For three years Rich and Tara Nimmo had been waiting to open the doors
of their own winery. On October 1, they saw their dreams come to
fruition.
Making wine has been a hobby for the couple for at least the past 10 years as they would travel to Rich's uncle's winery in Pennsylvania to learn the trade. In their own wine cellar in Milton, Rich and Tara would experiment with their own recipes with grapes from the Finger Lakes region. These experiments have turned into eleven signature wines and are now sold at The Saratoga Winery, owned and operated by the Nimmos on Route 29 in Milton.
"Our wines are very diverse and across the spectrum. If someone comes in here and says they like all of our wine, then we don't have enough flavors," Rich said.
Previously, the couple owned a power washing and air duct cleaning business, but it wasn't something they were actually passionate about. They had known that when the time was right, they would open their own winery.
"It has been a long process to get going, so when we opened we didn't have any advertising. People just found out about us by driving by. We thought it'd be easier to start slow to have a little break but it's really taken off," Tara said.
The actual building where The Saratoga Winery is housed was once an old farm stand and the Nimmos did all of the renovating on their own. The old barn is now a warm and vibrant Adirondack-style showroom and tasting area.
"We definitely went for the Adirondack style, and we carry a lot of local products," Rich said. "It's important to us to support local business."
Currently, the grapes used in The Saratoga Winery's wines come from the Finger Lakes region, but in about 18 months a vineyard in Greenfield owned by Mike Spiak will be supplying the winery making a truly local wine.
Since opening, the Nimmos have sold an average of 1,000 bottles per week. They will be bottling the wine that is currently fermenting in December and then again in the spring and once more before track season. They started their business with a stock of about 15,000 bottles. Currently The Saratoga Winery only sells bottles privately. After getting through the first year of business, they hope to have their wines in local shops and restaurants.
"We need to feel out the first year and see how things go," Rich said.
The most popular wines so far have proven to be the five melomel wines. Melomel wines are truly natural wines made out of grapes and honey and contain no added sulfates. The Saratoga Winery currently has five melomel wines available in both red and white.
"The melomel recipe is very unique, not many people even know about it. I believe we are the only people in the region with this recipe," Rich said.
Customers can stop in the store during all hours of operation for wine tastings in a relaxed, laid back atmosphere.
"We try to keep it simple. In some wineries there is a feeling that you need to be dressed a certain way, act a certain way, even have a certain education. We want anyone to come in here and enjoy themselves, even if they have no education about wine," Tara said.
Rich added that if a person wants to come in and try one wine, it's on the house. Otherwise, a full wine tasting is $5 for five wines.
"That equals to one glass of wine and really, its hard to find a good glass of wine for $5. It's a good value," Rich said.
On November 21 and 22 The Saratoga Winery will celebrate its grand opening, complete with a chef on site for wine and food pairing demonstrations and artist Frankie Flores making on-site artwork. Flores' artwork can be found on some of the wine labels.
For more information about The Saratoga Winery and the products they sell, visit them at www.thesaratogawinery.com or stop in the shop located at 462 Route 29, Milton.
"Our wines are very diverse and across the spectrum. If someone comes in here and says they like all of our wine, then we don't have enough flavors," Rich said.
Previously, the couple owned a power washing and air duct cleaning business, but it wasn't something they were actually passionate about. They had known that when the time was right, they would open their own winery.
"It has been a long process to get going, so when we opened we didn't have any advertising. People just found out about us by driving by. We thought it'd be easier to start slow to have a little break but it's really taken off," Tara said.
The actual building where The Saratoga Winery is housed was once an old farm stand and the Nimmos did all of the renovating on their own. The old barn is now a warm and vibrant Adirondack-style showroom and tasting area.
"We definitely went for the Adirondack style, and we carry a lot of local products," Rich said. "It's important to us to support local business."
Currently, the grapes used in The Saratoga Winery's wines come from the Finger Lakes region, but in about 18 months a vineyard in Greenfield owned by Mike Spiak will be supplying the winery making a truly local wine.
Since opening, the Nimmos have sold an average of 1,000 bottles per week. They will be bottling the wine that is currently fermenting in December and then again in the spring and once more before track season. They started their business with a stock of about 15,000 bottles. Currently The Saratoga Winery only sells bottles privately. After getting through the first year of business, they hope to have their wines in local shops and restaurants.
"We need to feel out the first year and see how things go," Rich said.
The most popular wines so far have proven to be the five melomel wines. Melomel wines are truly natural wines made out of grapes and honey and contain no added sulfates. The Saratoga Winery currently has five melomel wines available in both red and white.
"The melomel recipe is very unique, not many people even know about it. I believe we are the only people in the region with this recipe," Rich said.
Customers can stop in the store during all hours of operation for wine tastings in a relaxed, laid back atmosphere.
"We try to keep it simple. In some wineries there is a feeling that you need to be dressed a certain way, act a certain way, even have a certain education. We want anyone to come in here and enjoy themselves, even if they have no education about wine," Tara said.
Rich added that if a person wants to come in and try one wine, it's on the house. Otherwise, a full wine tasting is $5 for five wines.
"That equals to one glass of wine and really, its hard to find a good glass of wine for $5. It's a good value," Rich said.
On November 21 and 22 The Saratoga Winery will celebrate its grand opening, complete with a chef on site for wine and food pairing demonstrations and artist Frankie Flores making on-site artwork. Flores' artwork can be found on some of the wine labels.
For more information about The Saratoga Winery and the products they sell, visit them at www.thesaratogawinery.com or stop in the shop located at 462 Route 29, Milton.
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