Winery Rumors Flourish on Grapevine

Wiederkehr Wine Cellars has a permit but hasn’t shipped wine, and Al Wiederkehr doesn’t think direct shipments will take off until the state’s face-to-face ordering provision is removed.

Wine & Beer News Brewing

You may have heard that Margie Raimondo, the woman behind Raimondo Family Winery in Gamaliel (Baxter County), is moving her winemaking operation to North Little Rock and plans to open a retail shop and tasting room at the corner of River Market Avenue and Third Street in Little Rock.

Well, Whispers has more news from a member of the family that helped establish winemaking in Arkansas.

Dennis Wiederkehr, VP and national sales manager of Wiederkehr Wine Cellars in Wiederkehr Village, plans to open Dionysus Wine & Brew in nearby Altus for his wife, Sharla, to run. He didn’t want to go into detail but said Dionysus would not compete with Wiederkehr Wines, where he’ll continue to work.

Wiederkehr filed for his permit from the state Alcoholic Beverage Control Administration last month.

Also out of the paradise that is western Arkansas comes word of plans by Mike and Liz Preston for Prestonrose Farm & Brewing Co. in Subiaco. Elizabeth A. Preston filed for a brewery permit in late October.

Elizabeth Preston hadn’t returned phone messages as of press time. Prestonrose’s Facebook page describes Mike and Liz as “brewers in training, entry level farmers and homesteading newbies!”