About Us | Welcome to A Vintage Affair

A Vintage Affair is a non profit 501(c)3 organization that is dedicated to raising money for Williamson County charities benefiting women and children in need. In order to fulfill the goal of helping out neighbors in need, AVA hosts various events throughout the year which include: wine, spirit & food tastings, A Fashion Affair – our fashion show, and The Grape Stomp at Animalia. Since its inception in 2001, AVA has contributed nearly one million dollars to local non profit organizations.Each year AVA chooses several deserving beneficiaries from the community to receive the proceeds for that fiscal year. Past AVA Beneficiaries include Mercy Children’s Clinic, BRIDGES, The Hundred Club of Franklin, Neonatal Intensive Care Unit at Williamson Medical Center, Williamson County Youth Incorporated, Williamson County Child Advocacy Center, My Friend’s House, Williamson County Library Foundation, High Hopes Inclusive Preschool and Pediatric Therapy Clinic, and the A Vintage Affair Fellowship at O’More College of Design.A Vintage Affair prides itself on the participation from the local community as well as businesses and individuals around the country. We are surrounded by willing and able volunteers that allow A Vintage Affair to continue to grow and achieve success.

Our 2011 Vintners for the April week of the events:

Arrington Vineyards

Arrington Vineyards was founded in 2005 by country artist Kix Brooks, businessman Fred Mindermann and winemaker Kip Summers. Fred and Kip had been growing grapes at Fred’s Liberty Hill Vineyard in Brentwood, TN. Inspired by the success of Fred’s vineyard and Kip’s winemaking track record, they endeavored to create a first class winery near Nashville. Fred and Kip approached Kix with the winery idea in 2002. However, Kix decided against it because the plan included utilizing Kix’s Painted Springs Farm as the location.

Then in late 2003, Fred and Kip purchased a small farm near Arrington. They cleared the land and established Firefly Vineyards. Almost a year later, in 2004, the farm adjacent to the vineyards was offered for sale. Fred approached Kix with the idea of purchasing it, so that Firefly Vineyards could be expanded. Once Kix purchased the property (including the house that is now the Arrington Vineyards tasting lodge), he caught the “winery fever” and decided to form a partnership with Fred and Kip to create a first class winery. The original working name Firefly Vineyards – named for the millions of fireflies that appear in the vineyards each spring – was changed to reflect the local community nearby.

The vineyards were expanded in 2005 and 2006 – meanwhile – Arrington Vineyards worked with Williamson County in creating a whole new class of county zoning that would allow the winery to have a retail store. The first two vintages of wine (2005 and 2006) were made by Kip at Beachaven Winery in Clarksville, TN where he was winemaker for 13 years. Construction on the Arrington winery began in late 2006. By April 2007, the winery was officially licensed and the wine and equipment was moved in. Bottling of the first vintage began in June 2007. Arrington Vineyards opened for retail sales on July 1, 2007. A “Grand Opening” was held on August 14, 2007 – which included a concert by Pat McLaughlin. By the fall of 2007, it became apparent that Arrington Vineyards was quickly establishing itself as a first class operation – winning “Best of Show” at the Wines of the South competition for its Syrah and quickly selling out of most of its 2005 vintage wines in a few months.

In 2008, Arrington Vineyards continued to expand its vineyards and distribution. AV wines have been featured in NYC, New Orleans, and at fine wine shops in Oregon and Tennessee. Businessman John Russell joined the Arrington Vineyards partnership – adding his keen sense of business to an already strong partnership and management team.

Robledo Family Winery

In 1968 Reynaldo Robledo, Sr. learned how to prune a vine. He spent the following three decades working in several vineyards learning more and more about this unique type of farming. His experience grew until he was eventually managing vineyards with hundreds of acres and many men. In 1996 Reynaldo formed his own vineyard management business, Robledo Vineyard Management, LLC. As his skills in the vineyards continued to evolve so did his affection for the product he was cultivating.

During these years the family purchased fourteen vineyards, totaling approximately 200 acres, in Napa, Sonoma, and Lake County. Although they still sell most of the fruit from these three ranches to other wineries, they now produce their own estate wines.

We think every bottle of wine produced by Robledo Family Winery is a small triumph. The quality of our wine displays viticulturist Reynaldo Robledo’s skills of grape culture. He overcame his humble beginnings as an immigrant field worker to become one of the most successful vineyard consultants and winery owners in California Wine Country. More than anything, Robledo Family Winery is a success because Robledo shares his knowledge and passion with his children and his grandchildren

A VINTAGE AFFAIR’S BOARD OF DIRECTORS

Ralph Drury - AVA Founder

Ashley W. Roberts - Managing Director

Dr. Mike Burgdorf

Robert Cook – Board Attorney

Meghan Guffee – Secretary

Michael Giammalvo – Board CPA

Al Gregory

Cynthia Himmelfarb

Janna Landry

Tracey Little

Adrien Lynch

Berkeley Nance

Lori Orme

Steve Smith

Luanne Wagner – Chairman

Stephanie Williams
Non-Profit Documentation
501(c)(3) Document
A Vintage Affair Charter
2008 Form 990
2009 Form 990

Sierra Nevada Cheese Company

Sierra Nevada Cheese Company was founded in 1997 by Ben Gregersen and John Dundon.

Ben and John discovered they had a common interest in making the best quality artisan cheeses using traditional methods, while working together at the Gregersen’s family creamery, Foothill Home Dairy, a Sacramento landmark for over 40 years.

Ben and John first introduced their cheese products to various local farmers markets. Market demand increased quickly, and soon their cheeses were sought out by local retail stores. In 2003, the company’s successful growth allowed them to relocate their creamery 100 miles north of Sacramento to Willows, California, where they are located today.

Ben and John are both hands-on owners and operators of Sierra Nevada Cheese Company. Their mission is to provide their customers with the highest quality product using only the most wholesome milk, free of added hormones, preservatives, stabilizers, gums, and nothing artificial… just great cheese.

Ben and John have 50 years of combined experience and they have never wavered from the industry and their own standards.

Our Mission: Our cream cheese process exemplifies the artisan nature of our handcrafted methods. Rich flavor originates from vat-cultured milk, cream, and sea salt. Curds packed into muslin bags are individually hand-rotated and drained to create a remarkably light texture. In an age of industrialized manufacturing, our pure ingredients and simple processing provide your family with the wholesome goodness of authentic, farmhouse-style dairy foods.

Elizabeth Spencer Wines

Our belief is that wine should be delicious and representative of its appellation of origin. We make wines to drink — inviting wines that we and our friends (and by extension, our customers) truly enjoy. The model for all of our wines is intensity without excess weight, purity, persistence and length.

We source fruit from a handful of dedicated growers and a dozen vineyard blocks. Our growers provide us with continuity of high quality fruit, and we pay them fairly and reliably, in vintages of scarcity and excess. In an era of corporate grape contracts, our long-term agreements consist simply of mutual high regard and a handshake. We make Cabernet Sauvignon from select vineyards in the Napa Valley. Our Chardonnay, Pinot Noir and Syrah come from the Sonoma Coast appellation. In 2005, we produced very small quantities of Napa Valley Chardonnay, Mendocino Sauvignon Blanc and Sonoma Coast Rosé of Syrah.
Varietals

Chardonnay. We love intensely fruited Chardonnay from cool-climate California vineyards with lemony notes, minerality and minimal evidence of oak.

Pinot Noir. Our young Pinot Noirs have seductive aromatics, both dark and red fruits, earthiness and, sometimes, that rare and wonderful orange peel quality.

Syrah. Every year our grapes yield a wonderfully intense blue-black color, and a wine that really has grip.

Cabernet Sauvignon. Our Cabernet Sauvignon must smell like it comes from the Napa Valley – ripe but not overly ripe, rich, fruity and full.

We carefully monitor the annual growing cycle and fruit development through to harvest. Our wines are made to be be accessible in youth, display ample fruit and be well-balanced from the first impression through to the finish.