Pilot Knob Vineyard turns “4”… months that is!!

Being a new winery is no job for the faint of heart.  Don’t get me wrong, slinging wine is a blast, working the vines (other than when it is 105 degrees….in other words during the Texas Summer) can be a very relaxing and connective, and the people you meet are just amazing.  So, even though we have been working the vineyard the last few years, planning, planning and planning, for the opening of the tasting room it’s always amazing how many things you learn along the way.  The ideas that you thought were “no brainers” sometimes turn out to be “no gooders”, or at least “no where near what you that they would be….ers”.   Good news is, generally something else you thought would be a good idea, turns out to be a great idea (the Austin Steam Train comes to mind here!), and takes up the slack. 

One thing that we feel we are very fortunate to have invested a lot of time in developing is a wine club.  Our wine club members have been amazing supporters of our business and the biggest advocacy group you could ever ask for.  Each month we are adding many new members to both of our wine clubs, and it just makes for such a special time as we continue to find ways to create a little fun, mixed with a heaping helping of vino.  We are doing our best to keep the calendar full, that way we can meet more great folks, have more wonderful times, and continue to spread the word of Pilot Knob Vineyard.

So, four months old, and we are very excited about what Pilot Knob Vineyard has become, and the fun and enjoyment we have provided to so many already.  The truth is, if you have good wine, and a comfortable place to enjoy it, so many other parts fall into place.  So far so good, and we only plan to make it so much better. 

Come by and see all the new things happening at Pilot Knob Vineyard.

Cheers!

Craig

The sweet smell of lumber!!

What a sight to see the parade of semi trucks coming in carrying the materials that will be used to construct our tasting room.  Along this long process of starting a vineyard and developing a winery, there are moments that you just feel are unique and special….this was definitely one of them. 

Materials rolling in!

It is amazing to see the structure start to form, and to finally visualize the true scale of the building.  While the building is pretty big, when you just have a slab of cement to gauge its size with, it’s amazing how small it seems when sitting in the middle of 112 acres of open land. 

Who knew cement could be pretty?

Now Morton Buildings is doing their handy work and will have the building structure developed in about 2 to 3 weeks!  It is amazing how efficiently the process flows when the wheels start turning.  While the Morton team is finishing their work we will be able to bring in some other sub contractors to start their process, so we can have two teams working simultaneously.  The crews are ready to work long hours (and I am going to let them) to see this tasting room open very soon!

Side Wall

Putting in Porch Framing

Back Patio - Looking West

The Dormers are forming!

Stay tuned for pictures, pictures and more pictures.  Progress is a good thing!  Can't wait to tell you more real soon.

Craig

The “New” Wine Country Tour

Last week Ross and I were treated to a very fun opportunity to visit four wineries very near our Pilot Knob Vineyard location.  Of course, it is always a fun day when a little wine is introduced to the equation, but this time we had the pleasure of being on a bus with about 50 different event planners, caterers, transportation specialists, and a variety of other folks involved in the event development business in and around Austin.  We were hosted by Damon Holditch, President and Founder of Marquee Event Group (http://www.marqueeeventgroup.com/).  In addition to being a successful business owner, Damon is a wine lover, and a big advocate for the Texas wine industry.  We were delighted to be invited on such an enjoyable adventure.

On the ride from Marquee headquarters (it was cold at 9am!), we met a great group of folks that have a very vested interest in the development of our 6,400sq ft+ tasting room.  We had interesting discussions about what sets event venues apart, and what makes for a memorable event for all invloved.  Damon even invited us to get up and share a bit about starting a vineyard and a tasting room.  We didn’t go into all the details (only had an hour bus ride!), but it was fun seeing the reactions of folks as we talked about vineyard development, financing, marketing, and licensing all in about 5 minutes.  I think I left out a couple items (tons), but I think it made sense. 

We started our tour in Lampasas at Texas Legato and Pillar Bluff wineries.  The wineries are just down the road from each other and are owned by identical twin brothers, though both claim to be the pretty one.  Pillar Bluff was the first to open in 2002, and now produces up to 1,400 cases of wine each year.  Texas Legato opened up a few years later, and produces about 800 cases of wine each year.  They are both part of the Way Out Winery Trail (http://wayoutwineries.org/).

On the way back in, we stopped at The Vineyards at Florence and Inwood Estates (which are right next to each other).  They both offered beautiful ambiance, tasty wine, and are conveniently located about 8 miles from our vineyard.  It is exciting to have such good wineries all within a short distance of Pilot Knob Vineyard.  We look forward to being a part of this burgeoning wine trail.

I sure hope we don’t have to get off the bus just because we will be a hosting winery on their next excursion our way; it was a lot of fun.  Thank you Damon and Marquee Event Group!!!

Craig

Viognier anyone?

The very first, of many bottles to come, rolled through the bottling process yesterday.  Many pictures were taken to commemorate the excitement of the first Pilot Knob Vineyard wine being bottled - our 2010 Viognier.  We would like to share a couple, and let you see what fun stuff we have been working on. 

Our first wine is born - 2010 Viognier

This Viognier is magnificent, and will be part of a special shipment to wine club members in April.  You are not going to want to miss getting a taste of this wine!  My mouth is watering right now.

Bottling Process

Getting Labeled

Running the Line

Cased & Ready to Ship

The votes are in!

It’s official.  After last week’s votes from many of our already devoted Pilot Knob Vineyard fans, we have the new name for our upcoming red wine Tempranillo / Merlot blend.  Receiving 58% of the votes - drum roll please...  

Franco-Rojo is the winner!

Thanks to everyone who took time to vote!  Stay tuned here, on our website, and Facebook page for more fun opportunities to lend a hand as we continue to progress towards our GRAND OPENING in the spring!

Barrel Bonanza!

One of the biggest thrills as a new winery is the ordering of the barrels and seeing your logo on the end of a barrel when it is delivered.  I know it’s just a small thing, but you just feel a bit more like you have really started making wine.  Our barrels are filled with Merlot and Tempranillo, and for this first year we tried a couple of different barrel types to see which we liked the most for their flavor profile with our wines.  We are looking to create smooth, beautifully layered wine, and we want the oak to add to its sophistication, not be a dominant part of its flavoring.

Wine barrels could be a book of information all by themselves, and it probably is somewhere, but in general you deal with two origin points, the United States and Europe (mostly France).  Then you deal with toasting (for flavor profiles), and time air dried - where generally the longer time the better.  Ok, since you don’t get a “do over” in wine making, and we have some fantastic fruit and a fantastic winemaker, we didn’t want to miss our mark on barrel selection.  So we worked with Barrel Builders, a barrel broker who places barrels for one of the finest cooperages (that’s the place they make barrels) in France, Marchive. 

Each barrel holds about 25 cases of wine, and generally is considered neutral after the 2^nd or 3^rd year of use, meaning it has become more of a container for the wine, rather than having much ability to change the flavoring of the wine.  That kind of stings since you can pay $900 to $1000 for French oaks barrels!?  Perils of perfection I guess.  As we continue to see wines evolve in the barrels, I look forward to talking more about the experiences we are having with American Oak, French Oak, and even Hungarian Oak.

Cheers !



Craig Pinkley

General Manager

Want to help name a Wine? VOTE – VOTE – VOTE!!

Naming the wine is one of the most fun things about running a winery.  As you can tell when you go to the grocery store, there is a lot of creativity when it comes to what to name a wine.  

In our first release of wines, we have a beautiful red blend that pairs the traditional Spanish grape Tempranillo and the classic Bordeaux (France) blending grape, Merlot.  We wanted a name that had fun with the pairing we have put together, recognizing both heritages.  So after much deliberation we came up with the name Rojo-Franco, as a fun way to identify the pairing of these two classic varietals.  

Well it's getting close to label printing time and frankly......we need your help.  As we have continued to think about the name, we ran into the old "first name", "middle name" dilemma that almost every prospective parent encounters - you know - does “Jim Bob” sound better or does “Bob Jim” (ok, bad example, clearly every Texan would know that Jim Bob sounds better).  You just want to make sure you pick the name order that sounds best and rolls off the tongue.  This is where we need you, our friends of Pilot Knob!

We're stuck between Rojo-Franco and Franco-Rojo, we just can't decide which one sounds best.  Since we are producing 5,040 of the little guys, we want to get it right.  So we need your vote here on our blog (see our Poll above to VOTE!) or, go to our Facebook page (www.facebook.com/pilotknobvineyard)  and comment/vote there.

What’s it going to be?  Franco Rojo or Rojo Franco - We need your help! 

Your vote really does count.  We know we can count on you!!

Craig

Pilot Knob Vineyard… The Wine – The Wine!!

Wow !!!  What a wonderful beginning to Pilot Knob Vineyard. Thanks to you all for your kind words of encouragement and excitement, your feedback on the website, and all of your wine club memberships.  We received an amazing response of folks wanting to be a part of Pilot Knob Vineyard. 

Now that a week as passed since we launched our new site, we wanted to follow-up with a bit more information for all our interested wine pals.  First, and probably pretty darn importantly, we wanted to make sure that we give everyone a sense for what your wine shipments will cost.  As we mention in the website, generally shipments will be made four times a year, and they will consist of 4 to 6 bottles, we estimate that the price of each shipment will be from $85 to $125 before tax or shipping (based on number of bottles in shipment, and club discount).  We have updated our website to reflect this information as well.

We are excited to now give you a very brief preview of the 5 wines that we will be bringing to you as we open our doors in April.  Oh, and if you join our wine club we are planning a release (shipment) a couple weeks before we open the doors, so our club members can have the first taste of our delicious wines!

We have yet to “officially” name some of the blends, and the single varietal wines will not be named at this point (other than their varietal name, of course).  Here is what you can look forward to from Pilot Knob in 2011:

Viognier

Don’t know what to say except, “Oh my”!  This wine is a sophisticated, delightfully complex and fruit forward wine.  So good, you’ll find yourself at the bottom of the glass before you know it. Viognier is a star grape in Texas, and this one hails from the Panhandle, showing off why this may end up being Texas’ signature grape.

Sweet Rose’  

This wonderful wine will draw its color (darker pink) from a touch of Cabernet, and will be a “Wow” wine for those that care for a bit of a sweeter taste to their wine. Once you have tried the flavor on this wine, you will see why we are sure this will be a crowd pleaser!

White Blend - Chenin Blanc, Viognier, Muscat

This beautiful, easy drinking blend takes the structure provided by the Viognier, and rounds the edges a bit with less full bodied white wine varietals.  This wine is a great way to transition the palette from the sweeter wines.

Merlot/ Tempranillo Blend

Spain meets France. They share a border, now they share a bottle at Pilot Knob Vineyard. Our Tempranillo is a full-bodied dark wine that hints of spice and dark fruits, while Merlot, the classic blending grape, serves to soften the tannins and provide a smooth texture to the final product. Tempranillo is the red wine counterpart to Viognier, in that it is thought to grow exceptionally well in Texas…we certainly think so, and I think you will agree.

Cabernet Sauvignon

The King of Grapes!  “Hail to the King” is right on for this amazing 100% Cabernet wine.  Aged in French oak, this wine has been masterfully crafted by our winemaker, and sourced from the vineyard of one of Texas’s founding fathers of wine.  It is very approachable now, with fruit and cedar tones, but can saved for later (I can’t do it!) as it continues to mature.  This is good stuff!

All the grapes are Texas grown, and the wine is Texas made.  Can’t wait to share!  Founder’s Wine Club slots are filling fast and they won’t be re-offered, so hurry and join to truly gain all the benefits of the Pilot Knob Vineyard experience.  For those of you who have already joined, again, thanks ever so much!  Enjoy!

The Barcode Mystery…Decoded.

Got the wine label looking good, the colors the way we want, the layout clean and elegant, then we forgot the barcode.  Kind of don’t think of a barcode when you are trying to make a good label design, but if you ever want to sell your wine through retailers, other than yourself, they almost certainly will demand it.  So on it goes. 

The more interesting part of the barcode story was leaning about how to get a barcode.  Essentially there is a barcode clearinghouse that dispenses all barcodes, and everyone that wants a barcode must go through this one entity (GS1 US).  You must join GS1 US (not a cheap proposition) starting at $750, which will then get you your own unique identifying numbers that they will assign all of your barcodes from. Additionally you will pay $150 a year to keep your membership. 

For many small retailers that plan for most of their sales to be done out of their own store front and that don’t have hundreds of unique products to sell, a cheaper alternative exists. You can buy the use of another company’s unique identifier.  This can give each of your products a unique barcode for ease of sales transactions, and inventory control, but cost substantially less then buying the codes directly from GS1 US.  To buy codes this indirect route usually costs $5-$10 a code depending on the number you purchase.

Maybe not the most fun read of the day, but I learned a little something about an item you just don’t really think much about.  Thought I would just pass this “lesson learned” along.

Craig Pinkley

Pilot Knob General Manager/Proprietor

A little Pilot Knob background

Happy New Year everyone!

Let me bring you up to date, since I am guessing you don’t have much knowledge of Pilot Knob Vineyard to this point.

An interest turned into a deep curiosity, a deep curiosity became a passion and that passion now is my job!  Pretty nice, huh?  Believe me, there is lots more to the story…years of work and research, informational overload, a bunch of money spent, and more than just a tad bit of anxiety.  Oh, and for a city kid, bunches of practice to not look totally goofy when a wasp buzzes around your head, or when a spider crawls on your hand when you are pruning vines….slowly making progress here.  In the end though, it couldn’t have turned out any better.

So now we have 112 acres of beautiful land in Bertram, Texas, with just over three acres planted to Cabernet and Tempranillo.  Though I must admit, the most exciting part is that we are starting construction of our tasting room, and can now share the natural beauty of the vineyard and its surroundings, as well as share the experience of a great place to sip wine and let the world slow down just a bit.

Over the coming months, and years, I hope that you will come along for the journey with us.  I will take you through what the creation of a winery is like, and how we work toward making Pilot Knob Vineyard a place to create some memories.  I think some of the posts will be informational, I’m sure some will be a bit comical, but I hope that you can always get a sense for what this unique business is all about and how we go about doing it the best way we can.

The next few months will chronicle the purchasing of all our supplies (bottles, barrels, wine, capsules, corks, etc.), the progress of our construction of the Tasting Room, and the tending to the vines as we get ready for them to spring back to life late March or early April.  I am ready for a lot of hard work and fun, and ready to share that with all of you.

Strap in, here comes Pilot Knob Vineyard….stay tuned.

Craig Pinkley

Pilot Knob General Manager/Proprietor

Craig (left) and Ross at Groundbreaking



Welcome to Pilot Knob Vineyard!

Welcome to our Pilot Knob Vineyard Blog!  Join us through our adventure of starting a vineyard, building and opening a Tasting Room, and establishing a first class winery outside of Bertram, Texas.

Pilot Knob Vineyard, named for the prominent volcanic formation some 6 miles southeast of the vineyard, and perched on a ridge overlooking the beautiful Texas Hill Country, provides an ambiance that is uniquely Texas, while delivering a wine experience that is unlike any Texas has ever offered. 

Currently, we are constructing a 6,400 square foot Tasting Room and Event Center, which will open for business early spring of 2011.

Follow us as we go through this exciting time of entrepreneurship, change, and growth; and hopefully learn a lot with us at the same time. 

Here is what we are building:



Pilot Knob Tasting Room - Front Rendering







Ground Breaking with UFCU - PK Owner's Craig Pinkley & Ross Wood on the right side of the pic



Get ready for some exceptional wine, great people, a unique destination and an experience to remember!  Looking forward to sharing our wine-adventure with you.  Here we go...