Long before at home-brew kits and microbreweries began to
dot the landscape of small and large cities alike, Firehouse Brewing Company,
located in the historic fire hall on Main Street Rapid City, opened its doors
as the first microbrewery in the state of South Dakota. In fact, at that time (1991), one had to drive
hours and hours and cross several states before finding an establishment of its
kind. No, this isn’t another blog where
I “cheat” on wine and talk about beer…although I could. The Firehouse is doing a little cheating of
its own by getting into the wine business and fermenting grapes behind the
backs of all the hops it loves!
Starting the fire--Firehouse beer brewing.
The affair with wine officially started over a year ago when
Firehouse owner Bob and brewer Mike decided to continue their experiment of
fermenting just about anything and add grapes to the mix. They contracted with a vineyard outside of
Rapid to produce Firehouse wines with South Dakota grapes. Due to a hail storm this summer, and more
ambition than originally planned, the local grapes were supplemented with
California juice to produce quite a variety of white and red wines. Brewer Mike now splits his time between the
grapes and the hops as he continues his education through a California
winemaker’s program. Mike also receives on-the-job
training from a consultant from California who has frequented South Dakota
during the first vintage of Firehouse wines.
The consultant just spent time in Rapid to oversee the bottling of the
California Syrah and will be back at the end of February to continue work on
the wines. March is the projected, and
hopeful, release date of the inaugural vintage of Firehouse vino.
Wine making facilities; the original plan was only a tank or two!
Basement barrel room.
The Sweet Sommelier and her sidekick in the barrel room.
Firehouse wines should have something for just about everyone. Brianna and La Crescent, South Dakota hybrids,
will make a lighter-bodied, off-dry wine, while an orange Muscat and a Gewürztraminer
will be the sweet and citrusy whites.
Other whites will include the unique grape varieties of Chenin Blanc and
Viognier. Red wine lovers, don’t worry—there
will be plenty for you, too! Marquette
and Frontenac, more South Dakota grapes, will start the list of dryer
wines. There will also be the usual and
unique suspects of Merlot, Syrah, Pinot Noir, Cabernet Sauvignon, and
Sangiovese. A delicate rose from
Grenache will round out the lineup of still wines. I am also looking forward to the Port-style wine
that is being barrel-aged until ready.
Tasting room area with tasting bar outlined in blue.
VIP room and additional tasting space.
The production and tasting areas are still works in progress. The fermentation area sits behind the current
Firehouse and upcoming tasting room. The
barrel room is in the actual basement under the historic buildings. With the stone walls, this will eventually
make a beautiful space for customers to see all steps in the wine-making process. Future plans include staining the beams of this
basement ceiling for better ambiance.
Though the tasting bar is currently under construction, the layout of
the actual bar space is in place, and the storefronts will make a perfect new
addition to downtown Rapid. 
Store front area--the future location of Firehouse Wines.
The Firehouse has been a trailblazer (fire pun intended) in
the beer business in this area. That
spark has now started the fire for wine production. Cheating on his great friend beer may keep
Brewer Mike on his toes, but this new venture will fire up Black Hills wine
lovers, just as Firehouse beer did for beer lovers two decades ago. I am counting down to having yet another
winery on the fast-growing Black Hills wine trail.
