Jewell Towne Vineyards

Jewell Towne Vineyards is the oldest winery in the state of New Hampshire, USA. Located on the hills overlooking the Powwow River just a few miles from the Atlantic Ocean, the winery and vineyard produce more than 25 varieties of wine.

History

The venture began by chance in 1982 when Peter Oldak of South Hampton, NH, an emergency room physician, planted 4 grapevines in his backyard to complement his small garden and orchard, with the intention of making jelly. The microclimate of his 13 acre (53,000 m²) property was very similar to that of the Finger Lakes region of New York and was well suited to growing grapes, despite common misconceptions. Fortunately, in 1984 Peter's wife Brenda made more jelly than they could consume and 90% of the grapes remained, so Peter decided to try his hand at winemaking. Initial attempts failed and only vinegar was produced, but in the following year Peter managed to produce wine that was quite good, and a fledgeling business was begun. In a short time Peter had planted five acres (20,000 m²) of grapevines on his property.

In 1994 Jewell Towne Vineyards became a commercial enterprise, and Peter and Brenda sold wine out of their garage while construction of a winery progressed. In 1999 it was completed and production in earnest commenced in the much more suitable facility. Since that time Jewell Towne's wines have won more than [92 medals] http://jewelltownevineyards.com/medals.php in international competition. Recently, Jewell Towne's outstanding wines have scored "Best Wine of New Hampshire" for two consecutive years in the Eastern States Exposition wine competition (the Big 'E') in Springfield, Massachusetts, that feature the best of wines of the East. In 2006 JTV's Cayuga White scored a Gold medal and ['Best NH Wine'] [http://www.thebige.com/agriculture/page3453.html] and in 2007 achieved the honor for their 'Traminette.' Jewell Towne's wines can be found in [local stores] [http://jewelltownevineyards.com/wheretobuy.php] in and around coastal New Hampshire and Northern Massachusetts, and at the Vineyard, which offers free tours and tastings without appointment and is open to the public Wednesday through Sunday. For more information about visiting the vineyard to experience their award winning wines, check out their [website] [http://www.jewelltownevineyards.com] for tour, tasitng, and contact information.

Jewell Towne Vineyards currently employs six people: Peter Oldak (Owner)and Brenda Oldak (co-owner and the artist responsible for label design), vineyard manager Derek Brock, Director of Sales and Marketing Rich Collins, Tom Greco the Summer Intern, and Tasting Room Manager Anna Leonard.

References

* [http://www.jewelltownevineyards.com Jewell Towne Vineyards]
* [http://www.seacoastonline.com/2004news/hampton/04202004/currents/11742.htm Seacoast Online 20 April 2004]
* [http://www.seacoastonline.com/2003news/hampton/09302003/currents/52861.htm Seacoast Online 30 September 2003]