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Branching into agri-tourism
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| H&N photo by Andrew Mariman Annie Sedlacek, right, and sister Niki Hamilton work the nursery at Rock Bottom Ranch near Bonanza. Sedlacek owns the ranch near Bonanza with her husband, Leslie. |
Farms and ranches are finding new markets, customers
By DD BIXBY
H&N Staff Writer
The truck Rod Kucera used to deliver milk as a teenager now has six taps on one side that draw beer, not milk.
The change is part of an evolution of the Merrill-area dairy purchased in 1967 by Kucera’s parents, who operated it and sent milk as far as Bend, LaPine and Lakeview.
Today, Kucera produces and delivers beer from the same site.
The Kuceras’ dairy turned brewery will celebrate 11 years Aug. 23, and Kucera will throw a party featuring live music, food and, of course, beer.
Hosting events is the next stage in the dairy’s evolution, he said.
Rod Kucera and his wife, Jodi, aren’t the only farming family to diversify into a niche that’s being called agri-tourism.
Agriculture typically garners slim profit returns over production costs, Klamath Basin Research and Extension Center Director Willie Riggs said. Diversifying operations is just a way farmers and ranchers can seek out and develop niche markets.
Agri-tourism is gaining in popularity because it draws in a new customer base. The niche includes dude ranches, event sites and out-of-the-way recreation sites far from crowded campgrounds.
Other agri-tourism sites are out there, Travel Klamath executive director Dawnn Brown said opportunities to develop that market abound in the area and she’s looking forward to seeing more.
Four area farming and ranching families are among those branching into the agri-tourism field.
The Kuceras: From milk to beer
Though hay is cut and cattle graze on the pastureland surrounding the barns, Rod Kucera says the family business — a partnership between his parents and him and his wife, Jodi — refocused on the restaurant and brewery, and he would almost call his ranch a “hobby farm.”
Today, Kucera sells about 90 percent of his brew in the family restaurant Mia’s and Pia’s Pizzeria and Brewhouse, and production output has reached about 1,000 kegs a year.
The evolution from agriculture to the restaurant industry has been a nearly 30 year process.
In the 1980s, the dairy was part of the federal dairy buyout program, and the barns had been standing empty until about 1995, when Kucera attended a microbrew festival and stumbled onto a small seminar on microbrewing.
The people running the seminar said stainless steel and especially old dairy equipment made a nice set up for smaller craft breweries.
And so Kucera began converting his dairy into a brewery.
Where cows were once milked is a masher and kettle used for the first stage of the making suds. And where crates of milk used to be stored, beer sits in three large tanks until ales, pilsners and lagers have aged enough to be put into kegs.
By 1996, Kucera completed his first year of brewing, producing and selling 166 kegs.
Kucera said as the brewery has grown, the lawn area around it became a better places for events such as reunions, parties and weddings.
He said future plans include tearing down an older building and landscaping the area with ponds, flower beds and awnings to create a place to host weddings.
Stukel Mountain rising in the background makes it picture perfect, Kucera said. The location hosted its first wedding this year.
The Mastens: 12 Ranch Wines
BONANZA — Against the background of their own 12 Ranch and neighboring ranches, Connie and Ken Masten are making wine.
The couple has been involved in ranching — raising cattle and running a hay and grain operation — since they were children.
Now they’ve added wine to the mix.
It started in 2004 after Connie took a wine-making class in Medford. The class had been a birthday present from her husband, and that first year, she produced five gallons.
Five years later, the Mastens are making 500 cases a year — or more than 1,000 gallons — and plan on reaching an annual output of 1,000 cases each year.
Masten buys her grapes from Southern Oregon vineyards, mostly in the Rogue Valley, and sells most of the wine locally.
A new storage and aging building for the wine operation are on a knoll, and in late June, Masten was looking over plans from a local landscape artist to help develop the area into a wedding and event destination.
The Sedlaceks and the Hamiltons
BONANZA — The owners of Rock Bottom Ranch found it easy to ready their part of their 540 acres to become a destination for events.
In 2000, Annie and Leslie Sedlacek bought the ranch near Bonanza. Today 25 acres are used for a the nursery and koi business that the Sedlaceks own with Annie’s sister and brother-in-law Niki and John Hamilton.
The developed part of the ranch includes show beds and ponds, displaying various plants and trees native to southcentral Oregon’s high desert.
But other challenges stymied the tourism-side of their business.
“The biggest challenge now is to get people in their car and drive,” said Annie Sedlacek, adding that gas prices even keep people wanting to buy nursery stock from reaching their nook.
The display beds serve as a perfect backdrop for events and pictures, Sedlacek said. The tourism component of the business is attracting visitors to see the koi operation and view the large, multi-colored fish.
The Wordens and the Duncans
SPRAGUE RIVER — In Sprague River, Chris and Dennis Worden, and their daughter and son-in-law Cameron and Garret Duncan, are working to develop a “bed and barn” business at their ranch that is adjacent to a segment of the OC&E trail.
Chris Worden said the ranch dates back to the 1800s and was once the site of several different mills with 21 cabins.
Only three cabins stand today, and Worden said the goal is to, within three years, fix up one cabin for as an overnight resort and have the other serve as a communal cabin with games, tables, a stove and other amenities. The barn is for horse tenants.
The ranch is open to tent and trailer campers now, and Worden said they hope to eventually have RV hookups, too.
In July, the ranch hosted its first horse clinic, and Worden said she expects more riding, big loop and other ranch horse events to be there in the future.
The change is part of an evolution of the Merrill-area dairy purchased in 1967 by Kucera’s parents, who operated it and sent milk as far as Bend, LaPine and Lakeview.
Today, Kucera produces and delivers beer from the same site.
The Kuceras’ dairy turned brewery will celebrate 11 years Aug. 23, and Kucera will throw a party featuring live music, food and, of course, beer.
Hosting events is the next stage in the dairy’s evolution, he said.
Rod Kucera and his wife, Jodi, aren’t the only farming family to diversify into a niche that’s being called agri-tourism.
Agriculture typically garners slim profit returns over production costs, Klamath Basin Research and Extension Center Director Willie Riggs said. Diversifying operations is just a way farmers and ranchers can seek out and develop niche markets.
Agri-tourism is gaining in popularity because it draws in a new customer base. The niche includes dude ranches, event sites and out-of-the-way recreation sites far from crowded campgrounds.
Other agri-tourism sites are out there, Travel Klamath executive director Dawnn Brown said opportunities to develop that market abound in the area and she’s looking forward to seeing more.
Four area farming and ranching families are among those branching into the agri-tourism field.
The Kuceras: From milk to beer
Though hay is cut and cattle graze on the pastureland surrounding the barns, Rod Kucera says the family business — a partnership between his parents and him and his wife, Jodi — refocused on the restaurant and brewery, and he would almost call his ranch a “hobby farm.”
Today, Kucera sells about 90 percent of his brew in the family restaurant Mia’s and Pia’s Pizzeria and Brewhouse, and production output has reached about 1,000 kegs a year.
The evolution from agriculture to the restaurant industry has been a nearly 30 year process.
In the 1980s, the dairy was part of the federal dairy buyout program, and the barns had been standing empty until about 1995, when Kucera attended a microbrew festival and stumbled onto a small seminar on microbrewing.
The people running the seminar said stainless steel and especially old dairy equipment made a nice set up for smaller craft breweries.
And so Kucera began converting his dairy into a brewery.
Where cows were once milked is a masher and kettle used for the first stage of the making suds. And where crates of milk used to be stored, beer sits in three large tanks until ales, pilsners and lagers have aged enough to be put into kegs.
By 1996, Kucera completed his first year of brewing, producing and selling 166 kegs.
Kucera said as the brewery has grown, the lawn area around it became a better places for events such as reunions, parties and weddings.
He said future plans include tearing down an older building and landscaping the area with ponds, flower beds and awnings to create a place to host weddings.
Stukel Mountain rising in the background makes it picture perfect, Kucera said. The location hosted its first wedding this year.
The Mastens: 12 Ranch Wines
BONANZA — Against the background of their own 12 Ranch and neighboring ranches, Connie and Ken Masten are making wine.
The couple has been involved in ranching — raising cattle and running a hay and grain operation — since they were children.
Now they’ve added wine to the mix.
It started in 2004 after Connie took a wine-making class in Medford. The class had been a birthday present from her husband, and that first year, she produced five gallons.
Five years later, the Mastens are making 500 cases a year — or more than 1,000 gallons — and plan on reaching an annual output of 1,000 cases each year.
Masten buys her grapes from Southern Oregon vineyards, mostly in the Rogue Valley, and sells most of the wine locally.
A new storage and aging building for the wine operation are on a knoll, and in late June, Masten was looking over plans from a local landscape artist to help develop the area into a wedding and event destination.
The Sedlaceks and the Hamiltons
BONANZA — The owners of Rock Bottom Ranch found it easy to ready their part of their 540 acres to become a destination for events.
In 2000, Annie and Leslie Sedlacek bought the ranch near Bonanza. Today 25 acres are used for a the nursery and koi business that the Sedlaceks own with Annie’s sister and brother-in-law Niki and John Hamilton.
The developed part of the ranch includes show beds and ponds, displaying various plants and trees native to southcentral Oregon’s high desert.
But other challenges stymied the tourism-side of their business.
“The biggest challenge now is to get people in their car and drive,” said Annie Sedlacek, adding that gas prices even keep people wanting to buy nursery stock from reaching their nook.
The display beds serve as a perfect backdrop for events and pictures, Sedlacek said. The tourism component of the business is attracting visitors to see the koi operation and view the large, multi-colored fish.
The Wordens and the Duncans
SPRAGUE RIVER — In Sprague River, Chris and Dennis Worden, and their daughter and son-in-law Cameron and Garret Duncan, are working to develop a “bed and barn” business at their ranch that is adjacent to a segment of the OC&E trail.
Chris Worden said the ranch dates back to the 1800s and was once the site of several different mills with 21 cabins.
Only three cabins stand today, and Worden said the goal is to, within three years, fix up one cabin for as an overnight resort and have the other serve as a communal cabin with games, tables, a stove and other amenities. The barn is for horse tenants.
The ranch is open to tent and trailer campers now, and Worden said they hope to eventually have RV hookups, too.
In July, the ranch hosted its first horse clinic, and Worden said she expects more riding, big loop and other ranch horse events to be there in the future.
Reader Comments
The following are comments from the readers. In no way do they represent the view of HeraldAndNews.com. Comment Disclaimer: The editors of heraldandnews.com reserve the right to refuse publication of any comment posted for consideration. We may refuse for any reason, including use of profanity, disparaging comments, libelous comments, etc. Any reader who notices a comment they believe is particularly offensive, should notify us at webmaster@heraldandnews.com.
MIchele wrote on Aug 2, 2008 9:36 AM:
" I love to see people use local beauty and resources in a unique and enterprising way! I've enjoyed Mia's and Pia's 'brews' with pizza many times and have tasted 12 Ranch Wines at several events. My husband and I have purchased many plants and trees from Rock Bottom- what innovative and creative people who are keeping business in the Basin! They are not complaining that the City and County aren't attracting business to the Basin- they are making it happen! Bravo! "
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Vina Carathers wrote on Aug 2, 2008 10:07 AM: