A nonprofit publication of the Kentucky Center for Public Service Journalism

Augusta’s Baker-Bird Winery enjoying resurgence, as part of region’s wine history and prominence


By John Lachmann
NKyTribune contributor

With the explosion of wineries in the area, it may seem like local wine’s popularity is reaching an all-time high in Northern Kentucky.

But in reality, its prominence in this region dates back over two centuries and a winery that contributed to that legacy is among those once again producing grapes.

At Baker-Bird Winery in Augusta, owner Dinah Bird gives tours of the historic property located half an hour east of Alexandria on the AA Highway.

In 2002, Bird bought the property of the former A. Baker Winery, and she resumed winemaking on the land six years ago, ending over 140 years of wine dormancy on the plot that sits on the outskirts of Augusta.

“The state was wanting to bulldoze it to make the highway wider at that point, and so the family (selling the property) was getting frustrated and couldn’t find a buyer,” Bird said. “So basically it was like if I buy it I won’t let them tear it down, I won’t let them bulldoze it.”

The first winery in America was planted by the Dufour family – originally from Switzerland – in Nicholasville, about 20 miles south of Lexington, in 1799. Called First Vineyard, the business still thrives in Jessamine County.

Two years earlier, the same year Augusta was founded, John Baker moved to the newly-formed town and bought his first plot of land. In 1811, Abraham Baker Sr. purchased the land that now houses the Baker-Bird Winery.

The same year, Abraham Baker Jr., who would turn the land into a regional wine giant, was born.

Baker Sr. died in 1840. Ten years later, an American named Nicolas Longworth, who had planted numerous vineyards in the Cincinnati area, won a gold medal for his champagnes while competing in Paris, putting the United States on the map in terms of alcoholic drinks.

Meanwhile, the influx of Germans to this region was in full force. In 1840, five percent of Cincinnati was German, but by 1850, either 50 percent of its citizens or their parents were German born. Many were encouraged to populate the region through German-language propaganda sent out from Bracken County to those back home.

Emperor Francis Joseph I, the leader of Germany at the time, was also spending wildly and creating inflation pressure, which resulted in political unrest and contributed to the mass emigration.

The resettling of German citizens to this area led to it becoming known as “America’s Rhineland.”

Vineyard at Atwood Hill Winery

Vineyard at Atwood Hill Winery in Morning View (photo by C. Lachmann)

Taking advantage of the booming wine trend, Baker Jr., who inherited the property after his father’s death, began growing grapes with the intent of producing the alcoholic beverage in 1852.

Wine was thriving in southwestern Ohio as well at the time, but according to Kentucky historical records supplied by Baker-Bird, in 1857 the culture of the grape in Bracken was destined to rival that of any part of Ohio. “During the last summer a New York wine merchant came to Augusta, after visiting the vineyards in Ohio, and paid for the wine raised in the vicinity of Augusta, $2.50 per gallon, that being fifty cents over the price of the best Ohio wine. There are now several large vineyards in the county, and this year there will be from one to two hundred acres put in vines. The soil of Bracken seems peculiarly adapted to the grape, and the German wine raisers are peopling different localities rapidly.”

Another passage from the Kentucky historical record from that year stated the vineyards on the Ohio are mostly young, and several bear fruit this year for the first time.

“There are upwards of 120 acres now bearing in Bracken County and 1.45 acres not bearing in Brown County, (Ohio). Should the next season be as productive as this, the vineyards, which bear this year, will probably produce double the number of gallons next year, thus making 300,000 gallons between Augusta and Maysville. To this, add the probable crop of the young vineyards not bearing, and we will have 500,000 gallons of wine as the aggregate product of next season this statement is made in accordance with the views of several prominent men in business.”

By the end of the 1850s, the A. Baker Winery was among the top wine producers in the area and Bracken County was producing over 30,000 gallons of wine in the early 1860s.

“The oral tradition is that this was by far the largest (in the area),” Bird said. “I think it most likely was, because there would be ruins if there was another one or two this big.”

Barrel

Provided photo

>

It’s unclear exactly what happened to the Baker winery. It was intact in 1864 and no records exist for it in 1865, but several factors might have contributed to its demise.

A type of fungus decimated the grape crops in Southern Ohio and Northern Kentucky and the Civil War “Battle of Augusta” caused the death of 30 local soldiers in 1862.

“In the 1850s the whole river valley had three incredible years of grape production, which is unusual,” Bird said. “In the late 1860s we had some wet summers and the fungus, it got out of control, which is a problem we even have today,” Bird said.

Many Kentucky farms switched to growing tobacco, which had become increasingly popular during this time.

Reduced to a fraction of its former self, the American wine industry was dealt a death blow by prohibition in 1920.

Even after the 21st Amendment repealed prohibition in 1933, it would take over 40 years for wine to begin its comeback in this country and it was an event in Paris that would lead to the rejuvenation.

In 1976 there was a blind tasting contest in France called the Judgment in Paris, sponsored by a London wine merchant, who was impressed by the California wines. A couple of the American wines were voted better than their European counterparts, which was recounted in the 2008 movie “Bottle Shock”.

With its products receiving international validation, the wine industry took off in the U.S. Still, it may have never regained its popularity in this area had it not been for a $180 million settlement by tobacco giant Philip Morris with the state for price fixing, from which half of the money was to be spent on agricultural pursuits.

“The state said that this is a crop that grows relatively well in Kentucky – we have a history of it – so you could apply to get grants to start wineries or vineyards,” Bird said. “So it was a confluence of several factors: One, wine drinking increased across all the United States, two, tobacco was so labor intensive that it went overseas and that left a gap for the farmers, and then the Phillip-Morris money helped farmers trying to get into a different business.”

Nationally, wineries have tripled since Bird bought her property in 2002. In Kentucky, they have grown sevenfold in 15 years.

“In 1990 Kentucky had one bonded winery, in 2000 we had 10 and today we have over 70,” Bird said.

When Bird purchased the Baker family’s former regional wine empire in 2002, the land had not produced wine for over 140 years, but in 2006 she began growing grapes on the property again.

Rebranded the Baker-Bird Winery, which honors the German style of naming a plot after the wine cellar builder and the current owner, wine began flowing from this property again in 2009.

The fungus that devastated the crop over 140 years ago has been overcome by technology.

Inside the Baker-Bird wine cellar

Inside the Baker-Bird wine cellar (photo by C. Lachmann)

“It is still an issue but today we have sprays, so that we spray the vines every 2-3 weeks starting in March until about July, and we use different sprays to kill different kinds of fungus,” Bird said. “So, it’s still a problem today but back then they didn’t have anything to combat it. Each year the fungus would spread and spread and spread and it would just kill the entire vineyard eventually.”

Because of its rich history, Baker-Bird is listed on the United States National Historic Registry, the Civil War Heritage Trail, and the Freedom Trail.

The original wine cellar from the mid-19th century still stands on the Baker-Bird property, and is the oldest existing wine cellar in America still open to the public.

During the Battle of Augusta in 1862, that cellar was actually used as a safe house. One account recalls a passerby telling a family to “go quickly to Baker’s wine cellar” because of imminent enemy threat.

Now, instead of housing wine bottles or wartime citizens, the 90-foot long, 40-foot high and 40-foot wide stone structure is available for large gatherings, such as receptions.

You might also want to read:

Kentucky was birthplace of America’s wine industry

Kentucky’s Backroads Wine Trail showcases Northern Kentucky wineries


Related Posts

2 Comments

  1. Stacey Sanning says:

    I know that history may be a minor factor for a journalist, but there was no Emperor Joseph I of Germany. Ever. especially not during the mid-1800’s, There was an Emperor Joseph I, who ruled Austria and Hungary from 1687-1711, and the Emperor Joseph II, who ruled the same from 1765-1790. I don’t think either of these gentlemen could have influenced immigrants to the Untied States in any significant way. Try to check your facts a little better.

  2. Judy Clabes says:

    Checking it out — looks as if it should be Emperor Francis Joseph 1, Emperor of Austria, who was president of the German Confederation in 1850. There was a Joseph 1 in 1705, son of Leopold 1 who was King of Germany, and Joseph II who was Emperor Elect (Habsburg-Lorraine house) and King of Germany from 1764-1765. Guess we can all use some brush-up on our history from time-to-time. And of course journalists do care about history — and we also care about facts. We’ve asked the writer to double-check his facts as well, but it looks as if it should say Emperor Francis Joseph i, president of the German Confederation.

Leave a Comment