Cellardoor Vineyard    
         
 
Vineyard Blog
"...We had a great time at your Harvest Festival... what an awesome place!"
Patty & Joe
Boston, MA
 
Bettina & John
Vineyard Owners
Bettina Doulton
On the day (a cold, cloud-covered December Maine day) that I first set foot on the property… this unbelievable and undoubtedly charmed place… I was awed by its beauty and instantly swept away by the possibilities.

Growing up, my dad and I had shared a love of the outdoors, the water and fresh air, and had talked about owning a business together someday. The dream of owning a business always stayed with me. - I spent a terrific 21 years as an analyst and portfolio manager at Fidelity Investments in Boston when I had a wake up call in the form of a cancer diagnosis. Thankfully I survived that fight—and I was reminded that we only have so many years to do the things we really want to do.

I love welcoming our guests to a truly beautiful place. I love providing them with an opportunity to get away from the rat race. And I’ve found more pride in preserving a 200 year old barn than I ever could have imagined. We’re honored to be shepherds of the history and tradition of this place—a place where it’s easy to picture a dream becoming reality.

John Tynan
I have a lot of loves. I love my family… I love to read… I love to write… I love the work I’ve been able to do throughout my life. And I love wine. For a long time, I’ve had a personal dream of owning and operating my own vineyard—no kidding.

Through a confluence of events dating back 6 years, my wife and I were enjoying a week’s vacation in Maine when we first visited Cellardoor in the summer of 2006. There was a sign printed on plain paper hanging on a post in the barn that day that very simply said, “John & Stephanie are retiring and looking for someone to love the Vineyard.” Fate had brought us to the barn that day and seeing that sign was a confirmation of that. It turned out that Bettina and I were both ready to chase some dreams.

Since B and I started in early 2007, I’ve been intellectually stimulated by the art and science of winemaking-- and of owning a farm. Sure, we’re from away. But everyone here has made us feel more welcomed than we ever could have expected, and we take our role of stewardship at this centuries-old farm very seriously. This is Maine’s first vineyard… and we’re proud to “keep it growing!”