Up Close: Winemakers Stephen and Shannon Mackey

By Charity Corkey (Contact)

Tuesday, April 7, 2009

Rather than matching wine with food, Stephen and Shannon Mackey prefer pairing wine with music, and in June 2008, the couple founded Notaviva Vineyards – meaning "music note, with life"- in Purcellville.

Today, the couple is busy running the winery and a family of two young boys (with one on the way).

In this e-mail interview, Shannon and Stephen discuss how they met, when they first tasted wine and their favorite aspect of the winemaking business.

Q: When did you have your first glass of wine and what was your reaction to it?

A: Stephen while in Spain on the Julio Iglesias "Calor" tour (now the name of one of our wines!) and found it fascinating that the same varietal could be so different across different regions of that country. Shannon's first wine, a white zinfandel, was at a family dinner and she thought it was terrible.

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Notaviva Vineyards

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The timber frame of the Mackeys home at Notaviva was one of the reasons HGTV producers were attracted to the project. (Rachael Dickson)

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The performance stage in Notaviva's main building is raised on a loft and speakers positioned around the room ensure audio clarity from every spot in the room. (Rachael Dickson)

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Stephen Mackey shows off the land at Notaviva. Stephen and his wife Shannon were married on the land in June 2004 in the midst of creating their vineyard. (Rachael Dickson)

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The curved tasting bar in Notaviva was built specially as a counterpoint to the straight angles and timber frames throughout the room. (Rachael Dickson)

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Inside the main building of Notaviva Vineyards, which is being featured in the 18th season of HGTV's "Dream House" series. (Rachael Dickson)

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Instruments wait on the stage at Notaviva. The Mackeys like to combine the wine tasting experience with different types of music and have designed their tasting room accordingly. (Rachael Dickson)

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Stephen Mackey of Notaviva Vineyards gives a kiss to his 3-year old son Tristan. (Rachael Dickson)

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A look at the tasting bar from the stage above. (Rachael Dickson)

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Stephen Mackey displays many items from his touring days with musicians, including memorabilia from Jars of Clay and Amy Grant. (Rachael Dickson)

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The view from Notaviva's music loft, complete with a drop down screen. The multimedia technology in the room includes 17 carefully positioned speakers which allow the audience to hear the live music from any location. (Rachael Dickson)

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Stephen Mackey opens the high deer fence built around the vineyard to protect it. (Rachael Dickson)

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The vineyards at Notaviva, as seen during June. (Rachael Dickson)

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The main building at Notaviva boasts catwalks alongside the stage, which sits on a loft. (Rachael Dickson)

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Q: When and how did you first become interested in wine?

A: Mainly due to travels abroad - being exposed by professional colleagues who were wine-savvy saying, "you have to try this wine in this country with this dish…"

Q: How did you and Stephen meet?

A: We met in March 1993 at the Dade County Youth Fair, which recruited students from the University of Miami to work as technicians on the live shows. Shannon was a freshman at UM and Stephen had graduated the previous May but had worked the fair previously. It is fun to mention that we got engaged at the 2003 fair in the exact same event tent where we met ten years earlier!

Q: What was your career before you and Stephen decided to build Notaviva?

A: Shannon was in digital media business development at WWE and Stephen was working in software development and online market research product development for Greenfield Online, after retiring from the touring world in 1998. We were living in New Haven, Conn. We actually "commuted" from Connecticut to Virginia 72 times on weekends between winter 2003 and fall 2004 to begin clearing land for the vineyard and build our own wedding site in the woods at the rear of the property. We would leave Connecticut after work on Friday night, get in to Virginia after midnight, work Saturday, work Sunday, leave for Connecticut Sunday night and be at work on Monday. Essentially the business plan and brand vision for Notaviva Vineyards was created on the interstates in our SUV.

Q: Did you give up your jobs to run the winery?

A: No, we left the corporate world in February 2008, but the extensive financial resources necessary to found a winery, and our lack thereof, required us to launch another business, Mesh Multimedia, which we also run from our home. Mesh provides creative multimedia services - video production, Web and graphic design - to enterprises, foundations and small businesses. In a nutshell we launched TWO home-based businesses in March 2008 and both are thriving, but it does keep us extremely busy!

Q: You and your husband pair your wines with music. What is your favorite music-wine combination and why?

A: Stephen prefers the "Cantabile" Cabernet Franc with orchestral film scores and Shannon likes "Vincerò" Viognier with 80's metal ballads - guilty pleasures.

Q: Why is Virginia's soil and climate ideal for planting a vineyard?

A: Many factors go into site, varietal and rootstock selection. There is a very complex interplay of criteria that goes into these selections, and one of the main reasons the Loudoun and Virginia wine industries have evolved to this point of quality is the remarkable amount of knowledge transfer between universities, consultants and entrepreneurs. It is widely acknowledged that some varietals are just not suited for Virginia, where others can produce world-class wines, so the key is to match the best varietals to your particular site. Our soil is considered "prime orchard," which can produce very vigorous vines so we go to great lengths to "de-vigor" the canopy to ensure optimum fruit ripeness.

Q: Does Virginia soil produce a different flavor than, for example, California soil?

A: Absolutely, and that is the whole point! We have no intention of ever trying to duplicate wines from another region. What is beautiful and unique about wine is that it is truly a reflection of the terroir in which it was produced. You can take the same vine and plant it in different vineyards around the world and each resulting wine will be different. Our job as winemakers is to capture our terroir and make an individual statement.

Q: What is your favorite part about the wine-making process?

A: There is a tie for first. One is smelling and tasting wine right out of the barrel. The hyper-intensity of the aromas and flavors is just incredible. The second is waking up on harvest morning. Eyes flying open from anticipation at 4 a.m., making coffee (takes a LOT of coffee to make wine!) and looking out over the vineyard as the sun begins to come up, chill in the air. You feel so alive and in touch with the land, as well as with the dream we had when we set out to do this.

Q: How has the economy affected Notaviva Vineyards, which you officially opened in late 2008?

A:: We've found that we are still getting solid traffic as people opt for "stay-cations" instead of vacation travel abroad and as Loudoun establishes itself as a quality wine region, but that case purchases are down in favor of one-to-three bottle purchases. That said, as a new business we very much believe that our brand design of "Wine – Music – America" is such a unique differentiator that we're grateful for each and every purchase, confident that customers have experienced something special during their visit and that they will be back. We've seen this so many times already - people who visited last summer or fall are back already bringing friends and larger groups. We feel those customer recommendations and return visits are our greatest measure of success.

Q: Have you made any marketing adjustments since 2008 to stay afloat?

A: We realized after several successful corporate retreats last year that we have a real niche in the "unique meeting space" area, and are offering deep venue rental discounts to meeting planners and corporate marketing teams. Our large indoor space, wireless Internet and unrivaled audiovisual system allow for fully-functional corporate meetings and presentations, complemented by award-winning wines, high-end catering and winemaker presentations.

Q: Where is your favorite place in Loudoun to take your family?

A: Grandma's house! And also Great Country Farms and Curiosity Zone.

Q: Tell us something about yourself that would surprise your customers at Notaviva.

A: [During] 1996-1997 Shannon was the on-air personality for a Florida rock radio station and plays electric and classical guitar. And on Stephen's travels as a touring audio engineer, he visited 42 countries on six continents and has been to all 50 states. He hopes to visit Antarctica with his grown children to complete the continent list, and will probably take the penguins some wine.

Tagged: entertainment, Notaviva Vineyards, Purcellville, Up Close, wine, winery

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