Today we’d like to introduce you to Robert Manley.
Robert, let’s start with your story. We’d love to hear how you got started and how the journey has been so far.
Our story begins with three guys in pursuit of their life’s passions, a pilot, geologist and a photographer, Chuck Lawrence, Ken Hardcastle, and me, Bob Manley. We didn’t know it yet, but our lives were about to change in ways we could never have predicted. When we were not flying, looking at rocks or through a lens, you could find us climbing a mountain or tearing down the other side on our bikes, a passion we all shared. We became fast friends. We shared our stories, discovered what made each other tick and began thinking about our future. Life was good, but it was soon going to get much better.
This is where the wine comes in, or more accurately, alcohol, beer, whiskey, scotch, and wine. As is often the case, drinking was an important part of the development of our friendship and I don’t mean the way it was in our first year of college. We wanted to learn everything there was to know about what it was we were drinking, how was it made; it’s origins, ingredients, and place in our culture. Ken had been making beer and wine for years and Chuck and I wanted to learn. Before we knew it we were traveling to Boston to buy grapes from Chilli and California and planting our own vineyard. The writing was on the wall. It was a slippery slope we were on, we either had to get off, get arrested, or get licensed. Still in pursuit of life’s passions, only this time one we shared. Hermit Woods Winery was about to be born.
In 2011, our hobby was getting out of hand, so much so that we were producing more wine than is legally allowed without a license. Not wanting to give up on this hobby that we all so much loved so much, or even more important, get arrested, we decided to open a winery. We began the planning for what is now Hermit Woods Winery. In the interest of keeping our capital expenses down, we decided to open the winery in my house. It made sense as I lived in beautiful country setting and the vineyard was planted around my house. My master bedroom would go on to serve as the perfect tasting room for our new winery. To get my wife on board with this crazy idea, we told her that we would fill her entire basement up with wine and she was on board.
We opened to the public in June of 2011 with 350 cases of wine. From the beginning, Hermit Woods Winery has broken new ground with the crafting of dry style, barrel aged, fruit (non-grape) wines that are reminiscent of classic red and white wines from the wine regions of the world. Using age-old winemaking techniques combined with innovative new approaches and the blending of a wide variety of locally, mostly organic, whole fruit and honey, our wines are like none other in the region, possibly anywhere. We seek to raise the bar on fruit wine from the traditionally singular, sweet wines that most people think of when they think of New England fruit wine by crafting complex wines that pair well with food and hold their own amongst the finest wines of the world. In concert with our goal to produce the finest quality fruit wine in the North East, we seek to do so in a manner that is friendly to the environment and our community, both locally and statewide.
By our third year operating the business out of my house, it was clear that we needed more space. We were producing 1,000 cases a year. We had more than met our obligation to fill our basement up with wine, so much so that we were not able to get to our washer and dryer on most days.
We moved our business to the town of Meredith in 2014, since then we have increased production to over 3,000 cases a year and expect to reach 5,000 cases by the end of 2018. We have developed a significant following over the years, including over 400 club members. We sell our wine throughout NH and direct to consumers in 37 states. In the summer of 2017, we added a deli to our operation, allowing us to serve food and offer beer and wine by the glass.
In 2017, Food & Wine Magazine identified Hermit Woods Winery as one of the 500 best wineries in America. Hermit Woods is the only winery in NH to ever be selected to this list and only one of two in the whole of New England. Our Petite Blue was shared with Kathie Lee and Hoda on the Today Show and was identified by the editor of Food & Wine Magazine, Ray Isle, as the best craft beverage in NH in November 2017. Our wines have received numerous awards from national and international wine competitions.
Our Hermitage, a blueberry, blackberry, elderberry, and currant wine, aged for two years in French Oak, held it’s own against world-class Rhone-style wines in two blind tastings. No only being indistinguishable from its grape counterparts, but chosen as the best wine at the table. We have been regular presenters at the Eastern Winery Exposition, the largest wine conference in the East, for four years running. Our remain as passionate about wine as we did when we were making it in our backyards in carboys. We look forward to what the future holds.
Overall, has it been relatively smooth? If not, what were some of the struggles along the way?
Smooth, no, As I think would be the case with any small business, we have had our fair share of trials and tribulations. The three of us were all coming at this from other professional backgrounds, never having worked in the wine business. We were starting on a shoestring budget and needed to grow the business initially with only the capital we could make available from our own resources.
Needless to say, our early years were lean on cash and heavy on labor with the three of us holding down full-time jobs while balancing the needs of a growing business. We would work as much as 80 to 100 hours a week, heck, we still find ourselves working that much even today. However, also true today, if you are doing something you love to do, it can hardly be called work. I liken it to our days of Mt Biking. We would regularly ride our bikes to the tops of the highest mountains in our area, now if that can’t be described as work, I am not sure what would be, however, we called that play.
As the company has grown we have faced new challenges, we are now a company of 10. Recruiting, maintaining, and supporting our staff continues to this day to be a learning experience and present us with new challenges every day. Managing cash flow has nearly brought us to our knees on more than one occasion. The businesses we are in is very seasonal, resulting in large swings of revenue and expense that are often not timed in the most ideal way.
We still have a lot to learn, but this is what keeps it interesting.
Alright – so let’s talk business. Tell us about Hermit Woods Winery – what should we know?
We are small boutique winery and deli in the Lakes Region of NH. We produce over 3,000 cases of wine annually and sell our wine throughout NH and in 37 states around the country. You can visit our winery 7 days a week year round. Sample wine, take tours and enjoy food, beer and wine in our deli and on our deck.
As I wrote earlier, from our inception, Hermit Woods Winery has broken new ground with the crafting of dry style, barrel aged, fruit (non-grape) wines that are reminiscent of classic red and white wines from the wine regions of the world. Using age-old winemaking techniques combined with innovative new approaches and the blending of a wide variety of locally, mostly organic, whole fruit and honey, our wines are like none other in the region, possibly anywhere.
Hermit Woods seeks to continue to raise the bar on fruit wine from the traditionally singular, sweet wines that most people think of when they think of New England fruit wine by crafting complex wines that pair well with food and hold their own amongst the finest wines of the world.
In concert with the Hermit Woods goal to produce the finest quality fruit wine in the North East, they seek to do so in a manner that is friendly to the environment and their community, both locally and statewide.
Any shoutouts? Who else deserves credit in this story – who has played a meaningful role?
Of course, there are a lot of people who I have known and worked with over the many years before starting this business who deserve credit for helping me develop the skills to grow this business, too many to name. I have held many professional positions in my career and there as always been someone at each adventure that has taught me something that I still hold valuable today.
From my early career in human services decades ago, my dear friend John Hotz helped me understand how to run a business. I reflect on what John taught me, daily. I can name at least three or four supervisors who have inspired and taught me much of what I know today.
However, the most important people in my life who have made this dream a reality is first and foremost my wife, without her unwavering support for all my adventures in life, I would never be where I am today. I could write a book on how important she has been to my success. Second only to my wife are my two partners, Ken Hardcastle, Wine Maker, and Chuck Lawrence. I have been blessed with two of the most wonderful partners, friends, confidants, mentors, anyone could ask for. We could not have built this business without them.
Pricing:
- Join us for a tour and a tasting for $20.00 per person
- Join us for a wine tasting for $8.00 per person
- Order food from our deli from $7 to $20.
- Our wine sells for $12.95 to $75 per bottle with over 40 selections to choose from.
Contact Info:
- Address: 72 Main Street, Meredith NH, 03253
- Website: www.hermitwoods.com
- Phone: 603.253.7968
- Email: bob@hermitwoods.com
- Instagram: hermitwoodswinery
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/hermitwoods/
- Twitter: Hermitwoods
- Yelp: https://www.yelp.com/biz/hermit-woods-winery-meredith
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