ABOUT SELBY WINERY
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| Susie Selby with John Azevedo from the Azevedo Vineyard enjoy a glass of Selby Cabernet Sauvignon |
While Selby Winery is only sixteen years old, it's fair to say that our family's love for land and wine goes back decades. My father grew up in South Bend, Indiana, in the midst of honest seasons and fertile farmland. After Dad served in Vietnam as a helicopter combat surgeon, he moved the whole family to Dallas in the 1960s. So what does this have to do with wine?
Simply put, Dad loved wine as much as his medical career. He was quite a connoisseur. Big and powerful, famous or unknown, delicate or sublime, Dad loved it all. He enjoyed wine before it was fashionable, and loved it even more when he had his own vintages to share with his family, friends and the rest of the world.
Dad shared his passion for wine with me. He encouraged me to taste all sorts of wine when I was growing up, and enthralled me with the history and romance of winemaking.
In the 80's, my parents took numerous trips to the wine country and by 1990, my father dreamed of having the Selby label.
Perhaps it was a bit of his dream that rubbed off on me. It just took me a while to realize my calling. I pursued a career in marketing and development after receiving a BA in economics from Vanderbilt University, followed by a MBA from George Washington University.
Still, it wasn't until I helped my father with one or two wine projects that I seized the opportunity to get in the business. It was then that I began to learn how to make wine, leaving the corporate world behind.
I learned everything I could by doing it myself. I began as a tasting room manager, then moved into marketing and compliance. I learned about the mechanics of winemaking when I became a cellar rat, so I could work with barrels and wine, drive a forklift, manage a cellar and warehouse, help with harvest and crush. From there, I became an assistant winemaker, thus learning the finer techniques of winemaking.
Selby Winery is the result of 13 years of hands-on labor: In its own facility with a library of award-winning wines and a coterie of supporters. From our very first vintage, which was 150 cases of 1993 Chardnnay, I've been doing what I love.
We've come a long way since those early days, and I wouldn't be telling the truth if I didn't say that I encountered more than a few obstacles. Through it all, however, there's always been one truth.
We love wine. We only make wines we love to drink. That's why we're in the business of winemaking today.
~Susie Selby~