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Join us for Harvest Festival on Saturday, October 17th, in The Gardens at Public House Brewing Company.  This annual, family-friendly event allows us to come together and celebrate the culmination of our grape harvest. The day’s schedule includes a Winemaker Series wine tasting, live music, and crafts for kids. The Gardens are decorated beautifully for fall, admission and activities are free, and the forecasted weather looks ideal. Read more on the Public House Event Page: https://www.publichousebrewery.com/upcoming-events/2020-harvest-festival/

There is much to celebrate! Executive Winemaker, Andrew Meggitt, and Vineyard Manager, Sam Cobb, shared some insights about this year’s Harvest.  During the forty two day Harvest, over 950 tons of grapes were gathered from our local vineyards.  This tonnage includes twelve varietals of grapes that are in full production, and five from our experimental blocks.  Sam and Andrew agreed that, while the environmental factors created challenges, the hard work of our dedicated staff paid off.  Sam further explained, “As a whole, I think Missouri had a rough growing season. Some of our favorite varietals suffered significant damage from the frost early in the season, while others tolerated the inclement weather better”.  While overall yield was down, Andrew added, “The quality we harvested was excellent. Norton was more consistent from site to site than we have had in ten years”.

Speaking of Norton, the long-awaited Norton 42 is available now in our tasting room.  Read more about our Winemaker Series wines here, and remember there’s a tasting from 1 pm – 3 pm in The Gardens during Harvest Festival.

Cheers to our cellar and vineyard crews for their outstanding work and dedication. 🥂 Let’s celebrate together at Harvest Fest on Saturday, October 17th!

Our St. James Winery vineyard team works hard year-round to grow the best flavors. Bud rubbing is an important task that typically takes place in late spring and directly impacts the way the grapes develop.

By removing the shoots and buds that are starting to grow on the lower parts of the vine, it helps send all the energy and nutrients into the grapes and canopy during this important growth time.

Watch William McIntyre, a member of our vineyard staff, show how it’s done in the St. James Winery vineyards:

Now that you are familiar with what bud rubbing is and how it impacts our grapes, taste the fruits of our past labors!

Winemaking, farming, food and coming together for community events have a long history in the St. James area. Known locally as the Meramec Highlands, our region is also fondly known as “Little Italy of the Ozarks” thanks to the establishment of an Italian settlement here more than a century ago.

Join St. James Winery and Public House Brewing Company as we celebrate the area’s Italian heritage at our Little Italy of the Ozarks Festival on Friday, May 19 and Saturday, May 20, 2017 at The Gardens. This beautifully landscaped outdoor seating area is located between the winery and brewery (551 State Route B, St. James, MO 65559).

In addition to many entertaining activities, the two-day festival ends on Saturday with a ticketed Traditional Rosati-style Spaghetti Dinner under an outdoor tent where you’ll feel like part of the family.

Buy Tickets Now!

Friday
First, we’ll kick off the festivities in the St. James Winery Tasting Room on Friday night from 5 to 8 p. m. with the release of the new Winemaker Series. This new line of wines is handmade in small batches by our St. James Winery Cellar Crew. Taste complimentary samples of the first four releases, along with Public House Brewing Company food pairings:

  • Chambourcin with Heritage Pasta
  • Dry Vignoles with Margherita Pizza
  • Seyval with Spring Salad
  • The Folly with Pretzel Bites

Next, walk over to The Gardens for a 9 p.m. showing of Under the Tuscan Sun (PG-13) on our huge outdoor screen. The movie features a writer who impulsively buys a villa in Tuscany, Italy in order to change her life.

Saturday
On Saturday, The Gardens open at 11 a.m. Our wood-fired pizza kitchen and regular kitchen will be open all day, serving made-from-scratch food, craft beer, wine, hard cider, wine slushies and non-alcoholic beverages.

Local youth soccer coach and St. James Winery Executive Winemaker Andrew Meggitt will host a Soccer Tutorial on foot skills for all ages from 2 to 3 p.m. to celebrate Italy’s most popular sport.

Kansas City band Red Velvet Crush will be performing pop and rock music from 12 to 3 p.m. Acoustic artist Nicole Nelson from Nashville, TN will perform pop and soulful rock songs with an earthy flair from 5 to 8 p.m.

Starting at 5 p.m. we’ll recreate the Traditional Rosati-style Spaghetti Dinners with a ticketed dinner under an outdoor tent. For $10, you receive a heaping portion of spaghetti in a traditional, local-recipe Italian sauce with meatballs, garlic bread sticks, spring salad, slice of cake and a non-alcoholic drink.

Buy Tickets Now!

EVENT SCHEDULE

Friday, May 19

Wine Tasting & Food Pairing
Winemaker Series Release
5 – 8 p.m.
St. James Winery Tasting Room

Outdoor Movie “Under the Tuscan Sun”
9 p.m.

Saturday, May 20

Live Music
Red Velvet Crush | 12 – 3 p.m.
Nicole Nelson | 5 – 8 p.m.

Soccer Tutorial

Foot skills for all ages
2 – 3 p.m.

Traditional Rosati-style Spaghetti Dinner
$10 per ticket
5 – 8 p.m.

Jason Stacy, brewer at Public House Brewing Company and brother of co-founder, Josh Stacy, recently had a large tumor removed from his brain after suffering from numbness in his hands and severe neck and shoulder pain for over a year.

On Monday, Feb. 27, the Stacy family is having a fundraiser for Jason at Just A Taste (200 N Jefferson St, St James, MO 65559) from 6-9 p.m. Jason faces many months of rehabilitation without short-term disability insurance, and he’s unsure of how long he’ll be out of work.

The event will include a silent auction with donated items from numerous local businesses and individuals.

Live music during the event includes:
6 p.m. – 7 p.m. | Bliss Boys (Richard Hall & Friends)
7 p.m. – 8 p.m. | Limited Addition
8 p.m. – 9 p.m. | Trilogy

In addition, we’ll have complimentary wine and beer tastings from:

  • Public House Brewing Company
  • Just A Taste
  • St. James Winery
  • Wages Brewing Company
  • Piney River Brewing Company
  • Three Squirrels Winery
  • MASH Club

There is a $5 minimum donation at the door. The family is very thankful for the continued support of our community and friends during this time.

If you can’t attend the event, the family is also accepting donations on a Go Fund Me page for Jason.

Congratulations to Rock Island Trail State Park for opening the first 47.5 miles of trail connecting Kansas City to the Katy Trail and St. Louis! Once the trail is completed, the Katy Trail and Rock Island Trail will form a world-class loop showcasing Missouri’s many beautiful landscapes.

champagne-close-upOur Chairman and CEO, Peter Hofherr, sits on the trail’s board and he’s excited about the agritourism opportunities this trail provides. He encourages everyone to get out on the trails and enjoy what rural Missouri has to offer.

To help celebrate the opening of the trail, we provided our Brut Champagne American to present to Governor Nixon during this historic dedication.

Read more here.

The largest vineyards in the state at St. James Winery became the first to receive Agriculture Stewardship Assurance Program (ASAP) certification in the Missouri Department of Agriculture’s new specialty crop category. Pictured from left: Dan Diering, Sam Cobb, George Gillis, Nick Woodworth, Josh Ashby, Karl Richards, Andrew Meggitt, Al Martin, Toby Owens, Dee Anderson and Peter Hofherr. Not pictured are Raul Rosas and Scott Veatch.

Our vineyards, the largest in the state, became the first to receive the Agriculture Stewardship Assurance Program (ASAP) certification in the Missouri Department of Agriculture’s new specialty crop category. ASAP was launched to recognize farmers who are doing the best for Missouri’s land, farms and families.

“Ever since starting the winery and growing grapes, my family has been conscientious of caring for the land,” says Peter Hofherr, Chairman and CEO of St. James Winery. “Agriculture sustains this region’s economic base and we take responsibility for our land by using efficient and sustainable practices. This helps the long-term quality and success of our business, our community and our future generations.”

ASAP is a certification program that champions Missouri farmers who are responsible stewards of the land, provide safe food for consumers, practice environmental stewardship and use science-based technology for growing safe and dependable feed, fuel, specialty crops or fiber in a socially and economic manner. It was launched in 2015.

“This certification validates what we are doing,” says Andrew Meggitt, Executive Winemaker at St. James Winery. “It is very important to our farm crew to be recognized for how much care they take in sustainably growing grapes. Without their attention to detail, we wouldn’t have quality fruit. We all strive to leave the land better than when we found it; that’s the goal every day.”

At 185 acres, our vineyards have been producing grapes since 1973. We use moisture probes at the root zone to efficiently water plants only when needed. We plant buffer strips using cover crops like clover, radishes, winter wheat and rye to control erosion and water loss, and to protect surface water. Switching to more fuel efficient equipment means we use 50% less fuel. Grape waste from harvest goes back to the vineyards in the form of mulch. These examples of best management practices, along with many others, are why we received the certification.

Our hearts and souls are poured into each bottle of wine. The story of St. James is found in the Italian culture, and the winemaking and farming traditions of the Meramec Highlands. It’s a special place – like no other, where life is sweeter.

Grape and wine production have a long history in the St. James area. Known locally as the Meramec Highlands, our region is also fondly known as “Little Italy of the Ozarks” thanks to the establishment of an Italian settlement in the area more than 115 years ago. The Italians who settled here planted vineyards, and by the 1930s over 1,000 acres of grapes dotted the landscape.

These Italian immigrants were very important to Missouri’s wine industry. Instead of destroying their vineyards during Prohibition like others in Missouri, they formed a fruit grower’s association in order to keep growing and selling the grapes, as well as other fruits, to grocery stores in St. Louis.

During WWII, Welch’s® steps into the story. Welch’s remembered the quality of the area’s Concord grapes. When they received a government contract to supply the military with juice, jams and jellies, Welch’s contacted the Italian immigrants and set up an exclusive long-term contract for supplying them with grapes from 1941 to 1991.

Within Welch’s agreement, the Italians negotiated to be allowed to sell small quantities or quarts of their grapes to individuals. Every year during harvest, these Italian immigrants would set up grape stands along I-44 and Route 66 to sell their fruit to those living in the area and those traveling along the highways. The original Italian families still carry on the tradition to this day.

Throughout the years, making wine from the grapes they grew for family and community consumption was also part of the Italian tradition.

When Jim and Pat Hofherr established the St. James Winery in 1970, they were inspired by the Italian immigrants and the wines they made. Velvet Red, the winery’s first and still best-selling wine, was developed to pay homage to the Concord-based wines made by the Italian community.

The Friendship School House is the winery’s icon and represents a time when the Italians sent their children to the one-room school and where they gathered for community events. In addition to The Friendship School being our icon, it appears as a drawing on the Velvet Red, Velvet White and Pink Catawba labels.

On the Country Red, Country White and our new Concord wine labels, the drawing of the truck driving on Route 66 represents our vineyards, which are right along “The Mother Road.”

Today, Concord grapes still play a staring role in our Velvet Red, Country Red and Concord wines.

Today, through constant research and development, St. James Winery continues to sustainably grow flavors that reflect the natural character of each of our grape varieties and of the special place they are grown – the Meramec Highlands. This is where we make wine to make your life sweeter.

Winemaking inherently depends on the land and the environment, so it makes sense that we would want to give back as an industry. Plus, the benefits of sustainable wine production aren’t just for the environment. Consumers are increasingly seeking out sustainably produced wine, and saving resources can also keep cash in your coffers.

With the right planning, sustainable practices can be a great boon to winemakers, consumers, and Mother Earth.

Here are six ways to reduce, reuse, and recycle at your winemaking operation, from setting water consumption KPIs to finding your inner artist.

Read the full article here at WinesandVines.com.

Ordering wine at a business engagement can be tricky and more than a little bit stressful!

But rest easy, St. James Winery’s executive winemaker Andrew Meggitt has some helpful tips the next time you’re ordering wine at a business dinner.

Read more at Entrepreneur.com

Technology isn’t the only thing that quickly changes — so do fashion styles, health practices, and the weather.

But the applied innovation process is the same for any industry. Finding little things that spark new conversations can lead to unexpected practices, products, and designs. Applied innovation keeps your business ready to adapt to any change.

In this article, Andrew Meggitt discusses the importance of using applied innovation and provides tips from his innovation-fueled experiences in his winery.

Read “What Can A Winery Teach You About Innovation?” at Business Innovation.