I'm going commercial...

[crushday]

Well done - keep yourself in top physical and mental form as this is a huge project. Best wishes for the future.
Back in 2021 you put up a post regarding your thoughts regarding making Balsamic Vinegar using the concentrated juice base from a red wine kit. Did you ever go any further with this as I’m keen to give it a shot. Cheers Craig

Craig, it's a great question and one I thought I answered. However... I'm still very interested in this idea as I think it will work. Up until now, I've been hesitant to mix vinegar and wine making in the same space. The property I just bought is going to allow me to experiment as it has a separate small building several hundred feet away from the shop. I need to ascertain contamination factors and the possibility of transporting vinegar on clothing, my hair or otherwise into the winery from the vinegar space.

 

[crushday]

George, it appears you have your bases covered. Congratulations!

Document your process here -- I'm sure numerous members dream of opening a winery, and an ongoing description of your efforts will helps folks determine if starting a winery is a realistic thing for them.

Are there any legal issues with bringing in out of state grapes? Some states require a certain percentage of the grapes be grown in the state.

Are you considering making wine from locally sourced grapes? I don't think of wine production when I think of Montana ... silly me, there is a grape research center at Montana State U.

https://agresearch.montana.edu/warc/research_current/grapes/index.html

No legal issues producing wine sourced from different states. The winemaking scene is slight, at best, and the state doesn't quite know how to treat wineries. I have been meeting with the County and they are all excited about the winery. Wine = instant friends!

I will document the progress and process - that's a great idea.

thanks for the input, Bryan.

 

[crushday]

Congratulations George!

700+ miles is a LONG way to haul grapes! (Eastern WA to Billings). The space looks perfect.

Mike, it is a long way! But, I have a solid plan. This will be fun...

The winery will only be 35 miles from the east entrance to Yellowstone and only 1 mile from the road that leads from the interstate to Grand Teton National Park. I suspect there will be tourist traffic too.

I lived in the Billings area for over 20 years before moving to Washington so I know the area well and I know thousands of people in Billings. I'm planning on maintaining my other businesses until I retire and then just make wine.

 

[crushday]

Wow, congratulations - I thought that your 2024 harvest was a bit excessive for just one home winemaker, now I see the reason behind it...
It sounds like you've got the basics of planning equipment and production down. How is the regulatory side of things? I'm guessing you didn't mention it because it's 'just boring paperwork', but there is a ton of stuff to take care of (at least here in California - maybe MT is more relaxed?) Not just being licensed and bonded to produce and sell alcohol, but little details like what has to go where on the bottle labels (which can be pretty obscure and specific).

Good luck!

You would know how much work there is to do just getting set up. The biggest hurdle is the County. The State will rely on them. The thing the County is concerned about is sanitation. The shop has a 5 barrel drainage field, way over built. This is to my favor. The crush pad will tie into the drain system and have a trap to catch solids.

Do you have a recommendation on Crush Pad size? I was thinking 30x40, covered and opened walled.

 

[crushday]

IIRC you can not sell any wine (legally) that was made in previous years that you were not a legally bonded/licensed winery.

This is why newly minted wineries rely on making a ton of white wines the first few years as the proverbial "cash cow" to jump start sales until the first reds are available for release after 2 years or so.

Yep, well aware of this. I have been doing free tasting events for a couple years now. I have an executive chef and we work together pairing wines with the food offerings for the six course event. Each course gets its own curated wine. At the end of the evening, every couple or single gets one bottle of each of the wines to take home. I've met some really great people doing these events. Invariably, people want to pay me. I don't accept money or donations. This is my opportunity to be generous. People are simply blown away by the entire event.

 

[BarrelMonkey]

You would know how much work there is to do just getting set up.

I'm not experienced in winery design and start up but do work part time at a small winery. By small I mean ~2500-3000 cases per yr for the primary brand, though the actual volume is about twice that due to custom crush work.

Do you have a recommendation on Crush Pad size? I was thinking 30x40, covered and opened walled.

Our crush pad is almost exactly that, I think, 30x40ft. Figure out what equipment will live there (grape sorting/destemming, press, tanks?) and what else it will be used for (eg landing and storing glass at bottling time, cleaning/rearranging barrels and tanks as they move in and out of the cellar). You'll almost certainly need a pallet jack and forklift for moving stuff around (make sure you have enough overhead clearance for loading grapes into the destemmer/press!)

I expect you know this already but winebusiness.com is a great resource for both used equipment and barrels.

 

[winemaker81]

No legal issues producing wine sourced from different states. The winemaking scene is slight, at best, and the state doesn't quite know how to treat wineries. I have been meeting with the County and they are all excited about the winery. Wine = instant friends!

I will document the progress and process - that's a great idea.

thanks for the input, Bryan.

You may drive change in the winery business in Montana. It's in your best interest to be the driver for changes, as first one in tends to go best. It's not easy, but it can pay off.

Do you have a recommendation on Crush Pad size? I was thinking 30x40, covered and opened walled.

Whatever you think you need, make it 50% bigger. It's cheaper in the long run to do it right the first time than it is to add on.

Yep, well aware of this. I have been doing free tasting events for a couple years now. I have an executive chef and we work together pairing wines with the food offerings for the six course event. Each course gets its own curated wine. At the end of the evening, every couple or single gets one bottle of each of the wines to take home. I've met some really great people doing these events. Invariably, people want to pay me. I don't accept money or donations. This is my opportunity to be generous. People are simply blown away by the entire event.

Bloody brilliant! [I'm not British, but some of their sayings are fantastic!]

 

[wood1954]

Good luck.

 

[Obbnw]

Good luck - when you like what you're doing it isn't work ; )

I've got a project in Yellowstone that will hopefully wrap up next fall. I've been wanting to drive out to Billings through Cooke City. Now I have another reason to make the trip.

I haven't been to Billings yet but this year I went from Gardiner up to Great Falls then over to Glacier to look at a project. Then back to Gardiner through Helena. I was really impressed with Montana.

 

[crushday]

Good luck - when you like what you're doing it isn't work ; )

I've got a project in Yellowstone that will hopefully wrap up next fall. I've been wanting to drive out to Billings through Cooke City. Now I have another reason to make the trip.

I haven't been to Billings yet but this year I went from Gardiner up to Great Falls then over to Glacier to look at a project. Then back to Gardiner through Helena. I was really impressed with Montana.

I'm going to PM you...

 

[Hokapsig]

Congrats and welcome to the hamster wheel. Always keep looking 6 to 12 months ahead and keep your tanks full!!!!