Dover business takes advantage of Millbrook wine

MILLBROOK — “It’s a great way to give personal service,” said Millbrook Winery Marketing & Customer Relations Manager Jaclyn Wisniewski.

The Millbrook Winery provides an in-house graphic design service to its customers. Anyone can submit an inquiry form in person or online to have a custom label made on one of their wine bottles. 

Customers can choose from different options and templates to start the process. Those interested can also submit their own photos, color, quotes and/or artwork. 

After submitting an inquiry form, the request is then further examined by Director of Marketing Stacy Hudson. Hudson will follow up with an email or phone call to get an understanding of what the customer has in mind. Following that, artwork is submitted and the designing process begins. Millbrook Winery will come up with two to three proofs.  From there, the customer decides which proof best fits his or her vision. 

Any bottle in Millbrook Winery’s portfolio can be customized, according to Wisniewski.

Customers must buy one case at minimum; custom labels cost $2 per bottle. Customers can also mix a case with two different wines. 

This service has been popular for holiday seasons, weddings, special events and businesses.

Berkshire Wine and Spirits, located in Dover Plains purchases custom wine from the Millbrook Winery. The wine is a store specialty, known as owner David Graham’s pinot noir; it’s called Dave’s Wine.  

Graham collaborated with his neighbor, Siobhan Diamond, to create the label. The label has an image of Al Capone with his famous smile, little crinkled eyes and a cigar dangling from his mouth.

“It only took a few hours to sketch the label and color it,” said Diamond. “The longest part was coming up with the idea and then editing it. The end result probably took four to five hours.”

Diamond has been drawing ever since she was a little girl. By the age of 12 she became especially interested in anime and comic books. 

“Their art really inspired me to focus on mine,” said Diamond. 

Before living in New York, Diamond lived in Farmington Hills, Mich. Her grandmother was an art teacher and would often take her to the Detroit Institute of Art.

“It was my favorite place to go when I was younger,” said Diamond.

Diamond designed the label four years ago when she was a junior at Dover High School. Her mom, Colleen, worked at Berkshire Wine and Spirits.  

“We were all close and would hang out on the weekends,” said Diamond. “Dave and Joanne knew I was into art and they asked if I would like to do it. They thought it would be a great opportunity to get my name out there and it was.”  

It started when Graham tasted a wine in California that he loved.  Since then, he tried to find something comparable.

“I went on a hunt looking for something with the same structure, “ said Graham. 

After searching, Graham came upon Millbrook Winery’s pinot noir.  The winery had suggested the idea of Graham putting his own label on it. 

“She’s always doing artsy stuff,” said Graham about Diamond. “I told her, ‘Let’s make this something cool for us.’” 

The pinot noir has been a popular item for Berkshire Wine and Spirits. According to Graham, it’s a great wine to pair with a meal like chicken or pork chops. In addition, it’s a great wine on its own. 

“It’s universal,” said Graham about the wine. 

Berkshire Wine and Spirits has offered Dave’s Wine for four years and continues to do so. A bottle can be purchased for $14.99. The store is located at 3238 Route 22, Dover Plains.

For more information on how to customize a wine bottle label through the Millbrook Winery go to www.millbrookwine.com.