My most recent research involves a look into the use of wine caves at wineries. I’m intrigued by their design and use. It wasn’t long ago I visited a winery South of San Francisco (Yep, they are both north and south of the city by the bay), for a wedding that was actually held in the wine caves. The actual part that was used for the wedding was a little dumbed down, meaning it wasn’t super cold and humid. It was clearly used for events only and not for actually storing wine in that particular section, but it was still an awesome site.

I’m finding that wine making information, when it comes to actually owning a winery, is difficult to come by online. Typing in “why do wineries use wine cellars” provides little information beyond a simple wikipedia article. I think I’ll have to network my way around people who are actually in the wine production industry to get a better idea. I think networking is a huge part of being in the wine industry- You either need to know how to network or be a viticulture genius (which I am not!). Or I’ll buy one of every model wine fridge from whichwinecooler.com/Wine-Coolers and see how well I can handle the electricity bills!

Looking through the information I have found so far on why a winery would choose to use a wine cellar, the benefits are pretty obvious. Temperature levels are much easier to maintain underground. If you bury and insulate the cellar enough, it hardly matters if it’s too cold or too warm outside. The cellar will maintain ideal temperatures for aging the wine. Can you imagine the cost involved in aging wine if a winery had to use an electric wine cooler for each part of the aging process? It would take thousands of wine coolers and virtually eliminate profitability. Especially considering a winery can product 5000 to 7500 bottles of wine per acre. A typical 50 bottle thermoelectric wine cooler costs around one-thousand dollars to purchase, and that doesn’t take into account any long-term operating costs.

The wine cellar will also easily maintain high humidity levels, which is important for properly aging the wine in its younger years. The wine obviously won’t be exposed to any UV rays, which can damage the wine. And the most obvious benefit, which had totally slipped my mind at first, is space. Wineries can dig out cellars and store the wine under facilities on property they already own instead of purchasing more land, which may not even be an option for them. Aging wine can involve hundreds to thousands of large oak barrels, which need to go somewhere. If a winery invests in a wine cellar then they know they have a reliable place to store their wine from vintage to vintage instead of looking for off site storage or having to buy more land, which involves higher costs either way.

Tags: aging wine in a wine cooler, making wine, wine cellar, wine cooler, wine storage

I’ll be the first to admit that I am a complete wine tasting novice- A beginner even. My wine knowledge is growing at a pace that astonishes even me though. The most amazing change that has come has been my astronomical interest in all things related to wine. It wasn’t long ago that all I could tell you was that my favorite wine is Pinot Noir. Not a whole lot of wine knowledge in the brain of mine…

Now, in a matter of weeks, I can tell you why vintage is so important. The weather affects the grapes in various ways each year. Rainfall can play an important part in creating a great acid to sugar ratio inside the grapes. Too much rain can dilute the sugar and make for a watery wine. A bad mix of nutrients can change the internal chemistry of the grape and change flavors. I had no idea that a wines vintage would be such a big deal. With most products it doesn’t matter what year it was made- Companies typically produce consistent products from year to year in the food and beverage industries.

There are so many other great things I have learned about wine, the wine industry, wine tasting, and wineries. Wine tasting has been very fascinating to learn. Color, swirl, smell, sip, and taste- That’s my motto. And I take great notes on a Google Docs spreadsheet that goes with me everywhere. I note all the senses that the wine makes me experience. Wine tannins, wine bouquet, wine flavors, and the wine color are only the beginning. What season does the wine remind me of? Is there anything else I can relate the wine to? Do I hate, like, or love the wine? I note the winery, vintage, varietal, and vineyard if available of every single bottle in my notes. It has been an amazing journey teaching myself the different varietals, tastes, and attributes of the wine and how its creation crafted those intricacies.

It also amazes me how wine tastes differ so much from person to person. In my limited experience it has seemed like 2 people could taste the same wine and have totally different feelings about it. They may associate the smells and flavors with different good or bad experiences in their lives. They may love or hate the sensation of tannins. Some may prefer sweet wine while others like acidic wines more. There really is no such thing as a good or bad wine in my opinion- Instead, it’s may be a good or bad wine to that person. Wine education can be obsessed over on so many levels. How should you store your wine? Where were the wine grapes grown and how did the vineyard take care of their grapes? What processes did the wine maker focus on to create the wine? The list goes on and on!

Tags: making wine, tasting wine, wine, wine bouquet, wine flavor

The next thing on my mind when creating my dream winery is the property and equipment involved in the whole process. Choosing a winery location is of the utmost importance, and I do a lot of research on winemap.org. Soil and weather have the greatest influence on the quality of grapes. Grapes have the greatest influence on the quality of wine. Some people do own winery facilities and choose to buy their grapes from vineyards off site. But that just doesn’t seem like my style. I’m very into crafting my food from scratch and imagine that making wine will be the same way. I want a piece of property that is big enough to grow wine grapes and organic crops in a greenhouse environment. Nothing tastes as fresh as your own garden.

My research will lead me into many types of equipment. I will need to procure wine barrels for aging. I’ll need machines for gathering grapes along with workers. I am hoping that I can get a good volunteer force going during harvest made up of mostly friends and family who will get rewarded with the fruits of their labor- Free wine. You see, I don’t plan on my winery making huge profits money wise. If it does- Great; If it doesn’t- No big deal. My profit will be the love for what I do. The love of creation- Wine.

I’m also going to have to look into all the different wine storage solutions available today. Wine needs to be stored in different ways in each of the stages of wine making. Sometimes I will need wine cellar type storage, where barrels sit for months soaking in the flavors. Sometimes I will need rooms that act as wine coolers, with huge machine rotating the wine on its side like I’ve seen in my many winery tours. They are crazy machines that are timed to rotate the wine periodically to avoid settling. Then, once the wine has finished being made, and after it is bottled, I’ll have to have some sort of wine storage to prevent the wine from degrading. Do I get another giant wine cooler? This will take some in depth research.

Labeling seems to be another big area of concern for wineries. Not only do I need to have a professionally crafted label that speaks of my wineries quality and individuality, but I also need an economic printing method. I’ve heard that most wineries outsource this side of the business. I’d also be curious to see what kind of cost and facilities are required to do you own wine bottle labeling. I imagine that using an outside company has too many advantages to pass up; The shear volume they work with allows them to order supplies in quantities that drop the price far more than I could expect to get with making wine bottle labels myself. Time for me to do some more wine making research!

Tags: age wine, make wine, oak barrel aged wine, wine, wine coolers, wine storage, winery, winery location

This winery is currently in my top favorites. It’s the perfect size and the winery specializes in my favorite wine varietal, Pinot Noir. 10 acres of wine vineyards is plenty for someone like me who is looking to work in smaller batches. With an average of 5,500 wine bottles being produced per acre of vineyards, that puts this at a 50,000+ bottle winery. I don’t think I can drink that much wine myself each year, so I may have to sell or give away a few bottles (wink, wink).

What I really love about this particular property are the extra features. Like I’ve mentioned before, I am a huge fan of natural cooking. I like to prepare as much of my food as possible from scratch. I love the fact that this property also has its own olive trees and they are set up to bottle and market their own brand of olive oil. I use olive oil every single day in my dishes. I also love to eat olives and stuff them with all kinds of ingredients.

The property also has a greenhouse already built. I would love to be able to grow much of my own fruits and vegetables to cook with. Sonoma county is a fantastic area for a diverse variety of crops. The house on the property looks really nice as well.

I’m working through the math on what it takes to own and operate a winery like this. They are asking $2 million for the entire wine estate. If you can sell at least two-thirds of the wine each year (40,000 bottles) and turn a $3 profit on each bottle of wine that would be $120,000 profit for the year. At this point my “profit per bottle” isn’t based on any fact- I need to do much more research to find out what a realistic profit would be. But let’s start with these numbers and I’ll perfect them over time. My research has shown that wineries can usually turn a profit by their third year in operation. It will be interesting to research how this is affected if you purchase a winery that has already been open for several years.

The average payment for property per $100,000 is roughly $700 per month. Assuming 20% down on the winery ($200,000), that would make payments of $12,600 per month. That’s roughly $151,000 per year. That leaves you with about $30,000 out pocket each year, or a $2500 monthly payment- Not Bad!! Not to mention a winery estate like this also bottle and markets its own Olive Oil. That also has the potential to close the gap. You could literally turn a profit, have an amazing home plus winery in Sonoma County, and be doing what you love every single day. Sign me up!

Tags: cost for a winery, Sonoma Wine estate, wine making, winery profit per bottle, wines

This website doesn’t represent a real winery… yet! I decided to build this website to represent the dream I have of someday owning a winery of my own. It’s an outward expression of my inner wine desires. A plan, if you will, to be executed when the time is right.

I’ve always had an affinity with the name Bella. Bella is beautiful; It arrises feelings of Italy, Italian wine, and the Italian countryside. If I have a daughter, her first name will be Bella. Grace is an ingredient that will be necessary in accomplishing my dream of owning a winery. It will take a little Grace, or Luck, and a lot of hard work.

I’ve narrowed my location choices down to California and Italy. The one roadblock I have for Italy at this point is that I don’t know much about their laws. I can’t imagine it’s easy to acquire an Italian winery as an American. But being from California, I am quite familiar with local rules and customs. I’ve spent plenty of time searching for suitable wineries and found them in the $1 million range in Sonoma. I’m not looking for a huge wine estate- I just need enough land to work my labor of love. One acre can produce thousands of bottles of wine every year, and that is plenty.

I really like the idea of making wines in California. I’m also very passionate about natural cooking. California agriculture is arguably the best in the world. Many of the best restaurants in the world are located in wine country- They have access to some of the best fruits, vegetables, and meats available anywhere. My kitchen is my sanctuary- It’s the most important room in my house. I can’t think of a happier way to grow old than to craft fine wines and delicious culinary treats every day from the comfort of my own winery.

Whether it be in Sonoma County, Napa, the Central Coast of California, Southern California, or all the way over in Italy, the dream of owning a winery permeates everything I do. I look forward to sharing this adventure with you.

Tags: planning to own a winery, wine estate, winery, wines