by: Taylor Long
Posted: / Updated:
JEFFERSON COUNTY, Ohio (WTRF)
Have you ever wondered how a vineyard operates, especially during a pandemic?
Well I have and this week on Take a Tour with Taylor I stopped by Black Sheep to do just that!
Black Sheep Vineyard is going on its 13th year.
What started out as a home on a farm has quickly turned into a small town favorite.
Well I Came out here for a coal mining job about 23 years ago and never even dreamed about doing this but we ended up on this little farm and my wife and I were walking around here one day and she said to me You know John this would be a nice place for a little winery and I didn’t know anything about growing grapes or making wine so I said are you freaking crazy or what?
John Black | Owner, Black Sheep Vineyard
And the rest is history!
Known for its multitude of wines…cheeses.. atmosphere and of course everyone’s favorite! The Vineyard dogs!
“Well that’s Polo he’s a vineyard dog. Polo…Polo.. Hey. He’s the Chief Greeter him and Foch. We are kind of known for our Vineyard dogs. Lot of people when they come here are like where are the dogs at. So I’ll have to go get them out of the house.
John Black | Owner, Black Sheep Vineyard
As far as the wine process…the grapes are all regional.
The racking, pumping, processing, and labeling; Black does it all right in the basement.
” Like right now I gave a thousand gallons or so of wine outside to cold stabilize. It will filter the wine and settle it and clarify it. I’ll have to pump that back in. So you are always cleaning tanks and pumping stuff around. Every week I have to bottle, label, and shrink wrap wine.”
John Black | Owner, Black Sheep Vineyard
Even though they had to cut out the live music and being open only two days a week, they are still powering though.
Black says much of their business is distribution; which has increased.
The pandemic has hit them in other ways as well.
John lost a sister to the virus and with his wife battling cancer, it has posed some serious concerns.
It’s put us in an awkward situation and kind of a scary one with her and maybe being more susceptible to the disease then we’d like to be. So it’s affected us financially, it’s affected us emotionally. You know I just miss people coming in. Being able to hug them, and shake hands, and do the people thing like we usually do.
John Black | Owner, Black Sheep Vineyard
Black says he just wants everyone to stay safe and hang in there.
He says you can get a little bit of Black Sheep at the grocery store or stop at the vineyard to take some home.
Black Sheep Wine is sold at local Riesbeck’s!
The Take a Tour with Taylor Series will continue in the coming weeks!