Stephen Barnard is the winemaker at Keswick Vineyards in Keswick, VA. He is fascinated by wine, continues to study it, and has been making wine in Virginia for more than 23 years. A strong advocate for Virginia wine, he has served as past president of the Monticello Wine Trail, a member of the Virginia Wineries Association, and a former member of the Virginia Wine Board.
He readily admits to making “every mistake in the book” and expects to keep learning. His goal is to make wines that make Keswick and Virginia proud while leaving the industry stronger for those who follow. Media Inquiries: Stephen Barnard winemaker@keswickvineyards.com | https://keswickvineyards.com/
What’s the ONE THING most unique, authentic, & memorable about your brand?
Being accessible, making sure as a winemaker or our owners, that we interact with customers, say hello and tell them that we appreciate them choosing us for the day or hour. Wines are memorable but customer experiences are more so and if you can elevate that, through great environment, great service or conversation and decent wine, then that’s what they take with them. I walk around with barrel samples sometimes, just saying hi and asking people to taste and give me their honest opinion, not only can we form relationships, we also get some valuable feedback from customers.
Describe how and what you’d do with your winemaking career or winery business if you were not constrained.
I want to make wine that creates a feeling [good or bad] and makes people have an opinion, from the labeling and packaging to the wine itself. I would certainly age wines longer and have them develop in the bottle so that people can see what older wines taste like and understand how terroir and environment influence the wine. I would make wines that were minimally handled, low sulfur, no inputs, no filtering, no yeast- just pure wine from a great site that makes people go Mmmm and then have a discussion.
What is the One Wine most emblematic of your brand and/or winemaking style? Tell us its story.
It has to be Cab Franc [of which we make five]. Purely because it is consistent, authentic, and hopefully a wine that helps promote Virginia. It’s a simple wine that brings people together and appeals to everyone, and that is what I love most about the wine industry, and think it sums up our philosophy or intent quite well. Make a consistently good product, bring people together and share a bottle of wine while forgetting about the negativity in the world for a few hours. Stay tuned, this wine review is coming soon!
Bonus Question: Why Winemaking?
Because my modeling career never took off and I cannot afford good wine, I might as well try and make some!