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Notes From the
Vintner
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Welcome
to our column. We hope that you will return to
learn interesting notes on wine, and related
subjects. Wine is a great gift from God to be used
for the enjoyment of man. It is a food, and should
be treated as such. It is meant to lift up the body
and lighten the soul. 02/1/04
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Well let's
take a breather
from work this month…you should have the grapes about
pruned, or be close to finished as I am close. So why not go
and pour a glass of you best wine, and relax. Remember;
always drink the best…as you know not the day, nor the
hour…
Let's talk about
history, and let's talk about the history of the State of
Arkansas. Many people wonder why so many wineries were
present after Probation, and today you can travel across the
state and find that most of the area is DRY! ! !
Conway was the home of one of the largest wineries in the
state, and yet today, not one drop of wine can be sold to
the public in the city of Conway. WHY ! ! !
There were several
factors:
- When WW II was
going strong, many young men were called to service, and
shipped out to the war fronts. With the men gone to fight
the war, the ladies voted many of the counties and towns
DRY.
- Most of the
wineries were very small family operations. They had
several rows of grapes or berries, and made the wine to
supplement their income. Some of the wine makers just did
not put out a good product and closed for lack of
business. But the biggest factor was the kids did not
want to stay on the farm, grow fruit, make wine and for
little money, so they left for other jobs and big
money.
- Many people
see wine as a sin and an easy item to tax. This happened
in Arkansas. The native industry was taxed heavily, and
then the hard liquor block did not support the local
industry as many of the wineries did not have a
distributor, and the distributors saw the local wineries
as competition, not income.
So now you know
the main reasons. There are others, but these are the main
ones. So let me refresh your glass, and we shall talk
more about Arkansas Wine.
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