I grew up in Ozaukee county, living in Cedarburg and Grafton until I turned 18 and went away for College. After College I moved to Austin TX for work, and spent 10 years building a career, making amazing friends and eating the best damn tacos north of the border.
In Texas, I absolutely fell in love with the food scene, the breweries, the wineries & wine bars —Austin has a spectacularly vibrant food & drink culture.
The culture looks like this: Grab some locally made beer/wine/liquor, make some traditional food (bbq, tacos, and crawfish boils mostly) , then put on your boots and go share it all with friends and family until the wee hours of the morning. Texas is so damn proud of their local products and their food traditions, and I loved that.
But one day I had this realization: “I like Texas, but I’m not proud of it. I’m proud of Wisconsin.”
I decided right then and there: the winery business plan I’d been working on for 5 years is finally ready so it’s time to head back to Wisconsin and get to work.
My core motivation for building Anton Vincent Winery in my hometown is to give Wisconsinites another thing to be proud of: great wine made from local grapes, to share with your friends and family.
A Recap of 2021 at Anton Vincent Winery
I’ve now been back in Wisconsin for just over 13 months, and it’s been a real whirlwind of a year.
In the past year (with so much help from friends and family), we’ve managed to:
Start raising money form investors
Purchase 20 acres of beautiful land
Buy (and learn how to drive) a tractor!
Plant 2 full vineyards (2,000 grape vines!)
Get local town approval to begin the construction process
We had originally planned to start construction on the tasting room at the end of 2021, but lumber and construction costs skyrocketed at the exact wrong time, causing our projected building cost to triple! We made the tough decision to delay to see if costs come down.
What’s In Store for 2022:
Now, in 2022 my major goal is to finish raising investment capital, so that as soon as we’re comfortable with the construction costs, we can pull the trigger and start building!
I’ve made some good progress on raising capital, but there’s still a ways to go — so I’m asking for your help!
If you know of any local investors who might be interested to learn more about investing in the winery, I’d greatly appreciate an introduction! I’d love to connect with people who share my passion for wine, sustainability, local products, and giving back to the local community.
Feel free to reach out to me if you know someone I should talk to! I can be reached at: john@antonvincent.com
Wishing you all an incredible and fulfilling 2022! Cheers,
John Leo Weber
Owner/Winemaker at Anton Vincent Winery
john@antonvincent.com