As a winery in The Other 46, how do you make the best quality wine consistently year after year?  By that I mean, let’s look at Bordeaux.  The wineries in the Bordeaux region know how to make Bordeaux wine because they have had hundreds of years to perfect the process.  The same goes for Mosel, →

After many books, articles, classes, and consultations about winery ownership and how to build your own winery, the one important topic I find missing, time and time again, is addressing the WHY.  By that I mean, WHY do you want to own a winery?  There are all sorts of businesses you could go into, so →

After a great career as a helicopter pilot in the Army, June Ritterbusch landed in Salado, Texas.  Upon evaluating the market and the busy tourist industry that Salado commands, she set her sight on becoming a winery owner in 2003.  She purchased land in 2004 and planted a vineyard in 2005. That same year, she →

Over the weekend I had a perfectly refreshing Vinho Verde. It was a perfect heat buster wine for a blistering August day in Texas. I got to thinking about this wine, where it comes from and how it came about in the first place. It is a unique style of wine originally created in the →

“The tasting room is only second to the label in branding your wine. The biggest mistake owners make regarding their tasting room is making do with what they have instead of creating what they need.” Paul Wagner

Did you know that more than half of applicants lie or distort information on their application? Finding the right people for the job, no matter what position or business, is often frustrating, time consuming, and painful. Either you’re getting a lot of interest, but no one seems to be the right fit or you need →

This isn’t my typical blog, but perhaps a relevant opportunity for some readers.  Recently we’ve had several inquiries by customers and winery owners about similar blending challenges.  Either, they have a wine that has been successful in the past, but last year’s grapes aren’t producing the same results OR they have a wine with a →

Next stop on my Southwest Winery Tour was Arizona, the Grand Canyon State. With its mountains and deserts, Arizona’s wine industry faces interesting climate challenges. Most vineyards are located around Wilcox in the southeast corner of the state, with a few scattered around Flagstaff. With the high altitudes (Elevation: Wilcox 4168 ft & Flagstaff at →

It may seem like the buds just burst, but harvest will be sneaking up on us soon. In preparation for the exciting and hectic season, let’s look at what you can do now to be ahead of the game. Prior and during harvest, in addition to an influx of customers, you are also dealing with →

What is branding? First, branding is not advertising.  It’s not just the company name, logo or label being recognized.  It’s not facts about your winery.  Real branding evokes an emotional response when the consumer sees your label or hears your name. Porsche is high performance, luxury, and cool. Apple is imagination, design and innovation. Yellowtail →