Fall ushers in our busiest season at the winery. It takes exhaustive planning, all year long, to make sure all the pieces are in place for the harvest and start of production for the new vintage. The days are full of backbreaking work. Sometimes, it seems that they’ll never end.

But, we strive on knowing that, months from now, the rewards are sure to come—as they have this year, in spite of some challenges. In Central Pennsylvania, home of our winery and vineyard, the weather—too much rain and not enough sun—took its toll on our grapes. Fortunately, with an excellent crop from Northeastern Pennsylvania, where nature was much kinder this year, we have been able to get plenty of great wine started—including Muscato and Pino Grigio that we’re adding to our offerings for the first time with the 2011 vintage.

Meanwhile, we have completed our new bottling building, freeing up much needed space for some larger production tanks that will increase our ability to meet the growing demand for our wines. Although our goal is to be able to keep all non-seasonal wines in stock until the next vintage is ready, some of our wines were “victims of their own success” this year. For example, with a wine as well received as our 2010 Vidal Blanc, which took the Best White Wine award at the AWS Wine Competition in New York, we wish we could produce enough to last a lifetime. It sold out quickly as word got around about this prestigious award.

An addition off the back deck area is another project keeping us busy. We look forward to the expanded space it will create for special events, as well as some much-needed new office space.

On a more personal note, we also have an even more exciting “addition” to announce: on November 14, our seventh grandchild was born. Welcome to our family, Evan Willis Reed! Evan weighed in at 8 pounds 2 ounces. Congratulations, Jodi and Willis, on your new addition!