Have you ever wondered what recording a podcast episode is like, especially one that is being recorded at one of your favorite places…a winery? Yeah, me too! I recently had the pleasure of watching Will Donohue and Michel Woods of We Know Texas Vino as they recorded their 58th podcast episode, and let me tell you it was a fun experience.
Knowing the area that I live in, Will reached out to see if I would be interested in joining them at Bar Ditch Winery where they would soon be recording an episode. Not being one to turn down the opportunity to hit the wine road, I jumped at the chance. I’m not sure how I missed it all of these years since it is within my day trip radius, but Bar Ditch Winery was a “short” 1½ hour drive for me as it is located a few minutes northwest of Stephenville off of West FM 8.
We Know Texas Vino (Will Donahue and Michel Woods) interviewing Shelly Fair
On the day of the recording by the time I arrived at the winery, Will and Michel already had the podcast equipment set up, so the first order of business was introductions. I had previously met Will while on a wine trip to Grapevine, so it was good to see him again. It was nice to meet the other half of the dynamic duo, Michel, and I finally put a face to the voice I had heard 55 times before. The real pleasure was meeting Shelly Fair, Bar Ditch Winery owner and winemaker. It was obvious from the beginning that Shelly was going to give the guys a run for their money. Shelly’s feistiness coupled with the banter between Will and Michel made for an interesting, informative, and fun afternoon full of laughs and wine. When Will and Michel were ready to start recording the episode, I took a seat off to the side and prepared to take notes. It was nice to have someone else asking all the same questions I wanted to ask, so for once I was able to focus on taking legible notes…legible being the key word.
Two common themes frequently seen among grape growers and winery owners are that they come from a farming family and/or it is a family affair. Shelly’s background is no different as her parents and grandparents were farmers, her husband comes from a farming family, and now her husband and four daughters are involved with the winery to some degree.
Being from a farming family and growing vegetables in her mother’s garden for FFA (Future Farmers of America) when she was younger, instead of raising animals, was part of what fueled Shelly’s passion for processing things. This passion is something Shelly mentioned a couple of times throughout the episode and is something that helped make the transition from canning vegetables, making pickles, and jelly to winemaking an understandable next step. The path to planting a vineyard, making wine, and opening a tasting room was spurred by Shelly’s looking to the future once their four daughters were grown trying to decide what she wanted to do in the next phase of her life. Recognizing the backgrounds and strengths of herself and her husband, she decided that wine was the sensible choice.
While they might not have realized it at the time, the start for part of this new journey began on September 11, 2001, when they poured the concrete to build a barn where they would temporarily live until their house was built. The next step in the journey was in 2006 or 2007 when Shelly “voluntold” her husband that she wanted to plant a vineyard. Shelly’s telling of this story is hilarious!
Mustang grapes sourced from local cuttings were the first to be planted. Blanc du Bois vines came when a local winery had 1,200 vines they decided to dispose of due to the risk of Pierce’s Disease spreading to their other vines. Since Blanc du Bois is a Mustang hybrid, they were the perfect fit to go along with the Mustang vines already planted. Today they have seven acres under vine that consist of Mustang, Blanc du Bois, Cabernet Sauvignon, and Petit Verdot.
At this time Bar Ditch Winery offers two estate wines, Mustang and an unfiltered Blanc du Bois. We tried both wines while we were there, and I will say the Blanc du Bois was probably one of my favorite Blanc du Bois wines. Being unfiltered, it was a beautiful, hazy, golden orange color, and to me it had notes of apricot and macadamia nuts. It was delicious and I left with a few bottles! The other wines available are wines acquired from Greens Creek Cellars when they closed. Shelly is good friends with owner/winemaker, Julie Williams, and Julie is collaborating with Shelly to further build the wine portfolio for Bar Ditch Winery.
The barn is now the tasting room, so when you enter and look around you feel like you are in someone’s home. Upon entering the tasting room there are a few tables and chairs, a seating area, and in the back left-hand corner the tasting bar and kitchen. The tasting room walls are lined with musical instruments, another of her family’s interests, and Shelly plays almost all, if not all, of them. There is a hallway off the left side of the tasting room and the bedrooms are now used for storage of bottled wine and barrels. At the end of the hallway is a small production room and a 3,000-foot event center where they have hosted events from birthdays to Sip and Shop events to a Valentine’s Day dinner.
Something Shelly said a few times during the episode was, “You can’t receive, and you can’t give with a closed hand, it has to be open,” and I found the meaning behind it to be so thoughtful. I have seen growers use sheep to graze on cover crops, which in turn helps with fertilization, and guineas for pest control. Shelly mentioned that throughout their vineyard they have mockingbirds which is their inherent pest control, so at the times when they need to spray, they cover the mockingbird nests before they get started. Additionally, they realize what they are asking of the earth, so they try to use organic sprays when possible and their vines are planted twelve feet apart instead of the typical six to ten feet in a conscious effort to put less strain on the soil. When the power of a professional is needed for pest control, you can contact powerpestcontrol.ca.
Shelly Fair
Shelly’s episode was fun to watch being recorded and then listening to the finished product took me back to the day and I laughed just as much. Shelly was hilarious, gracious, and down to earth. Her estate wines are not ones that you find often in Texas, so they are somewhat unique, and that Blanc du Bois was delicious. There is so much more I could say, but I really want everyone to listen to her episode which is number 58 with We Know Texas Vino and it is available now. I also encourage everyone to stop by Bar Ditch Winery if you are ever in the area. There are a few other wineries within a 30-minute drive, so you could use the Texas Wine Lover Plan Your Trip feature to map out the perfect day trip. I know I am looking forward to my next visit!
Editors note: Be sure to listen to the next episode, episode 59 of We Know Texas Vino, where Laurinda Thomas gets interviewed!
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