Whether visitors are stopping by for an afternoon escape from the stress of 2020 or picking up a bottle -- or case -- of their favorite vintage, 2020 has brought an expected boost in sales for Weathervane Winery in Lexington. "It has been a very interesting year; I say, '2020 the year that keeps on giving,'" said Sid Proctor, of Weathervane. "I don't know what’s happened, to be honest with you, but since Memorial Day, when we were able to open with limited numbers in the tasting room, the volume of business has just gone off the hook. It has been extremely busy."Proctor is one of the owners of the winery and said they are doing the their best to keep up with demand while also being strict about COVID-19 precautions. Visitors are allowed inside to taste wines, but are asked to enjoy their purchases outside in the patio area. Proctor said sales in the tasting room have almost doubled this year and people seem be buying "larger tickets," opting to buy a case or cases of wine rather than two or three bottles at a time."We have also seen a large influx in people traveling locally for vacations like a staycation kind of situation. Instead of driving or going out of the country or taking a long vacation people are staying in the area," he said.That, coupled with out-of-state visitors and those larger tickets, is bringing in a big boost, Proctor said. "People think the wine business is easy, that is not the case, but the fun part of it is, every single day something different happens," he said. One of the challenges, running parallel to big boosts in sales, is how the weather this year has impacted the vines. Proctor explained that frost and freeze early in the year led to smaller clusters of usable grapes; The heat and humidity this summer defoliates the vines; He said all that rain makes it challenging to treat the wines for disease with protective coatings being washed away. Proctor said they produced about 25% of what the vineyard traditionally grows, a huge dip compared to last year when they produced more than 150% of its usual grapes."That makes you drink more wine," he said, laughing. "As far as we’re concerned. It's a double-edged sword, but I'd rather be in this situation than some of the other businesses that don't have the opportunity, like gyms and some of the bars, it has been catastrophic. Hopefully we'll get things turned around. It has been a very interesting year." The vineyard produces five red wines and five sweeter, fruit wines. The tasting room is open Tuesday through Sunday.
Whether visitors are stopping by for an afternoon escape from the stress of 2020 or picking up a bottle -- or case -- of their favorite vintage, 2020 has brought an expected boost in sales for Weathervane Winery in Lexington.
"It has been a very interesting year; I say, '2020 the year that keeps on giving,'" said Sid Proctor, of Weathervane. "I don't know what’s happened, to be honest with you, but since Memorial Day, when we were able to open with limited numbers in the tasting room, the volume of business has just gone off the hook. It has been extremely busy."
Proctor is one of the owners of the winery and said they are doing the their best to keep up with demand while also being strict about COVID-19 precautions. Visitors are allowed inside to taste wines, but are asked to enjoy their purchases outside in the patio area.
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Proctor said sales in the tasting room have almost doubled this year and people seem be buying "larger tickets," opting to buy a case or cases of wine rather than two or three bottles at a time.
"We have also seen a large influx in people traveling locally for vacations like a staycation kind of situation. Instead of driving or going out of the country or taking a long vacation people are staying in the area," he said.
That, coupled with out-of-state visitors and those larger tickets, is bringing in a big boost, Proctor said.
"People think the wine business is easy, that is not the case, but the fun part of it is, every single day something different happens," he said.
One of the challenges, running parallel to big boosts in sales, is how the weather this year has impacted the vines. Proctor explained that frost and freeze early in the year led to smaller clusters of usable grapes; The heat and humidity this summer defoliates the vines; He said all that rain makes it challenging to treat the wines for disease with protective coatings being washed away.
Proctor said they produced about 25% of what the vineyard traditionally grows, a huge dip compared to last year when they produced more than 150% of its usual grapes.
"That makes you drink more wine," he said, laughing. "As far as we’re concerned. It's a double-edged sword, but I'd rather be in this situation than some of the other businesses that don't have the opportunity, like gyms and some of the bars, it has been catastrophic. Hopefully we'll get things turned around. It has been a very interesting year."
The vineyard produces five red wines and five sweeter, fruit wines. The tasting room is open Tuesday through Sunday.
August 26, 2020 at 07:20AM
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'Makes you drink more wine': Weather, COVID-19 and big boost in sales makes for unique year at Lexington winery - WXII12 Winston-Salem
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