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Feature Article from the September 2008 Magazine Issue
Tuscany in North Georgia
Developers build Italian-style real estate project around vineyard and winery
But what about winery real estate developments--and in north Georgia, of all places? While perfectly equipped to grow vinifera, the state barely has added a winery or two each year, while its neighbors to the north, Virginia and North Carolina, have exploded with new wineries and vineyards.
Now, there's Montaluce (above), rising from the hills just north of Dahlonega, Ga. The Beecham family, known for its luxury home-construction business in Atlanta, is developing a 400-acre parcel around its new Tuscan-style winery and vineyards, restaurant, private club, swim-tennis cabana, meeting facilities, fly-fishing river, spa and hiking trails.
We know from history that "there's gold in them thar hills"--Georgia was the site of the first U.S. Gold Rush in the 1820s. But buyers may need a mine of their own, because even a modest winery cottage at Montaluce can set you back $400,000 or more. Prime building lots can cost even more--up to $600,000 for two acres on the Etowah River. Finished homes average between $800,000 and $1.3 million in the "Village of Pomino" area under construction.
"We have been looking at building a winery and growing grapes for some time," said Rob Beecham, partner in the family construction business. "The more we traveled and talked to people, the more we realized just how many people would like to live every day in a quality development dedicated to enjoying wine and food--not just for a long weekend."
Beecham chose Paul White, an attorney from San Francisco who left one bar for another to follow his passion for fine wine and food, to serve as general manager of the winery and restaurant. White has worked at every level in the restaurant business, including as beverage manager for the Harvard Club in Boston. Prior to joining M Vineyards (as the Montaluce wines will be known), he was general manager of Coturri Winery in Sonoma Valley, Calif.
"This project is an unbelievable dream.…We want to make world-class wines right here in Georgia," White said.
The chef
In keeping with their Tuscan theme, the Beechams decided they wanted an Italian restaurant on the premises, with an Italian chef at the stoves. "We didn't just want to have an Italian-themed restaurant," Rob Beecham said. "The idea is to have our own organic gardens, local produce, the freshest ingredients we can find, and a chef who knows what to do with them."
Le Vigne, the restaurant at Montaluce, is a key element in the overall project. It is open to the public and available for events, but it also serves the owners-only private tasting room and dining room on the top floor.
Steve Hewins, a Culinary Institute of America graduate and Atlanta native, quickly grabbed the top toque at Le Vigne. After cooking at the Ritz-Carlton in Atlanta, Stars in San Francisco, and serving a stint in Belgium, where he cooked for Queen Paola, he settled in Italy and married an Italian woman, whose family happened to be in the restaurant business. Soon, Hewins and his wife opened their own restaurant in Rome. After the birth of their son, they decided to move to the United States. Hewins sold his restaurant and took the chef's position at Acqua Pazza in Ponce, Puerto Rico. After touring Montaluce, he said, "I thought I was back in Italy."
Tuscany rising
Despite dire predictions by many in the Georgia wine community--and a soft economy--Beecham's vision of Tuscany seems to be doing well. But developers are used to that kind of talk. He claims to be "right on plan" with 58 of the 300 available lots sold, and construction has begun on dozens more sites.
Beecham admitted that the project's closing ratio has fallen in the last few months as home sales have taken a dive across the country. "We are closing fewer serious lookers, but then, our number of visitors is rising, probably due to the restaurant opening," he said. "So, overall, we're pleased." Beecham claims a mix of full-time and second or third homebuyers, and some cottages will be available for rent.
The developer said a full spa complex will open in 2009, along with a retail village, a full-service inn and a possible expansion of the acreage under vine. A swim/tennis club bordering the river soon will begin construction, and a small marketplace will open in the winery building. Golf is available nearby, but no land is set aside for a course. "We want to keep our focus on food and wine, because that is what makes us unique," Beecham said.
Montaluce property owners will be members of the private Tuscany Club, which offers special discounts on all food, wine, events and dinners. Once each year, club members will be invited on a private tour of Italy hosted by the chef and/or winemaker. In this case, north Georgia goes to Tuscany.
There are plans for a Montaluce wine festival with art, music, food and grape stomping. Special smaller events will be held at the members-only club. Montaluce's "wine university" will offer wine events, tastings, speakers and wine education throughout the year. The chef will hold regular cooking demonstrations for residents in a demonstration kitchen designed for that purpose; plans also are under way for a seasonal artists and farmers market in the village area.
While Montaluce may be a great new concept for food and wine lovers, is it the "next thing" for winery and vineyard owners to consider as an enhancement to their business and properties? One smart guy said all real estate is local, so before you bring in the bulldozers, it seems prudent to do some research. For example, building Tuscany in north Georgia, in the mountains just an hour or two from Atlanta, seems more viable, than say, Tuscany in West Texas. But, that's a "local" decision.
A winemaker and his gravity-fed winery
At the top of the hill is the new 9,500-square-foot Tuscan-style gravity-fed winery facility, with shiny stainless and winemaking toys that many regional winemakers just dream about. But right now, you can't buy a glass of Montaluce wine at the handmade 40-foot-long tasting bar above the winery; although Italian imports are available. In the fall of 2008, Montaluce will make about 2,000 cases of wine from fruit purchased from California and Georgia. Keeping their Italian theme in mind, Montaluce's owners, the Beechams, hired Stefano Salvini, originally from the Friuli winegrowing region of northern Italy, where he was winemaker at Campodelsole winery. Salvini was recruited by the Zonin family, which sent him to Barboursville Winery in Virginia, where he served for several years, learning firsthand the ins and outs of making wine in the eastern United States. "Our goal is to ramp up to around 4,500 cases per year," Rob Beecham said. "I don't think we will want to get much bigger than that." G.M. |
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