Plans change.

Very cool cork chandelier in the hangout area at AVP.

We found out recently that we are not likely to get our permits and licenses in place in time for harvest, so we’ve been struggling with what to do. It didn’t seem likely we could find a place to make it this late in the game. We were resigned to just making as much as we were allowed to make for personal consumption. It was a bummer to think about not being able to ever sell the wine if it was good, but chances were it wouldn’t be that great anyway, being our first time and all.

Candice visited a new wine bar called Community Wine Bar, owned by Cristina Gonzales of Gonzales Wine Company, and Vivian Stardust, of RAM Cellars. Candice connected with Cristina while she was there and told her about our winemaking and winery woes. Cristina told Candice about a new winery called AVP that she recently moved to. It caters to small, independent winemakers and gives them a place to make wine.

Candice requested information via the AVP website and Carrie, the owner sent a couple of brochures. We learned that AVP helps “experienced and emerging winemakers by providing a well-organized, well-equipped winery alongside a supportive community and expert help.” Perfect for us as beginning winemakers with some adjacent experience. It all felt quite serendipitous.

We met with Carrie at AVP and decided to move forward with making our wine there this year. It’s a great space in Milwaukie near Bob’s Red Mill off the 224. It’s a massive warehouse with tons of room, brand-new equipment, a hangout area, and even bathrooms with showers. Not at all the bootleg operation with broken equipment most new winemakers usually get.

And just in time for harvest, which should be any day now.