4A NEWS
BUSINESS
THE UNIVERSITY OF MARY KANSAS
MONDAY, NOVEMBER 9, 2009
A K O T A K
Harvesting wine among Kansas' fields of wheat
BY STEPHEN MONTEMAYOP
BY STEPHEN MONTEMAYOR
smontemayor@kansan.com
When life handed Greg Shipe
grapes, he made wine.
Shipe, now the co-owner of Davenport Orchards and Winery, said he never had any intention of taking over his grandfather's farm and later expanding it by adding 17 acres of grapes.
But without enough money to continue his education at the University of Kansas, in 1970 Ship began farming peaches, apples and pears on his grandfather's land just a stone's throw away from Lawrence.
Twenty years later, the first grapes fated to be crushed and fermented were planted at 1394 E. 1900 Rd. Seven years after that, he converted an old tool shed into a room where customers could taste and purchase the bottled libations. It even has a black walnut bar top salvaged from an old barn and polished down. It's where Shipe rests an arm as he reflects on the literal fruits of his labor.
"We wanted to make the wine 100-percent Kansas grown," Shipe said. "From the beginning we decided not to bring in any juices or grapes from anywhere else. We wanted to build an identity for Kansas wine and it has to grow in the state for us to do that."
Shipe was born in Chicago and raised in Dodge City. Before beginning farming, he was a surgery technician in the Navy during the Vietnam War.
The farm he operates with his wife, Charlee Glinka, was originally purchased by his grandparents C.W. and Mary Davenport in 1949.
It now boasts 54 rows of vines.
each a quarter-mile long — lush green in the spring and darker hues in the fall.
The most well-known U.S. wines come from places such as Napa Valley on the California coast and Martha's Vineyard south of Cape Cod. That's why some people, including Pep Solberg, owner of Bluejacket Crossing Winery, 1969 North 1250 Rd., were surprised a decent wine could be produced in the Midwest.
"I took a sample of his wine to California winemakers and experts and they told me it was different but excellent." Solberg said.
Solberg, also a University graduate, has been growing grapes for seven years and has been licensed to make wine for a year-and-a-half. He followed Shipe's lead in using only Kansas fruit.
Solberg, who moved back to Lawrence after a stint in the California bay area, said he never previously thought a Kansasgrown wine product would be worth sampling. And then he tasted Shipe's wine. That, and wanting to be closer to family, brought Solberg home.
That first glass from Shipe wasn't just a surprise, Solberg said — it was an epiphany. It largely why Solberg said he became a vintner, an occupation which Shipe said could demand between an 80- to 100-hour work week.
Josh Bryant, a part-time worker for Shipe, is finishing a degree in enology, or wine making, through the Vitticulture and Enology Science and Technology Alliance. He is honing his skills by working at Davenport Orchard and Winery and conducting taste tests of Davenport products at Topeka's historic Matrot Castle.
Bryant met Shipe when touring wineries in Kansas after deciding that he, too, wanted to take part of the state's winemaking culture.
"Greg's by far was the best of all that I went to," Bryant said of Shipe. "He really does put a lot into it. He genuinely individual."
Bryant said time devoted to grapes and wine-making was comparable to relationships with people, an approach he said Shipe consistently took.
"He puts the same care he gives to people into his wine production." Bryant said.
Michelle Meyer, co-owner of Holy-field Winery in Basehor, 18807 158th St., started a winery with her dad around the same time as Shipe. However, she said she did not see him not as a competitor, but rather a fellow member of a wine-making community. After all, they were the founding members of the Kansas Viculture and Farm Winery Association.
"He believes in the agriculture of wine," Meyer said. "He's a detailed-orientated person. He wants a quality product."
Shipe knows the different varieties of his wine are all flavorful. He'll point customers to a dry red with hints of oak or a sweet, fruity wine for a lighter palate. But in his small, converted tool shed, Shipe still pauses for a moment to consider the reception of what was initially a hobby but turned into more than just a few bunches of table grapes.
"I'm just humbled that people like what I'm doing," Shipe said. "I never thought that we could do this."
Edited by Betsy Cutliff
Hurricane Ida makes its way toward the Gulf Coast
NEW ORLEANS — Hurricane Ida, the first Atlantic hurricane to target the United States this year, plodded Sunday toward the Gulf Coast with 100 mph winds, bringing the threat of flooding and storm surges.
ASSOCIATED PRESS
A hurricane watch extended
Authorities
WEATHER
over more than 200 miles of coastline across southeastern Louisiana, Mississippi, Alabama and the Florida Panhandle. Louisiana's governor declared a state of emergency.
"It is likely we will at least be hit with strong winds and some flooding in out coastal counties."
said Ida could make landfall as early as Tuesday morning, although it was forecast to weaken by then. Officials and residents kept a close eye on the Category 2 hurricane as it approached, though there were no immediate plans for evacuations.
At 1 p.m. EST, Ida was located 510 miles south-southeast of the mouth of the Mississippi River and moving northwest near 10 mph. The latest forecast from the National Hurricane Center shows Ida brushing near Louisiana and Mississippi, then making landfall near Alabama before continuing across north Florida.
In Louisiana, Gov. Bobby Jindal had declared a state of emergency as a precaution, and the National Guard was on high alert if assistance was needed. New Orleans wasn't included in the hurricane watch.
"Even though we're telling everybody to be prepared, my gut tells me it probably won't be that bad," said Steve Arndt, director of Bay Point Marina Co. in Panama City, Fla.
JEFF RENT
Mississippi Emergency
Management Agency
spokeman
Yet many residents took the forecast in stride.
But officials were encouraging residents to prepare for potential gusts of 6 mph by removing any
tree limbs that could damage their homes and securing or bringing in any trash cans, grills, potted plants or patio furniture.
remained in Mississippi.
Nearly 1,400 Louisiana residents are still living in federally issued trailers and mobile homes after hurricanes Katrina and Rita; nearly 360 units
"FEMA stresses that those in temporary (housing) units should not take chances," Federal Emergency Management Agency spokesman Andrew Thomas said. "Leave the unit behind and evacuate to a permanen-
structure that will
better withstand
tropical weather
systems and the
associated winds"
"It is likely we will at least be hit with strong winds and some
flooding in our coastal counties," said Jeff Rent, a spokesman for the Mississippi Emergency Management Agency. Officials "do not want anybody to be caught off guard."
evacuations of lower-lying areas or school closures would be necessary.
Mississippi Emergency Management Agency Director Mike Womack said forecasts called for tides of 4-7 feet above normal and rainfall totals of 5-7 inches within 24 hours, which could mean flooding along the coasts and along rivers.
Alabama emergency management officials did not immediately respond to phone messages.
"You don't know until it gets close how you're going to be affected by it."
BRAD MONROE Bay County deputy chief of emergency services
In the Florida Panhandle, residents in Bay County and Panama City were being advised to secure boats and prepare for storm surges that could reach 2-3 feet. Heavy rain, wind and possible flooding was also expected.
"You really don't know until it gets close how you're going to be affected by it," said Brad Monroe, Bay County's deputy chief of emergency services.
Ida wasn't expected to pack the wallop seen in 2008 when hurricanes Gustav and like pelted the
Gulf Coast back to back. There have been nine named storms this season, which ends Dec. 1. Ida is only the third hurricane to form, and neither of the others threatened land.
ida wasn't expected to directly threaten
New Orleans, where unflappable fans at the Saints football game seemed unaware a storm was approaching.
RELIGION
Army chaplain asks congregation to give prayers for alleged gunman
ASSOCIATED PRESS
FORT HOOD, Texas — Mourners were asked to pray for the man authorities say went on a shooting spree at Fort Hood, and an Army chaplain exhorted his congregation on Sunday to draw together even if the gunman's motives may never be fully known.
for motive, search
"Lord, all those around us search
for motive, search for meaning,
search for something, someone to blame. That is so frustrating." Col. Frank Jackson told a group of about 120 people gathered at the post's chapel. "Today, we pause to hear from
Worshippers hugged each other and raised their hands in prayer during the service, in which Jackson asked the congregation to pray for the 13 dead and 29 wounded that Maj. Nidal Malik Hasan is accused of shooting. The chaplain also urged the crowd to pray for Hasan and his family "as they find themselves in a position that no person ever desires to be."
A soldier reads the Bible during church service at the First Air Calvary Division Memorial Chapel at Fort Hood, Texas, on Sunday.
"And Lord, teach us to love and
"The piece that most are troubled with right now is the location of where it happened ..."
JOHN ROSSI U.S. Army colonel
pray for those who rise up against us and pray for those who do us harm. We pray for Maj. Hasan. Asking that you do the work that only you can do in his life"Jackson said.
you. So Lord, as we pray together,
we focus on things we know
Across the sprawling post and inneighboring Kilkenn
At least 16 victims remained hospitalized with gunshot wounds, and seven were in intensive care.
to make sense of the shootings.
Candles burned Saturday night outside the apartment complex where Hasan lived. Small white crosses, one for each of the dead, dotted a lawn at a Killeen church on Sunday.
Even as the community took time to mourn the victims at worship services on and off the post, Col. John Rossi acknowledged that the country's largest military installation was moving forward with its usual business of soldiering. The processing center where Hasan allegedly opened fire on Thursday remains a crime scene, but the activities that went on there were relocated, with the goal of reopening the center as soon as Sunday.
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Fort Hood is "continuing to prepare for the mission at hand," Rossi said. "There's a lot of routine activity still happening. You'll hear cannon fire and artillery fire, Soldiers in units are still trying to execute the missions we have been tasked with."
But the specter of the shooting
lingers on the post. Rossi acknowledged that psychic wounds could be deep.
Military criminal investigators continue to refer to Hasan as the only suspect in the shootings but won't say when charges would be
"The piece that most are troubled with right now is the location of where it happened and how it could happen," he said. "We know that problems sometimes take a while to manifest themselves in an individual and might come up in a later time period."
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filed. Hasan, who was shot by civilian police to end the rampage, was in critical but stable condition at an Army hospital in San Antonio. He was breathing on his
"If Hasan was showing signs ... the U.S. Army has to have zero tolerance. He should have been gone."
JOE LIEBERMAN U.S. senator
authorized to discuss the case said an initial review of Hasan's computer use has found no evidence of links to terror groups or anyone who might have helped plan or push him toward the attack. The review of Hasan's computer is continuing, the official said.
Governmental Affairs Committee, said he plans to begin a congressional investigation to determine whether the shootings constitute a terrorist attack. Lieberman, an
Army investigators on Sunday were searching for additional evidence to put together a comprehensive bullet trajectory analysis. Investigators were "seeking any military or civilian personnel who may have left the scene ... with gunshot damage such as damaged privately owned vehicles." Fort Hood spokesman Chris Haug said in a statement.
Hasan likely would face military justice rather than federal criminal charges if investigators determine the violence was the work of just one person.
Sen. Joe Lieberman, chairman of the Senate Homeland Security and
independent from Connecticut, said on "Fox News Sunday" that he wants to find out whether the Army missed warning signs that Hasan was becoming extreme.
"If Hasan was showing signs, saying to people that he had become an Islamist extremist, the U.S.
Army has to have zero tolerance," he said. "He should have been gone."
Army Chief of Staff George Casey warned against reaching conclusions about the suspected shooter's motives until investigators have fully explored the attack. He said on ABC's "This Week" that focusing on Hasan's Islamic roots could "heighten the backlash" against all Muslims in the military.
There had been signs in recent months that Hasan's growing anger with the U.S. wars in Iraq and Afghanistan were at odds with his military service, including his comments that the war on terror was "a war on Islam." Others who knew Hasan, an Army psychiatrist, said he had wrestled with what to tell fellow Muslim soldiers who had their doubts about fighting in Islamic countries.
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