Winery Phase 2 Update

You may recall we built a new production facility in fall of 2022, directly behind the original winery (referred to as Construction: Phase 1). We processed all of last year’s grapes, made some wine; and immediately in January of 2023, started Phase 2: “Raise the Roof”. So, what have we been up to?

Step 1: Empty Room, Concrete Staining, Insulation Removal Party. We needed to take everything out of the tasting room and (finally) stain all the concrete in preparation for a larger tasting room area in the future. Next, we took on the ridiculous task of removing all the insulation from above the tasting room. Pro tip: if there’s the slightest chance you are ever going to add a level to a structure, avoid using the spray insulation. We dreaded this project for months but in the end, we were still smiling enough to enjoy some wine and toast to a job well done!

Plus, we were able to reuse the insulation in the well-house and share some with a friend for his shop.

Step 2: Take off the roof. This was rather stressful, as you can imagine. It was late January, and pretty quickly after all the covering was taken off, we received a decent amount of rain and eventually snow. The Collins Construction crew disassembled the roof and trusses and we worked daily with plastic wrap and squeegees to keep the drywall covered and the furnace area protected, all while trying to keep the water pipes from freezing.

(Note: no pictures of anyone smiling and enjoying wine)

Step 3: Framing and Subfloor. This was a gratifying step as the Collins guys worked daily in conjunction with our good friend Travis Rupe from TK Building supply, even in the snow, to get our precious tasting room covered and protected from the elements. Shew!

Step 4: Finishing Touches! The Collins crew continued to finish the framing, roofing, and siding, and per tradition, our family of talented volunteers assembled as dad ran all the electric, worked with Bob on HVAC, and did everything else needed every single day. What a guy! Katy’s brother (Jordan) ran miles of ethernet for our internet/music/cameras (with help from Katy’s dad).

Oh, and we were able to smile and drink a little wine again!

We are getting closer to opening. There’s still some work to be done in the downstairs area (tasting room) over the next couple of weeks. We would like to note there will be a Phase 3: finishing the new upstairs area. That will happen in the future, but before it is finished, we will have a full open and redesigned tasting room (downstairs) and a completely new wrap-around porch. For now, we are kinda tired and just ready to open up!

Please stay tuned to your email newsletter and social media for an opening date.

Cheers!