20 years is a really long time. When you are young and think about "where will I be in 20 years?" it seems so far off in the future that anything could be possible! For 4 incredibly naive, enthusiastic wine geeks in the tiny community of Dixon, New Mexico, it was a finish line.
25 years ago, Jesse and his brother Chris (not yet 21 years old) put into motion the dream of creating a winery. This winery wouldn't just be a side project like many of the wineries they saw around them, wineries that were filled with retired men from other professions, but a winery with purpose, focus and momentum to exact change on the industry. Lofty aspirations? Absolutely! But it is the young, brash, egocentric that make things happen right?
The goal was to make truly dry European style wines, from NM fruit, and put NM on the global wine map. These brothers also hoped to get married, have kids, raise their families in Dixon and have a built in support to allow each family to travel for extended durations.
Liliana and I joined the team, amazingly at the same time, when she moved from Mexico to New Mexico to be with Chris. I had rekindled my relationship with Jesse and decided not to continue my plan to move to New York City. The 4 of us were sure we would be millionaires in 5 years. We thought we could sustain a highly productive, debt free winery out of a 800 square foot rastra block building. We thought we could rule the world from the childhood rooms of the winemakers. Yes, we had moved into the old adobe home the guys grew up in, grateful for every home-cooked meal their mother provided, every wonderful wine their dad opened, and every square foot of their farm they lovingly turned over to us. We heard the advice from those in the industry at the time who said we would fail if we made dry wines, said that we needed a dose of reality, and maybe we did, but we didn't sit still for a moment.
Working other jobs to afford grapes, pay for school loans, buy barrels, buy groceries, buy bottles and corks and labels and and and... landed us on food stamps with house-sitting jobs. We definitely did NOT have a million dollars. But 5 years after Liliana and I joined the team in 2001, we had built and opened our Dixon tasting room, gotten married (yep, we did that at the same time too) and were on our way to starting families. Our dry wines had become something of a cult attraction after we showed up to wine festivals with giant 'No Sweet Wines' banners. We were actually struggling to keep up with the demand for product. Believe it or not, even with the constant stress and around the clock work, it was a really fun time in our lives.
Now as we celebrate our tasting room's 20 year anniversary, it is amazing to look back and recognize how far we have come. It is incredible that we struggled to grow this winery year after year after year. Conversations where we all wondered if we were going to make it through another winter. Times when hiring help meant we didn't pay ourselves. Times when we suffered heartbreak after discovering someone stealing from us. The betrayal after putting your heart and soul into building something, then having someone take from it hurts immeasurably. Through it all, we stayed determined to meet our goal.
Today we can proudly say that we have won gold medals for our wines around the world. We have had the most revered wine critic, James Suckling from Wine Spectator Magazine, say our Refosco wine was up there with some of the very best from Italy. We can boast wine ratings in the 90s and have stellar reviews in so many magazines, blogs, shows and podcasts we've lost count! Along the way we have also gathered certifications, continued education, extensive travel, phenomenal opportunities and an amazing platform to shout to the world that New Mexico Wine is here to play.
If you follow our social media, you know all about the incredible events, competitions and publications we have contributed to. We believe in building up our industry and guiding in the new generations, of which there are many. We are thrilled to have been able to assist change as we took NM Wine to New York, Washington, France, Germany, Italy and everywhere in between. When our friend's wineries have a win, we celebrate with them. When our industry takes strides forward partnering with organizations like the tourism department, we raise a glass. And when our children took jobs with the winery, we beamed with pride.
20 years have gone by in a flash. The signs of growth are sprawling vineyards over the hillside, packed patios and fine lines around our eyes. I'd say we wish for more looking toward the next 20 years, but I don't know that there is more we can wish for. We have continued to be a dynamite foursome making our dreams come true. We have put New Mexico on the global wine map and will continue to do so with international events, showcases, classes and maybe a few things we have up our sleeves. One thing is for sure, the next 20 will be less about struggling to get somewhere and more about holding on tight to this rocket of success. It sure feels good to be 20 years down the road from where we started.
Thank you to each and every one of you who have bought wine, come to drink in the view, watched our videos, read our blog, liked our posts, attended our events and told friends about us. You managed to raise 4 wild kids and turn them into thriving winery owners. I'd say we've grown into adults, but have you met us?
Final note:
With excitement, we announce that we will make our very first “Beaujolais Nouveau” style wine! As far back as the 1800s, Beaujolais Nouveau producers would gather to celebrate the end of the harvest by toasting the vintage with some of the young wine produced that year. Traditionally using the Gamay grape, we are using our incredible 1725 Estate Vineyard Pinot Munier. This very special wine needs a very special label, so we are having a LABEL CONTEST! We want you to be a part of our story, open this wine in October when we release it, and cheers with us. If you have a label idea, check out the guidelines to participate here .
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