May 1, 2020
It's our official 7th Anniversary Month! Hawaiian tunes have been on all day and day dreams of blue water and sandy beaches are playing over and over in our heads. RIght now, I'm sitting here at my desk inside the tasting room, watching cars zoom by on their way to the Mendocino Coast. The rush of the wine country road traffic sounds very busy on the 128, a strange but old noise for sure. We only had 2 curbside pick-ups today, our online support remains our lifeline. We miss hosting guests so much!
As you know, Eric and I remain deeply committed to each other and our winery. This time (in all of our lives) is full of frustration, concern, anxiety ...but thankfully, Smith Story Wines is making meaningful memories right now too, everytime you open a bottle! As for this weekend, we're signing off and working on our garden together to relax our brains.
A day in the life...
We're mentally & emotionally drained to be quite honest. We have no idea what the months ahead will bring to our summer, summer months are our very best months that help us fund a strong harvest season ahead. We're still working (fingers and paws crossed on a SBA loan), closed a big retail sale, working on 4th Quarter sales forecasts & pitches with wholesalers and accounts, lining up Zoom wine dinners with a few dozen of our favorite restaurants across the nation and still moving pallets of wine from our Napa warehouse to the Anderson Valley then packing and shipping orders.
April was a solid month, but came in less than half of what was sold in March. We've delivered to over 80 porches in the last 10 days, each stop has given us such a lift. A new schedule is now posted on the website for Bay Area porch delivery days. We've moved our biggest days to Friday's so we can chill on Saturday. Our hearts remain full of hope and belief that everything is going to be okay and for you and your families too.
One thing to please keep in mind is gifting Smith Story Wines. It's as easy as ordering and sending anything to anyone and comes with a personal handwritten card and touches. Thanks to so many of you who've done so already. Like Sandwich reminds us... "Giving is Fun".
Cheers to you, thank you for believing in us and sharing the Smith Story too. We're off to the first Boonville Farmers Market tonight held in the Disco Ranch parking lot, the Disco is celebrating their 1 year anniversary today, it's a must visit when you are able to visit this precious Anderson Valley (hopefully soon).
Aloha Friday!
-Ali