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World-class wines made locally - from Brown County grapes by Ripley couple
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By LAURA RAINS - Staff Writer
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RIPLEY, OHIO - Ron Barrett stands in the yard of his farmhouse and wipes the sweat from his brow with his forearm.
It is barely 11 o'clock in the morning and the temperature in the Ohio Valley is already approaching 90 degrees. With a fresh bottle of water in hand for the teenager hard at work just across the way, Barrett climbs back on his four-wheeler and heads back to the vineyard.
The view Barrett sees on his way is the stuff magazine covers are made of.
The rolling hills of southern Ohio seem to go and on forever. Rolled bales of hay dot the hillside and a curving fence row leads Barrett to his destination. But even with all the beauty in every direction, it's the perfectly straight rows of the 5-acre Kinkead Ridge Vineyard that is the focus of this picturesque scene.
Upstairs in the farmhouse, the view is even more spectacular.
Nancy Bentley, Barrett's business partner and partner in life, spends a big portion of her days in her upstairs office. Most days, Bentley never sets foot in the vineyard, still the work she does at her computer and on the telephone is as critical to the success of the business as the work that's done daily in the perfect rows of the vineyard.
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| The perfectly even rows of the Kinkead Ridge Vineyard make a picturesque scene from the farmhouse. The vineyard is located on Kinkead Road on the rolling hills near Ripley, Ohio, and is owned and operated by Ron Barrett and Nancy Bentley. Laura Rains/Staff |
Barrett is the winegrower with many years of experience with the wine industry in Oregon. He and Bentley owned and farmed a 40-acre Pinot Noir vineyard before moving to Ripley in 1998.
But it is probably Bentley's life which has changed the most since their move.
She grew up on Staten Island, New York, and has worked as a graphic designer, a technical computer support specialist and a chef in Oregon.
"When we first came here I kept asking Ron 'now where's the ocean again' and 'where's the downhill skiing'?" she said.
Barrett grew up in Columbus, Ohio, so the transition was natural for him. After growing up on the East Coast, living in London, England for three years and then on the West Coast for a number of years, the move was a bit more traumatic for her.
"Now I move turtles off the road and I have a frog that lives in my basement," said Bentley.
She also has to deal with robins, possums, raccoons, cows and deer that like to eat her flowers and the vegetables in her garden.
But most of the day her job is marketing their wines. Her job ranges from designing their Web site and the labels for their wines to getting the wines into some of the finest restaurants in the Cincinnati area.
The move to Ohio was a mutual decision and their motive was strong - they believe world-class wines can be made from grapes grown in this area.
After a lot of research, they knew this part of Ohio had a long history of grape-growing and wine-making. In the mid-1850s, Ohio produced over a half-million gallons of wine, but the vineyards were replaced by fields of tobacco over a period of time. They hope to re-introduce grape-growing as a viable cash crop for this area.
"I believe the soils in this area are some of the best in the world for growing grapes," said Barrett.
But it doesn't happen overnight, and not even during one growing season.
The vineyard was planted in 1999. The winery, where the wine is produced, is located on Hamburg Street in Ripley and opened last year.
Today is a very special day for the Kinkead Ridge Estate Winery. The winery will release its first three vintage ultra-premium red wines: the 2001 Syrah, 2001 Cabernet Franc and 2001 Revelation which is a Cabernet Sauvignon blend.
Normally, the winery is open by appointment only and for special occasions. Today the winery will be open from 3-9 p.m. On July 4 and July 5, the winery will be open from 11 a.m. to 6 p.m. for tasting and sales. They also have a limited number of bottles of their estate bottled wine, 2002 Kinkead Cellars Riesling for sale.
The first wines from their vineyard were released in 2002. When they reach peak production, they estimate being able to produce 2,000 cases each year.
Barrett is very methodical in his quest to grow the best grapes he can, which probably comes from his former career as an electrical engineer. He constantly studies and experiments, which takes up a significant amount of his time.
The rows in the vineyard are marked according to the type of fruit the vines in that particular row will yield. In addition to the wines that are currently ready for sale, the other varieties include Petit Verdot, Viognier and Roussanne.
The grapes Barrett has chosen to grow to fit the local climate of rainy springs, long, hot summer days and the possibility of cold, brutal winters. Barrett has left space for experimenting in his vineyard with Merlot, Gamay Noir, Colcetto, Sangiovese and Semillon varieties.
Barrett says the rich soils in this area with broken limestone underneath are perfect for growing wine grapes and he believes local farmers might want to look at grape-growing as an alternative to their tobacco crops.
He also believes there are those who might not be interested in the growing phase or be able to finance the start-up costs of starting a vineyard, but would be perfectly suited for opening a winery.
"I think Maysville is begging for someone to take one of the beautiful old buildings downtown and turn it into a winery," said Barrett.
Competition doesn't bother Barrett. He and his partner both have an attitude of "the more the merrier." They believe more quality vineyards and operating wineries can only give this part of the Ohio River Valley a reputation as a wine-making region, giving tourists another reason to visit this area already rich in history.
Barrett and Bentley are now beginning to enjoy the success of their hard work. Kinkead Ridge Cabernet Franc was recently chosen by Daveed's, a trendy Mount Adams restaurant in Cincinnati, for their Grand Wine Dinner during Ohio Wine Month.
Their wine will also be featured during upcoming special events at two Cincinnati restaurants; Gratzi's Funky Italian Restaurant in Symmes Township on July 22 and at a benefit at the Celestial in Mount Adams on Aug. 4.
But it all begins in the vineyard.
"If your grapes are not superb, you can forget about the wine-making," said Barrett. |
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