds and our ciders are made from Ohio apples as well. Our vines are hardy and exhausting vigorous (especially if you're the one pruning them.) The reds are so red that light barely can shine through because the skins are so thick. And I like that. It feels very "Ohio" to me.

So I guess what I'm saying is that I hope I never turn my back on someone who is interested in learning about how the wine is made or the grapes are grown. I don't want anyone to feel snubbed or that they don't know anything about wine, but rather to come in with an open palate and open mind and just taste what we have to offer. I'm pretty sure that between the sweet blush wines, the sparkling hard ciders, and the rich red wines, we'll have something most everyone will like. And if not, the goat cheese from Ravenna or the smoked sausage from Medina might please your fancy while you're here.
But if that fails, maybe eventually we'll work up to some Great Lakes beer on tap. Mmmm.... that would be so amazing.

Anyway, opening in about a month. Only a few more finishing touches......

What really matters

I had a total revelation this weekend. It was a nice realization like the Grinch in the end of the movie, where it finally hit me -the true meaning of a winery.

It started with a whole bunch of stress. Stress over this process taking a long time and worrying over furniture or glasses or where to put the wine racks. Worrying over having the right floor, the right paint, the perfect sized tables and chairs and how the front walkway looks.
There's so many things to think about when opening up a new place and hundreds of decisions along the way. I started over thinking every little detail.

So Janice and I stopped moving furniture from one side of the tasting room to the other and went to another local winery to figure out how they did it.
We walked around the retail area and studied their shelves. We looked at their chair orientation and how many chairs per table, and the table top material. We studied every picture on the wall, looked at their fireplace, checked out the ceiling and the lighting, and the outdoor patio area. The bar was scrutinized, behind the bar was analyzed, and the fake light up grapes were giggled at. And then we went through the tasting....
The first woman behind the bar was soooo pleasant and fun to talk to. She offered what few bits of information she knew about the wine and chatted us up, keeping the tasting going at a fine pace. She smiled and made us feel happy we came out and not judged at all when we liked or didn't like a wine. She was great, but then there was a shift change and she smiled and said goodbye.
Her replacement was TERRIBLE!!!! Oh man, she didn't even say hello to us, but turned her back and separated out her tips instead of engaging us in conversation. When I asked about what blend on particular wine was, she answered me so fast and walked away like I wouldn't understand what she was saying and she was annoyed at the question. She didn't pour for us for another 15 minutes. When I asked her what grapes they grew there, she sighed at me and then rambled them so fast I couldn't even hear her. Really, I couldn't believe she SIGHED at me! Wow.
So we grabbed a few of the bottles the previous girl had smiled about earlier and ran away from the evil tasting room staff person. The saving grace of the day was the guy that rang us out was incredibly friendly and obviously loved the wine. He was happy and chatty and made us smile again.

So, I guess the point is, no matter how good your wine is, it doesn't matter if your service is terrible. They could have had the coolest hand carved chairs made out of mahogany and driftwood, I would have never gone back if the sighing girl was the only one that served me. If you don't like your job or are annoyed with questions, you should probably quit.

This got me thinking, what are the real priorities behind starting any new place, be it a restaurant, brewery, coffee house, winery, whatever. I think it's a combination of the three top things: excellent product, engaging staff, and good prices.
Overall, if I couldn't have afforded any bottles they were selling, I would have bought maybe a glass of wine there. If the wine wasn't good, I might have bought the obligatory one bottle and probably not gone back. If the sighing girl was the only one serving me though, I would have never gone back and probably told all my friends never to go there either.

There is a little diner in Massillon that I go to every week called the Coffee Cup, Massillon's oldest restaurant. It's a tiny little greasy spoon type diner with amazing gravy and a grill cook that really knows what he's doing and the price is just perfect. As I sat there yesterday with my plate full of deliciousness topped with the perfect gravy, all for under $5, my coffee cup constantly full with quite decent coffee, this really cemented my conclusion. The little boom box on the counter buzzed out some old Neil Diamond as the waitress laughed and danced along with a kid bouncing in his booster seat. The bathrooms have this dizzying floral wallpaper, the walls are kinda plain with a shrine to Massillon football, Ohio State, and some Nascar memorabilia from the glory days of one of their regular patrons. The booths, tables, color of the walls or counter or the lighting.... it all really didn't matter. That place makes me happy. It makes me feel comfortable. I can afford it, my coffee cup is always full, and the food is consistently good. If you're ever in Massillon for breakfast, I highly recommend it. It's on 3rd St. :)

So now all I really want to do is get this place open. I have amazing 2009 wines to sell and some nice, light sweet 2010 wines in the bottle and ready. I've got my vineyard helpers, Nick, and myself ready to work behind the bar with a ban on all sighing and I'm always happy to talk about the grapevines, varieties, wine making, and wine drinking and the cider too. I have a collection of amazing local breads, cheeses, and meats ready to pair with the wines all at affordable prices. The weather is warm, the time is right, we've just got a couple lose ends to tie up and then we'll be open....

...soon.