Door 44, Parallel 44 Invite You to Harvest

Owners Steve and Maria Johnson. Submitted.

Pandemic or not, the grapes are growing and ripening at Door 44 and Parallel 44, which means HarvestFest 2020 is approaching. The annual winery event will be held Sept. 12, 12-6 pm, at Parallel 44 in Kewaunee, the sister location to Door 44. 

UPDATE: HarvestFest is postponed to Saturday, October 3rd from 12-6 pm due to rain.

Although the pandemic has limited some elements of the event – there will be no grape stomp, group tours, wagon rides or kids’ games – there will still be live music by Talk of the Town, pizza from the Wild Fire Pizza food truck, wine by the glass or bottle with special discounts, and (of course) plenty of space for social distancing. Guests are invited to walk the vineyard, sip wine and soak in the last days of summer.

The grape harvest will begin Sept. 19, and you’re invited to lend a hand. On Sept. 19 and 26 and Oct. 3 and 10, volunteers can help with the harvest. Sign up through the Sign Up Genius app on the wineries’ Facebook page. 

Can’t attend the harvest in person? Owners Steve and Maria Johnson have debuted a video series called Uncork Yourself! to share stories and discussions about growing and pouring wine.

“Our mantra has become ‘Discover, enjoy, share’ because in the end, wine is about connecting with each other,” Steve said. “So in order to get a more emotional and full experience of wine, I am trying to emphasize that we should uncork ourselves so that we get to the stories, the personalities and the context of wine as we discover, enjoy and share ourselves over a glass of wine.”

The first episode introduces the series and focuses on the idea that wine is like people: first you fall in love; then you learn to appreciate your partner’s nuances. 

“The reality is that if you don’t emotionally connect with something, you probably are not going to take the time to learn and enjoy it more,” Steve said.

In episode 2, which debuted last week, Steve talks about the moment he knew he was “all in” with opening a winery.

“My hope over time is to develop this into a podcast and/or show where we invite more interaction,” he said. “I want to hear what others are inspired by and moved by, and it doesn’t always have to be about wine.”

Visit facebook.com/Door44Winery to watch the videos and find out more about upcoming harvest dates and events.