Eric and Amy Gale loved working in the wine industry in the state of Washington, but they say it was a desire to get back to their roots that had them moving to Egg Harbor and starting a winery.
Amy, who grew up in Milwaukee, and Eric, a native of Luxemburg, met as students at St. Norbert College in De Pere. After graduation, Amy, who worked in event planning since she was 16, moved on to larger events. She did everything from weddings to large corporate parties and gained experience in most components in the hospitality industry.
Eric loved academia and wanted to teach sciences at the college level. But as he was embarking on that goal, funding in that field was drying up and prospects were limited.
He said, “Amy and I started dating at that time and we began to think about our other talents and how we could put them together to be successful. I had grown up around the earth, working on a farm, and loved agriculture.”
With Amy’s hospitality experience and his in farming, they decided to explore a new kind of agriculture.
“I had a concept of owning a winery and vineyard,” Eric said. “I saw others planting vines and thought it was interesting. I started checking into grad programs in that field, applied to and was accepted at three, and decided on Washington State.”
At Washington State, there was a large extension department, and while attending school, he worked for the state viticulture specialist. Amy was working in Milwaukee as a venue coordinator for the Harley Davidson Museum at the time, but left that position to join Eric.
They were married in 2016, and that same year, Eric graduated with a master’s degree in horticulture.
“I learned about plant physiology, worked for the extension specialist, got to go and meet vine growers and got my hands dirty learning how to grow grapes,” Eric said.
Anchored Roots Vineyard & Winery in Egg Harbor has six acres of vines planted, with four more cleared. They currently produce 4,000 cases annually.
Amy said, “I knew I wanted to work inside a winery to learn about that aspect of the business. I got a job filling distribution orders for a mid-size winery. When they discovered I had other skill sets, I started doing other jobs. I managed taste rooms and the wine club, handled direct to consumer sales, and planned events. I got an inside look at what it takes to run a winery.”
Eric, for his part, went to work as a viticulturist for the largest winery in Washington state. In his role as a consultant, he traveled the state and visited the growers the winery worked with to help with any issues, assess and estimate crops, and be a liaison between teams.
Amy said, “That’s where we learned everything. In early 2019, we started looking ahead to starting a winery of our own and got the ball rolling before we jumped ship and packed up to leave.”
They decided they wanted to locate nearer to home; preferably in Door County. As the search for properties ensued, Eric said it wasn’t easy to find the right land.
“We had learned that you need to have a really good growing site for grapes. You can’t make great wines without a world class growing site,” he said.
In December 2019, they found a site in Egg Harbor that would become Anchored Roots Vineyard & Winery and made an offer. But the timing wasn’t ideal. Amy was a few months away from giving birth to their first son (they now have three children) and the pandemic was soon going to shut everything down.
Yet, planning had already begun. Just a few months prior to the shutdown, they had started working with David Stauffacher of the Small Business Development Center, a partner of SCORE and part of the SBA.
“We knew that the business plan was absolutely imperative when it came to planning,” Amy said. “David looked in on all of our work. We created two plans – one for the winery and one for the vineyard. He helped us figure out all of those pieces to make it look good for lenders.”
Stauffacher also connected them with Door County Economic Development where they found additional assistance. Finally, in July 2020, they had a lender and a plan and closed on the purchase.
A few days after closing, family and friends gathered to help them with the initial planting. In the ensuing months, building on the winery began. Because of the pandemic, it was difficult to procure building materials. When the supplies were available, Eric and his dad worked closely with the construction crew and did much of the work themselves.
In early 2022, the large pieces of equipment that would be used to press grapes for wine finally arrived. Because vines take up to five years to produce grapes, theirs were not ready and they purchased grapes from Washington state vineyards that they were familiar with.
Anchored Roots Vineyard and Winery opened in fall of 2022 with a variety of wines they had produced and others from favorite wineries. The winery includes a tasting room, large patio, open area, and small kitchen.
Amy said, “We have limited menu options like charcuterie boards to enhance the winery experience and round out wine tasting. We work with Wisconsin producers for products like chocolate, oils, cheese, balsamic vinegar, and beverages other than wine.”
In 2024, they offered their first estate bottle of wine, a blended red that was named The Roots. The labels, created by Andrea Naylor, a Door County artist, reflect the unique characteristics of the varieties of wine. The names on the bottles tie in with the wine variety. For blended wines, there is usually a nod to the region it came from.
As vines start producing more grapes, the workload has increased. They have six acres already planted and four more cleared for planting. Production is at 4,000 cases annually. With Amy’s marketing skills, brand recognition continues to grow.
As Door County becomes recognized for wine, tourists are drawn to the area. Anchored Roots is part of the Wine Trail, Door County Wine Fest, and Wine Passport. They hold workshops, have tastings, offer tours, started a wine club, have space for private events, are active on social media, and have a schedule of events at the winery. Even with the experience they brought to the business, there have been surprises.
Eric said, “You have to be flexible and ready to pivot. The best-laid plans don’t always turn out as expected, but the business is so gratifying. We get to see people’s reactions when they try something and they say that it’s amazing.”
“Every struggle is worth it,” Amy said. “Working for yourself is a huge reward.”
Tina Dettman-Bielefeldt is co-owner of DB Commercial Real Estate in Green Bay and past district director for SCORE, Wisconsin.
This article originally appeared on Green Bay Press-Gazette: Owners offer variety of products, events at winery in Door county
