Issue link: https://read.dmtmag.com/i/215151
MARKETING matters conomic studies have shown that successful wineries tend to be either very small or very large. Mike and Judi Scott, owners of Martin-Scott Winery in East Wenatchee, Washington, would agree. They produce just 1,000 cases of wine with the aim of selling as much as possible themselves to avoid sharing their profits with a distributor. They sell about 80 percent of their production from their tasting room and the remaining 20 percent through local retailers and restaurants. Mike, who has worked in the tree fruit industry his whole career and has been involved in grape production for almost two decades, said the ability to sell their own wines has been critical in the success of the winery. "If you take a look at it from a financial point of view, if I was not doing my own marketing, I would be giving up 30 to 50 percent of the value of the product we just worked our tail ends off all year long—or longer than that—to create, and we've had enough of that in our apple business." Mike said anyone thinking of going into the wine business should do so with caution. The Scotts actually have more tree fruits than grapes, and the orchard is still the cornerstone of their business. In fact, they would not have planted the vineyards if they'd not already had the land, equipment, and water, for example, he said. "We've had more people than I can recall come here and say, 'I have two acres beside my house, and I would really like to grow grapes.' "I begin flat-out by discouraging them, and the reason is they don't have any of the body of support, equipment, or help to access, so it has to be one man or one woman, or two people doing that work, and that's a lot of work. You have to be willing to put money into that rather than going to the opera in Seattle or to Maui for two weeks. That has to become your thing. E Successful wineries are typically very large or very small, says Mike Scott who with his wife, Judi, produces just 1,000 cases a year. Mike and Judi aim to sell all their wine production themselves. Woodinville in western Washington, "But we always opt away because we like to keep it simple, and keep it at home." Colin's Collage Along with 20 acres of cherries and 23 acres of apples, the Scotts now have nine acres of grapes, which Mike has found are much easier to grow than tree fruits. Varieties include Muscat Canelli, Gewürtztraminer, Riesling, Pinot Gris, Chardonnay, Sauvignon Blanc, Malbec, Tempranillo, Merlot, Cabernet Sauvignon, Cabernet Franc, and Sauvignon Blanc. In addition, they have a test block with a row each of Cinsault, Mourvèdre, Barbera, Grenache, Aglianico, Refosco, Zinfandel, Primativo, and Montepulciano. Grapes from the different varieties in their test plot are field blended to produce a wine they call Colin's Collage, named for the eldest of their five grandchildren. They process 23 tons of grapes—enough to produce 1,000 cases of wine—of which about 3.5 tons are purchased from other vineyards. About 80 percent of the wine is sold at the winery and the rest through local restaurants and stores. Being primarily an estate winery was not their ultimate goal, Mike said. "Staying at home and tending our property is our goal, and that drives us to have grapes here." Most of the varieties he grows seem well suited to the location, which averages 3,600 degree days, and his Malbec, Tempranillo, Merlot, and Cabernet Franc are as good as any, he believes. He thinks Wenatchee, Chelan, and the Wenatchee Valley can do a fine job with any of the white cultivars that are typically thought to have a bright acidity. "I could not name a white grape that I don't think we can do a worldwide competitive job with," he said. "A little cooler temperature allows retention of the acidity and a balanced profile in the wine." But some varieties are better grown elsewhere. He purchases Sauvignon Blanc grapes from a vineyard at Wahluke Slope, Mattawa, and Cabernet Sauvignon grapes from Shaw Vineyards in Benton City in the Red Mountain American Viticulture Area. "I think, consistently, the Red Mountain area is going to be a better place for Cabernet Sauvignon," he said. "To develop the varietal character and the tannin structure would be difficult for us to do—and we've proven it a number of times with our own Cabernet. We don't like our Cabernet as well as Red Mountain's, so the Cabernet we have ends up in blends with Merlot. I would not plant any more Cabernet Sauvignon here." While a big winery needs to produce consistent wines to satisfy consumers' expectations, the Scotts feels freer to —Mike Scott experiment. "We want to work at being consistently different and unexpected," Mike said. "We always want to surprise people—in a positive way. You're using your experience and sense of taste and smell to create a product that you think will have a more enticing or delectable outcome for people who consume it." A surprising number of people find their way to the winery. Some are directed there by the Wenatchee Chamber of Commerce or another winery, and some find it online. "You find people following their iPhone right into the door of the tasting room," Mike said. Now that they've retired from their outside jobs, they have the time to mingle with visitors and converse with people they've never met before. "It's been a kind of an outlet for us because my wife and I are pretty serious, but it's given us a chance to lighten up a little bit to take the time to engage someone else's minds and thoughts," Mike said. "We weren't into that, quite frankly. I always said 'Hi' to people on the street, but I would never stop to talk to them. I always had to keep going. We had bills to pay, trees to plant, and ball games to go to." "You have to be willing to put money into that rather than going to the opera in Seattle or to Maui for two weeks. That has to become your thing." 44 DECEMBER 2013 GOOD FRUIT GROWER Backwards "And if you're going to sell the grapes to a winemaker, you're going to end up going backwards because the big commercial vineyards that sustain most of the large wineries do it on such a large scale, and their costs are so different, that for the small handheld vineyard there's just no leverage there. "The only way you would want to plant two acres of grapes is if you were determined to open a wine shop in your basement, and then you can take the margin that's in the winemaking and marketing and build it into your model," he added. "But just to grow a few grapes to take to a winemaker doesn't make any sense. I've discouraged countless doctors, attorneys, and Microsoft people from getting into growing grapes." —G. Warner Despite the state of the economy, there are still people with the time, money, and inclination to go wine tasting, Mike noted, and this has to do with enjoyment of life. Tourists come to eastern Washington because of the warm climate. "We like to say when people come here that we're not selling wine but we're pouring sunshine," he said. "When you see sixty people enjoying a meal on the patio, and your wine bottles are on all the tables, it gives you almost a grandfatherly warmth of heart to see that enjoyment. "From time to time, we'll just walk off on the lawn a ways with a glass of wine and say, 'Holy smokes, this is pretty cool.'" • www.goodfruit.com