By Doug Fabbioli

When we first started our winery, a true Garagist venture from the cellar of our house, there was not really a plan to be open to the public. My vision was to continue making wine for others, selling some grapes from our farm, and making a few barrels of wine from the rest. Sales would mainly be to local wine shops and restaurants, and, periodically opening the cellar doors for our customers to come by and purchase. Well, not all things fall into the well-made plan.

The growth of our tasting room operation, increasing staffing, creating a wine club, adding events, building additions, and eventually, building a whole new structure, is another story for another day. Through it all, our relationships with wine shops and restaurants have remained an important part of our business plan.

If the operator of a wine shop likes my wine, believes they can sell it to their customer base, and at a price that covers my wholesale price and makes them money, we all win. Much of our wine, and that of my fellow winemakers, is consumed in homes, at parties, and the like. Having our wines available at these shops expands my customer base beyond my tasting room, and makes it easier to reach more people who enjoy good wine.  It is also a valuable, stamp of quality. These shops often have dedicated customers who trust the buyer for that store to make only the best available. If the store has the wine on its shelf, you can be certain it’s a good wine and priced fairly.

I just came from a delivery to a local shop where I had a tasting with customers a few weeks ago. The manager was happy to see me and I to see him.  He enthusiastically asked when I would be coming back to pour again. It felt good to know that me being at his business selling my wine was good for him. That is the model we are looking to replicate.

Years ago, as we were starting out, our marketing plan was built on 3 legs. First, having the winery for folks to taste all of what we have to offer, join the wine club, bring wines home, and have a physical location to promote our other events, locations and retail shops that carry our wine. Second, is pouring and selling wine at offsite events like farmers markets, wine festivals, and the like to encourage folks to visit the winery and buy some wine while they are there. We also use these events to promote the wine shops and restaurants that carry our wine in their local area. Third, are those shops and restaurants because they see the majority of wine buying folks and can help promote and sell our wines. Periodically, their customers get a chance to taste our wine and meet a character from the winery like me.

As some of the traditions of the wine industry may seem a bit aged, in an industry thousands of years old, that is to be expected, some practices, like tastings and chatting about wine are timeless. Whether it is at a winery, a wine shop, a farmers market, a street fair or a restaurant, take the opportunity to taste the wine offered and have the conversation.

Deep down, and sometimes not so deep down, we winemakers are all part Garagist — passionate makers and passionate sharers of the simple idea of making and sharing great wine.  Whether it is straight from our garages, cellars, or local shop shelves, we in the industry all want our wines tried and enjoyed by both new tasters and vintage ones. Our wines, both traditional and cutting edge, are meant to be enjoyed.

Cheers!

About the Author: Farmer, winemaker, entrepreneur, educator, and leader, Doug Fabbioli has been accelerating the growth and quality of Virginia’s wine industry since 1997. With his wife Colleen, Doug is the owner/operator of Fabbioli Cellars in Leesburg, VA. He is the founder and director of The New Ag School, which focuses on teaching the next generation of farmers and agriculture-related leaders. No wonder they call Doug Fabbioli the Godfather of DC’s Wine Country.