Half Witt Winery Ready To Celebrate

by Tori O’Dell

David and Gail Bradshaw, the house owners of the Half Witt Vineyard are making ready to rejoice its two-year anniversary on Saturday, Sept. 4, and Sunday, Sept. 5, to coincide with the Witt Labor Day Homecoming Celebrations.

“Sadly, individuals haven’t had a lot of an opportunity to verify us out due to the pandemic,” Gail defined. “Witt is ready to maintain the Labor Day Celebration this 12 months, and we thought it might be the right alternative to reintroduce ourselves to the group. We hope that folks will cease in and see us.”

On Saturday, the Half Witt Vineyard will host an open home, starting at midday, for the general public to return in and take a look at the venue and pattern the locally-made wines. The Alton space band Girl Luck will carry out stay from 6 to 9 p.m., on the vineyard’s stage. Large Jake’s BBQ  will likely be on web site serving meals from 4 to eight p.m. on Saturday. 

The Half Witt Vineyard will open at midday on Sunday. Large Jake’s meals truck will likely be again with their mouth watering BBQ from 3 to six p.m., and the Colin Helton Band will take the stage on from 3 to six p.m. Band members embrace Colin Helton (guitar and vocals), Hank Helton (guitar and vocals), Tom Myers (bass and bass guitar), “Cowboy” JR Reeves (metal guitar) and Invoice Steele (drums and reserving).

The Half Witt Vineyard is an surprising second profession for the not too long ago retired couple.  

“After we first turned a pair we’d enterprise out to wineries in all places.  We known as it our Joyful Passion,” Gail stated, smiling up at her husband.

The Bradshaws started enjoying round with creating their very own wines, within the basement of their dwelling, utilizing a wine making equipment that Mr. Bradshaw obtained as a Christmas present from his son. Their first concoction was a peach wine (the Sundown) that their (grownup) youngsters and buddies raved about. 

“We began out with one- gallon batches in order that we wouldn’t must throw rather a lot out. Our family and friends all favored it and our youngsters would come over and take off with what we made,” Dave stated with a chuckle on the memory. “We started to marvel if the professionals would really like it too, so we began coming into it into beginner wine competitions. The primary trip, we put two of our wines in and we obtained a gold medal and a bronze medal. Additionally they provide you with a report card that provides critiques and recommendation on how you can make the wine higher. We adopted that after which reentered the identical two the next 12 months and we got here again with two gold medals.”

Their wines went on to win greater than 30 medals in beginner wine making competitions all through Illinois and Indiana, giving the couple the boldness to start wanting into getting a license, and ultimately begin constructing the Half Witt Vineyard from the bottom up in late 2018. Since each of them had been nonetheless working on the time, they opted to outsource the grapes and fruit juices used of their wines from choose vineyards.

“To start with we each had full-time jobs and had been working to construct the vineyard on the weekends. We actually didn’t have time to maintain a winery or harvest our personal grapes,” stated Gail. “We’re each retired and dealing on the vineyard full time now, however there’s all the time one thing to maintain us busy.”

Dave and Gail Bradshaw make all the wines served at Half Witt Vineyard. The vineyard opened with seven wines on their checklist and have steadily expanded to hold 14 domestically made vintages. Dave defined that it takes about eight weeks to make a brand new batch of wine, from begin to end. They’re in a steady course of of creating and bottling wines, however be certain that to take time to create new wines as nicely. Every summer time they launch a brand new wine so as to add to their rising assortment. This summer time’s new launch was the “Watermelon,” a candy pink wine, that has confirmed itself to be a buyer favourite.

The Half Witt Vineyard checklist at the moment contains a Chambourcin, Leon Millot, Half Witt White, Lester’s, Half Witt Pink, Half Witt Cranberry, Blackberry, Black Raz, Watermelon, Half Witt Rose, Tropical Breeze, Dawn, Sundown and Candy Riesling. Along with wine, additionally they serve beer, water and Pepsi merchandise.

Patrons are invited to usher in their very own meals, or to patronize from native companies resembling Mac’s Diner or Casey’s. The vineyard provides pizza and snack trays of deli meats, cheeses and crackers on Fridays and Sundays. Additionally they associate with Witt Volunteer Hearth Division not less than as soon as a month to assist increase cash for the hearth station. The neighboring hearth station units up a meals stand on their garden and the vineyard promotes the meals and books stay leisure to attract crowds.

After they held their grand opening in November 2019, neither Dave nor Gail anticipated to be shut down by a world pandemic inside just a few months time. They took it in stride and located methods to deliver patrons to the fledgling vineyard, together with providing stay leisure and bringing in meals vehicles from all through the area to present prospects extra eating choices and hopefully draw site visitors to town. The Bradshaws constructed a stage to host stay music and spotlight their patio house in June 2020. Creating a snug ambiance is essential to the couple, who need individuals to really feel welcome and at dwelling on the Half Witt Vineyard.

“Individuals are all the time saying that they assume the vineyard may be too fancy for them, nevertheless it actually isn’t. We put quite a lot of work into making this a pleasant place however we’re simply common individuals and we would like the vineyard to be a spot the place everybody feels welcome. We bought some push again after we put the tv in, however come playoff time all the lads will path in with their wives and earlier than lengthy they’ll all be gathered inside with a beer yelling on the TV, whereas their wives are out on the patio with a bottle of wine laughing and stress-free,” stated Dave. 

Along with internet hosting wine fanatics, the Half Witt provides an amazing venue for bridal showers and events. They’re at the moment waiving venue charges and simply ask that friends buy all drinks from the vineyard, alcoholic and nonalcoholic alike.

Whereas the continuing COVID-19 pandemic has slowed their momentum, a number of friends have found the Half Witt Vineyard by their social media presence on Fb and YELP. They’ve had guests from the Quad Cities, Springfield, Decatur, Champaign, Effingham, Carlyle, Vandalia, Breese and Greenville. They hope to proceed drawing outsiders to the realm, however need the Half Witt to be a favourite of locals as nicely.

In celebration of their two- 12 months anniversary, all wine bottles will likely be ten % off and beers will likely be $2 a bottle all through the weekend. Dave recommends his private desire, the Half Witt Pink, and Gail praises the Sundown, although they each agree that all the wines on their checklist are good. The couple encourages individuals to cease by the vineyard and uncover their very own favourite this weekend.

 The Half Witt Vineyard is positioned at 240 North Hirst Road in Witt and is open from midday to 9 p.m. on Fridays, midday to 10 p.m. on Saturdays and midday to 7 p.m. on Sundays.

 The Bradshaws instruct prospects to park on the south and north sides of the vineyard; they might additionally overflow into the Hearth Division’s car parking zone, in entrance of the shed, however are requested to not block Hirst Road or park immediately in entrance of the firehouse in case of an emergency.