Nebraska wineries continue intoxicating growth

GRAND ISLAND — It was a very good year for wine production in Nebraska.

Mick McDowell and his wife, Loretta, are grape producers in St. Paul and own and operate Miletta Vista Winery and Vineyard.

McDowell, who is also president of the Nebraska Wine and Grape Growers Association, was the guest speaker at the Grand Island Rotary Club Tuesday.

He said his wine production was up more than 1,000 gallons this year.

"This year's crop, for the most part, was very good," McDowell said.

While some areas of the state were hit by hail, he estimated that grape production was up 10 percent.

Last year, production was down 25 to 30 percent because of an early frost in southeast Nebraska.

There are 23 wineries in Nebraska, McDowell said. When an economic impact study was done in 2006, there were only 16 wineries and the industry had a $6 million economic impact on the state.

What's unique about Nebraska's wineries is that all the wine produced in the state comes from vineyards in Nebraska, he said.

And each year, more than 100,000 people visit the state's wineries, McDowell said.

"I think it's everybody's love for the wine experience with the onsite visits to the wineries," he said. "As wine makers, we are catering to Nebraska's palette."

For example, wines from Europe and the east and west coasts of this country are usually drier, more acidity and less sweet than Nebraska wines, he said.

Surveys show that 80 percent of Nebraskans prefer a sweeter tasting wine compared to a drier wine.

"A lot of the wineries are making wines that Nebraskans like," McDowell said.

Grape growing is nothing new in Nebraska. Prior to the Great Depression, McDowell said, there were more than 5,000 acres of grapes grown in the state, compared to about 500 acres now.

"There were a lot of migrants from Europe that came over and settled in the Great Plains," McDowell said. "Wine was a huge staple of European life so everybody brought some grapes and planted them."

The McDowells started with 820 vines in 2003, added 500 vines in 2004 and 100 Concord vines in 2006. 

But the couple sold their grapes to an existing winery, which was 113 miles away. 

Knowing that Nebraska wines were becoming a growing tourist attraction with most wineries located in the eastern third of Nebraska, the McDowells wanted to bring a winery to Central Nebraska and to capture the revenue of producing their wine. 

Working with USDA Rural Development, the McDowells received funding to assist them in starting their winery.