Page 24 - BusinessWest September 4, 2023

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Kate Campiti [email protected] 413.781.8600 ext 106
Kathleen Plante [email protected] 413.781.8600 ext 108
Vine Tuned
Black Birch Vineyard Continues to Branch Out
BY GEORGE O’BRIEN
[email protected]
There are not many companies that can say that the pandemic was “probably the best thing that could have happened to us.”
But that’s the phrase Michelle Kersberger summoned as she talked about those unprecedented times. And this was not hyperbole.
Indeed, while the start of the pandemic was a diffi- cult, scary time, to say the least — Kersberger would load up her car and make deliveries to wine-club members just to bring in some much-needed revenue — by late in that summer of 2020, COVID-19 had played a major role in putting the hidden gem that was Black Birch Vineyard on the proverbial map.
“By the time August came around, we had to stop people from coming in,” she said, adding that the winery moved all its operations outdoors, and area residents starved for things to do found several at Black Birch.
“The pandemic was pandemonium. It was crazy here ... people were coming from everywhere,” said Ian Modestow, Kersberger’s husband and business partner in this venture, recalling that there were COVID-related restrictions on how many people could be seated out- doors at the winery at any given time, and on more than a few occasions, he had to park his tractor at the top of the long driveway off Straits Road in Hatfield to keep more vehicles from venturing down that gravel path.
Looking back on those days, Ian and Michelle said
“The pandemic was pandemonium. It was crazy here
... people were coming from everywhere.”
Ian Modestow and Michelle Kersberger have orchestrated steady growth at Black Birch Vineyard since launching the Hatfield operation in 2017.
24 SEPTEMBER 4, 2023 << WINERIES & BREWERIES >> BusinessWest