About Us
Thomas G. Mitchell
Graduate of University of Wisconsin, Madison Campus, BS, 1967, Emphasis in Zoology, strong background in science and agriculture. Member of the 1966 National Championship Wisconsin Crew.
Publications:
Basic Brewing (in this E Book) for Finger Lakes Wine Festival
Grapes for Home Winemakers, AWS Home Winemaking Seminar 1992
Michigan State Horticulture Society, 121 Annual Report, 1991
Vineyards and Winery Management, November/December 1991. "Pruning Eastern Vineyards for Quality and Economy."
Chardonnay - A one Day Symposium of Production in NYS, Proceedings of May 1988 "Optimizing cold Temperature Survivability in Chardonnay."
Eastern Grape Grower and Winery News, June July 1984. "Cold Climate Management of White Riesling in the Finger Lakes."
Eastern Grape Grower and Winery News, October 1980. "A Case History in Grape Marketing: Fall Bright 1977-1980."
1967-1972: Assistant Wildlife Refuge Manager - United States Fish and Wildlife Service, Great Swamp National Wildlife Refuge, Basking Ridge, NJ.
1972-1977: Assistant Vineyard Manager - Eastside Industries, Inc. Dundee, NY 120 acres of vineyard. Planned use of and applied all pesticides, performed all task required in a vineyard operation. Supervised 3 full time employees and up to 30 part time employees.
1977-present: Self employed grape grower, Pa'tridge Run Farms, Dundee, NY Owner-operator of original 36 acres of mostly native, replanted in 1984 to 21 acres of French Hybrid and Viniferas, some native varieties.
1978-present: developed alternate markets and started pressing operation of Fall Bright, The Winemakers Shoppe.
Off the farm vineyard experience: 1982-1994 Vineyard and Grower Relations Manager - The Taylor Wine Company, Hammondsport, NY. Responsibility included decision making, planning, budgeting, contracting and scheduling of all operations and personnel in the three farm, 1110 acre Finger Lakes vineyard operation including 150 acres of Vinifera Grapes. Administration of grower relations program included communicating with growers, contracting grape requirements, scheduling of grape deliveries and pressing operation. Interacted with Director of Wine Production to coordinate the activities of our departments.
This position was achieved through promotions to increasingly more responsible positions, spanning various mergers and acquisitions as outlined:
1982 - Hired by Gold Seal Vineyards, Inc. as Assistant Vineyard Manager
1983 - Promoted to Vineyard Manager.
1984 - Gold Seal Merged with Taylor, Great Western, retained a s Assistant Vineyard Manager.
1985 - Promoted to Vineyard Manager of combined operation.
1990 - Given additional responsibility of administrating Grower Relations - Promoted to Vineyard and Grower Relations Manager.
1994 - When the company (Taylor Wine Company) was acquired by Canandaigua Wine Company, this position was a duplicate of existing positions and his position was eliminated.
"Marcy" Marcelle R. Mitchell
1967 Associated Degree in Dental Hygiene from Broom Tech in Binghamton, NY
1968 Married Tom Mitchell
We have 3 children, Tom Jr., Megan and Corlin, all college graduates who worked along side us while planting, pounding post, stringing wire, tying, suckering, and spraying up until they left
home. Tom Jr. is a music teacher in Hammondsport, NY. He pursued his masters in Japan in music and lived overseas for 8 years. Megan is an Interior Design graduate of Buffalo
State and is an insurance broker in Canandaigua, NY. Corlin just graduated from Keuka College, Keuka, NY. We have 4 grandchildren.
Marcy has been working part to full time since 1980 maintaining consistency in house hold income, while Mother Nature plays with crop yields and weather and the media plays with good grapes-bad
grapes issues. Our winemakers can make award winning wines from vintage grapes as well as from grapes from challenged harvest!
I want to thank Luci our shop keeper for proof-reading and tweaking this book. She was an invaluable helper.