In 2003, my parents, in what I assume was a fit of midlife crisis, decided they must start a vineyard. I grew up in Riesel, TX, on a small farm in a small town of about 900 people. We raised cattle and an ever changing odd assortment of zucchini, squash, cantaloupe, corn, okra, tomatoes and the like. After taking a wine tasting class at a newly minted winery one town over, my parents decided that normal fruits and vegetables were boring and they just must have a vineyard. The vintner told them buyers were increasingly looking for local branding but there were far more people who wanted to make wine than grow grapes, so they constantly imported juice from out of state. Eager to brand their bottles not only Texas made but also Texas grown, the vintner made a deal with us on the spot to buy any grapes we can grow that exists to this day for our little vineyard.
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| Me installing the trellis system for a new section in 2010 |
There was a catch for me though. As a 13 year old, I was plenty able to help with the planting but couldn't enjoy any of the product. What was a labor of love for my parents turned into just labor for me. I planted hundreds of vines, built a trellis system, trenched our irrigation ditches and installed our drip lines. Springs and summers were spent endlessly spraying, mowing and trimming. Within a few years we started bearing fruit, and as I grew older and grew a taste for wine I started getting more into the process. To this day I trek home ever summer to help with the harvest and am proud now to have now helped picked tons of grapes at over a dozen harvests. It was a lot of hard work, and I don't think the 13 year old me would believe it, but the vineyard has turned into one of my favorite parts of home and one of my proudest accomplishments.
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| 2017 Latimer Family Harvest |
This brings me to my motivation to enroll in GSBGEN 356. I've spent more hours than I can count planting and maintaining a vineyard, but my knowledge of what happens next is comically absent. My only tasting talent is the ability to discern a white from a red, and even that I would struggle with if I couldn't see the wine. Embarrassed enough by my lack of knowledge, I will often forego mentioning our vineyard because it inevitable leads to questions about wine that I am completely helpless to answer. I am hoping to learn in this course what happens after the harvest and to learn to speak intelligently about wine that goes beyond the vines.
Timothy -
ReplyDeleteCongrats on your family's success in this endeavor! I find this story very interesting because it sounds like your family made a decision many have made in recent years - to start a vineyard basically just because they felt like it - but unlike most have turned it into a successful enterprise. I.e., they've bucked the trend of "if you want to make $1 million in the wine business, start with $10 million" and the like.
Assuming this is true (and feel free to correct me if not, or ignore if you don't want to discuss the economics of it), I wonder if you have any insight into which factors of your family's particular situation most contributed to your vineyard's relative financial viability? I can imagine any / all of the following might have an impact:
-Your family's prior experience as farmers
-Already owning the land (and thus not having to purchase it)
-Not being in a premier U.S. wine region
-Having a buyer lined up before starting
-Only producing grapes / juice - i.e., not needing or building a winery and any of the production capabilities that come with it
Would love to hear any thoughts you have!
Matt
Timothy - I thoroughly enjoyed reading this post and too want to applaud you and your family for making this both a passion project and a successful endeavor. I admired the connection you have to the vineyard and this feeling of serenity, accomplishment and home. Being a fellow Texan, I also felt a sense of pride that you brought Texas into the wine conversation. I have been fortunate to visit a few vineyards in Texas myself, but it has never been a place that I associate with wine legends. Perhaps this comes from a jaded view of the industry because of how loud the praise of Napa can be or perhaps it comes from my lack of knowledge of the key players in Texas. Have you had time to visit any of the neighboring vineyards? I would be very interested to hear how you view the industry from your eyes and also how if at all, you have partnered with vineyards in the area.
ReplyDeleteOne of my favorite memories of wine in Texas is when I visited a vineyard about half way between Houston and Austin to experience grape crushing for the first time. Although I am very aware that it was a tourist trap, it was such a neat experience to pull the grapes off the vine and then experience the crushing - it was a messy process, yet a memorable experience at the same time. I remember thinking that my feet would stay purple for days and also was very cognizant that I would not want to drink any wine that had been crushed by feet!! Although this isn't what I think about when I think about the Texas wine industry, it is a fun experience that floods my memory.
For your interest, I have included an article <> that includes historical data on the Texas wine region. An interesting stat is that many Texas wineries have been found to use California grapes due to grape shortages in Texas. I am curious if you have seen this impact you at all? Perhaps it is an opportunity to pursue if you are looking to expand!