Wayzata vintner Billy Smith measures the brix or sugar content of a Marquette grape using a refractometer. PHOTO: Mark Trockman
By David Schueller
Remnants of the old farming days can be found scattered around the west metro where landowners have resisted the urge to sell or subdivide.
Billy Smith's vineyard on land that was once part of Foxglove Farm in Wayzata could be seen as yet another example of someone continuing a property's farming past.
But that would be ignoring the epiphany Smith had in 2007, when he first considered planting a vineyard and making wine. It would also be ignoring the fact that Smith, who seems intent on always having a project to work on, had planned to subdivide the property after the Smith family bought it around seven years ago.
Now, Smith's passion for wine and vines is a year away from bearing fruit in the form of Marquette grapes - a hardy variety developed by the University of Minnesota that can withstand cold winters.
"It's a fantastic experience. I don't think I've ever been so wired and excited about doing anything," he said.
The more than 400 grape vines that make up Smith's vineyard are in their second year, and next year they'll be ready to produce enough grapes to start making red wine.
The south-facing vineyard takes up a half acre of the peaceful two-acre property that's bordered by a wetland down the hill from Wayzata Boulevard.
Right about the time Smith planted the vineyard in 2008, he also started researching how to make wine, which led him to start St. Louis Park- based Warehouse Winery, where he ferments and bottles.
The winery is devoted to making only red wine using Minnesota varieties of grapes blended with those from northern California. In the future, he hopes to use grapes from places like Chile, Argentina, Spain or South Africa.
Smith plans to bring in about 20 tons of Minnesota grapes and 18 tons of California grapes this year; next year he plans for 40-50 tons of Minnesota grapes, as well as adding grapes from Chile to the mix.
Smith has already won awards for his blends, which resulted from blending down wine that was considered over-oaked.
"That is one of the highlights of making wine is the blending process," he said.
But Smith has yet to make wine from his own grapes.
For them, he has other plans.
"These grapes in my yard are going to be used for my own personal use and consumption," Smith said.
It's an important distinction given that Smith has faced concerns from neighbors and the city of Wayzata about his land being an agricultural use, he said.
Smith and the city entered into a legal agreement that, among other stipulations, forbids him to expand his vineyard, do any fermenting in barrels or bottling on the Wayzata property, and limits who can pick the grapes, said City Attorney Bob Meller at an Aug. 18 City Council meeting.
"The picking of the grapes will be limited to the Smith trust and family members who will pick grapes by hand," Meller said.
Smith's land is also under the microscope because of the historic house that was built in 1909 that stands to be disassembled and sold in pieces starting roughly two months after work is finished on a new, modern farmhouse under construction behind the historic house. The new house is scheduled to be finished near the end of October.
The 1909 house was once the summer home of Frederick Upsher-Smith, a pharmaceutical chemist who, along with his family, made a business out of processing foxglove flowers.
Though they share a name, Smith has no relation to Upsher-Smith.
He said he's willing to donate the 1909 house to anyone who would pay the moving costs for it, which he estimated could be as much as $40,000.
"I've been trying to save this house," he said.
Inside it are some tell-tale signs of a wine enthusiast. On Smith's kitchen counter was an empty wine bottle; in a cabinet, a selection of several different styles and sizes of wine glasses.
Smith, who works in the commercial and industrial real estate business, lives on LaSalle Street with his 19 and 18 year old sons. His mother Irene stops in early each day to help pick leaf-eating beetles off the vines.
"My mom's just been a sweetheart in coming over here," he said.
Now Smith is hoping to get a licence that would allow him to wholesale his wine, and he's planning on setting up appointment only tastings at Warehouse Winery.
He said it was only through mentors, research and mistakes that he was able to learn how to properly blend and ferment the wine, a process he continues to shape.
"Every day is a new learning curve for me when it comes to the wines and the vines," Smith said.
He's also learned patience - because those who need instant gratification shouldn't try tending a vineyard.
"Next year, this whole field will be purple this time of year," Smith said.
