True Flavor of East Texas
Through the 100-year-old threshold barn, reborn into a tasting room, lies O’Farrell Country Vineyard. The operation began in 2006 when co-owner Benny Earl Moore and his father planted vines for their U-pick operation. Five years later, the winery opened to the public.
With three generations now involved in the day-to-day operations, the O’Farrell Country Vineyard and Winery has found success. And they expanded their operation to include about 70 rows and 600 plants.
“We work here with our entire family, and that was planned that way,” Benny said.
The family prides themselves on offering consumers a true taste of East Texas, by experiencing native wines and Texan hospitality on a beautiful vineyard.
From Dirt to Glass
The family runs a dirt-to-bottle operation that makes them a diverse business and keeps them busy year-round. They begin by planting the vines and take it all the way through the production stage and into bottling.
“I tell people we have an agricultural operation, we have a manufacturing operation, we have a retail operation, a wholesale operation, we sell online,” co-owner Lyle McBride, explained.
Although customers can tour the grounds of the vineyard and enjoy tastings on weekends, Lyle reminds them they are deeply focused on the agricultural aspect of their business.
“During the week, it’s just farming,” he said.
All eight muscadine and four fruit wines are made on the grounds by all the family members working together. They also grow 14 varieties of muscadine cultivars, and in late summer, offer visitors a chance to pick some for themselves.
Looking to the Future
Through it all, they enjoy the community they have built over the years and look forward to expanding their partnership with Farm Credit.
“One of the real advantages is you get a dividend from patronage. The patronage dividends that we got back are well over 10% of the value of the loan. You just don’t get that from any other loan agency,” Benny shared, extolling the benefits of working with AgTrust Farm Credit.
As they look towards the future, the family hopes to keep family, friends and loved ones coming back.
