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SOUTH SALT LAKE -- Many savvy wine aficionados would say California is widely known as the epicenter of American vino. Utah is probably not even considered as one of the top states for grapes or wine making. So, you may expect winery owners would have an easier time opening a shop in the Golden State than in the Beehive State.
But the exact opposite was true for Kiler Grove Winegrowers owner Michael Knight.
The grapes come from his vineyard in Paso Robles, Calif. Some of the grapes will have to be processed at the co-op he uses there. But some grapes will be shipped 800 miles to the new winery in South Salt Lake to be processed. Why doesn't he just process it all in California?
"I'd like to offer folks the chance to participate in the crush and the bottling and all of that sort of thing just to get a hand in," he said.
Normally, they bottle their wine in the months of June and July, and they crush their grapes between September and October. But that could vary depending on whether the grapes or the wine itself is ready. If you do join in the crush process, don't expect it to be like the time Lucille Ball stomped on grapes in that one "I Love Lucy" episode. Knight says you will keep your shoes and socks on.
"The process is mechanized but there is still a lot of hand operation involved. You still get a chance to get sticky and get sugar all over you and stains on you," Knight said.
But that wasn't the only reason to open the new Kiler Grove Winery in South Salt Lake. Knight says trying to establish a shop in San Luis Obispo County, Calif., was an absolute nightmare.
"They have such a structure of rules and regulations, all of which are fee driven," Knight said.
In Paso Robles, Knight says getting approval to open a winery with a tasting room takes a minimum of 120 days, but his process actually took much longer than that. After waiting two and a half years, Knight says he was allowed to open, but he wasn't allowed to have a tasting room, which could be a killer for his business. Meanwhile, he says another winery down the street was approved to have a tasting room, but by appointment only.
Plus, the fees would have cost around $20,000.
Compare that to the approval process in South Salt Lake. Knight says it took less than a month, and the fees cost a couple of hundred dollars.
He also says new liquor laws allow him to sell his wine from his own store without going through the state liquor stores. Considering the fact that he lives here and has several business contacts in Utah, he decided to open up in South Salt Lake.
But will shipping the grapes from California to Utah affect the quality of the wine? Knight says the quality will be the exact same as if he processed the wine in Paso Robles.
"[The] same process is going to happen," he said. "I'm still the guy that's handling that fruit. I'm still the guy who is managing the outcome of that wine. It's just geographically moved."
E-mail: pnelson@ksl.com
