Dream realized in Rostraver winery
Pittsburgh Post-Gazette
Dozens of acres of hilly grass dotted with trees and a 32-room estate formerly owned by Pirates minority owner Jay Lustig make the perfect setting for Vinoski Winery, which officially opened on Friday.
“We’re trying to bring the West Coast over here,” said owner Walt Vinoski, a Western Pennsylvania native.
Mr. Vinoski, for his day job, consults on power generation failures around the world. Winemaking is just a hobby — one that he says has been in his family for centuries.
He’s been leasing space from a winery in Lodi, Calif., to make wine and is involved with another local winery, Greendance in Mount Pleasant. But the dream has always been to open a winery of his own. When the Lustig estate, colloquially known as the “Rostraver Castle,” went on sale, he was immediately interested. “It’s the ideal location,” he said. The house has 32 rooms, including eight bedrooms, 14 bathrooms and approximately 200 windows. The property spans more than 30 acres.
“The pantry closets have pantry closets,” he said. “Things just keep extending.”
Mr. Vinoski purchased the property in April for $1.95 million, negotiated down from an original selling price of $7 million, he said. In less than three months he has spent about $480,000 on renovations and other changes.
“Converting a house to a business is the hardest thing,” he said. “We’re making sure we don’t lose the ambiance.”
The property is now open for events such as weddings and corporate meetings. Mr. Vinoski has shipped in more than 5,500 cases of wine that he made in California. The winery will host tastings during its open hours from 11 a.m. to 6 p.m. Wednesday through Saturday and from 1 to 6 p.m. on Sunday. The venue has booked musical performances and other entertainment acts on Saturday and Sunday evenings for the rest of the summer.
Currently, the wine is shipped here from his California operations. But, Mr. Vinoski hopes that he will soon be making wine right in the garage, which is being converted. In two years, Mr. Vinoski plans to plant grapes to start a vineyard as well.
The winery is hosting special events for its opening weekend: live music, food trucks, caterers. The wine bar will open for tastings starting at 11 a.m. each day through Monday.
The regular tasting is $10 to sample five wines; the selections include a riesling, sparkling brut, sparkling rose, petite sirah, syrah, merlot, zinfandel and French Columbard. The premium tasting is $20 and also includes five wines Vermentino, cabernet sauvignon, chardonnay, Symphonia and reserve.
Roxanne Vinoski, Mr. Vinoski’s wife, said her favorites were the riesling and the Vermentino. Mr. Vinoski likes the reserve and cabernet for special occasions and the Petite for everday use.
The opening celebrations will conclude on a bang — literally — with a fireworks display on Monday starting at 9:30 p.m. On Monday only, the winery will charge $15 per car for evening parking. The proceeds of the parking lot will go to the Vinoski Foundation, a charitable organization.
“We try to help really a lot of kids,” Mr. Vinoski said. Ten percent of the profits of all wine sales will also go to the Vinoski Foundation.
Patti Drake from Monessen came for the opening celebrations with her mother, Florence Cipa from Carroll Township, and her sister-in-law. Ms. Drake said that without a doubt, of the wines she’d tried on the regular tasting menu, the French Colombard was her favorite.
“Beautiful place, beautiful day, good wine,” Ms. Drake said. “It’s just nice to come out and relax.”