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Kenny Joe Schuchter cupped a small pocket of Aurora grapes in his hand. He was careful not to crush or disturb the small green balls hanging in an upside-down pyramid along a lush green string at his family farm.

"Grapes are among the most adaptable vegetable you will find," Schuchter said. "Good weather, bad weather, they always produce. They can adapt to any climate."

The Schuchters are quite familiar with adaptability. The family owns and runs Valley Vineyards, which has grown from a small restaurant and winery to one of the most prolific wine producers in Ohio. Beginning as a side project for Kenny Joe's father, Ken, in 1970, they produced 100,000 gallons of wine in 19 varieties in 2007, all from grapes grown on their 100-acre vineyard just outside Morrow in Hamilton Twp.

Their wine is currently available in more than 400 locations — from fine wine shops to local grocery stores — throughout Ohio.

"We're trying to stay true to what we've been," said Kenny Joe's son, Joe. "We've always grown our own grapes and we'll always make the wine at our own facilities."

"Valley is one of the oldest wineries, but at the same time it is a very modern winery," said Christy Eckstein, executive director of the Ohio Grape Industries Committee. "They have a history of great wines and are a great family-run business entering their third generation."

Joe credits a national TV network for spreading the benefits of locally produced food and drinks.

"I wish I could just hug the people from the Food Network," Joe said. "People have really started to appreciate things that are made locally."

Several generations of Schuchters a key to business' success.

For nearly 40 years, Valley Vineyards has been a leading wine producer in Ohio and has even garnered national recognition. But those three decades of success all began based on a mistake by a novice grape farmer.

Ken Schuchter ran a small truck farm on U.S. 22/Ohio 3 in the late 1960s while also working a desk job. Looking to escape office routine and provide a future for his family, Schuchter decide to plant a few "exotic" vegetables on his farm. An agriculturalist from Ohio State suggested he try grapes due to the area's accommodating climate.

"I had never seen a grape vineyard until I started this place," Ken said.

Not realizing that grapes need substantially more space to grow than most crops, Ken believed he had bought enough fledgling vines for two acres, but in reality had enough to plant 20 acres.

"With 20 acres of grapes, I pretty much had to start a winery," Ken said. "What else could I do with them? All the mistakes we made ended up being good ones."

Since 1970, Valley Vineyards has been a local phenomenon, one of the leaders in reinvigorating Ohio's long-dormant wine business. The wine has received national awards from the likes of The Ohio Wine Competition, the American Wine Society and the International Eastern Wine Competition.

In 1984, the Schuchters opened an accompanying restaurant, where patrons could grill their own steaks. Every order came with a bottle of Valley Vineyards wine.

As the business continues to grow, the Schuchter family — now three generations of wine makers — remains in charge.

"I've grown up in the business," said Kenny Joe, Ken's son. "I'm proud of what we do. We're able to see the whole cycle of production, which is pretty unusual for any business."

While Ken is technically retired, he still works on the farm and at the vineyards, and his son Kenny Joe is in charge of the vineyards. Kenny Joe's wife, Dodie, runs the restaurant. Their son Joe handles marketing and sales while his brother Kyle is in college studying viticulture — the science of wine. When Kyle graduates, he will make Valley Vineyards the only vineyard in the state of Ohio with an on-site viticulturist.

"We're moving from being a family business to a family-run business and that is a learning experience for all of us," Joe said. Among the chief difficulties is learning to separate responsibilities amongst the family members.

"It used to be, grandpa made all the decisions," Joe said. "Now we try to keep our areas separate, which can be hard to do."

Growth continues

In the past three years, the vineyard has increased its output enormously. In 2004, Joe said Valley Vineyards produced 18,000 cases of wine from 65 acres of grapes. In 2007, they produced 35,000 cases from 100 acres.

By the end of 2008, bottles of Valley Vineyards wine will be available at nearly 500 wine dealers across the state.

"Wine stores and grocery chains are calling us for the first time to sell our product instead of the other way around," Joe said. "Its pretty amazing."

"The Schuchters give a fantastic variety to customers and have the highest standards which the customers obviously pick up on," said Troy Bigham, operator of Buckeye Distributing Inc., a statewide distributor for Valley Vineyards wine.

Bigham credits the genial, approachable nature of the family for impressing vendors and charming customers.

"Seeing someone like Joe Schuchter at a wine tasting and talking to him — it adds to the experience and lets people know where the wine is coming from," Bigham said.

The growth of Valley Vineyards is emblematic of the growth of Ohio-based wine both within the state and nationally. At the turn of the 20th century, Ohio led the nation in wine production — until all wineries were shut down by Prohibition in the 1920s.

Joe credits the statewide success of the Valley Vineyards' brand to the "foodie movement," which espouses the appeal and importance of locally grown — but still high-class — foods and is touted regularly on influential outlets like the Food Network.

"People want a quality wine and have learned they don't have to pay an extraordinary price for it," Joe said, pointing out the majority of Valley Vineyards' wines cost less than $20. "Grandpa didn't want people to come out and pay an extraordinary price."

In the cellar of Valley Vineyards, where the wine is stored and seasoned, chief winemaker Greg Pollman is preparing for the next harvest, which begins in August. In his office, which looks remarkably like a chemistry lab from high school, Pollman, a 30-year winemaker, will test the sugar and acid content of the grapes and start the recipe for the 2008 season.

"I was terrible at chemistry in school," Ken said. "And now I make wine, which is all about chemistry."

Contact this reporter at (513) 696-4544 or jmcclelland@coxohio.com.