Our Story | Liquid Art Winery | Manhattan, KS
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Our Story

EST. 2014

Liquid Art Winery: at a Glance

The Tasting Room at the winery is open to the public Wednesday through Sunday year-round, and we currently offer charcuteries, artisan pizzas and flatbreads, wine, cider and beer.  It is come and go as you wish during Tasting Room hours, no reservations needed.  We have two event spaces: The Event Center and The Barrel Room. The Event Center is an indoor space that can host large public events, as well as private rentals such as weddings. The Barrel Room, completed in November 2023, is our newest event space, where we host more intimate public and private gatherings. In addition, we offer a specialty Barrel Room small-plates menu and cocktail menu – both exclusive to Barrel Room guests. Also completed in 2023, our outdoor Amphitheater has been the setting for wedding ceremonies, and we look forward to utilizing this new space to host concerts and philanthropic events in the future. In December 2023, we began offering winery tours, where guests get to go behind the scenes and take a look at our winemaking process. 

 

 

Our Team

Bart (2023) - Winemaker 

Holly (2023) - Viticulturist

Katherine (2019) - Tasting Room and Venue Manager

Kenzie (2020) - Tasting Room Supervisor and Graphic Content Creator

Lindsey (2021) - Hospitality and Event Coordinator

Subin (2020) - Hospitality Specialist and Barrel Room Lead

Tasting Room Team: Amanda, Brad, Claire, Jace, Jacqueline, Kaia, Phylicia

 

 

The Founder’s Story 

Liquid Art Winery was founded in 2014 by Kansas natives David & Danielle Tegtmeier. It consists of a 20-acre Estate vineyard, Tasting Room, full-production winery, Event Center, and Barrel Room. The terroir of the area replicates the soil profile and terrain of some of the most prominent grape-growing regions in the world, allowing us to craft premium wines from old-world grape varietals using sustainable viticulture.

 

David planted his first vineyard in 2006 at his parent's home farm; he enjoyed the challenge of growing grapes and thus his interest and passion in wine-making grew. In the Fall of 2007, David and Danielle's paths crossed during their first semester at  Kansas State University in Manhattan, Kansas. After the pair graduated in 2011, Danielle with a degree in Business Marketing and David with degrees in Enology and Viticulture, they got married and moved several places around the country, including California, Washington, and Colorado, to make their start in the Winemaking and Sales business.

 

Together in 2014, Danielle and David found their way back to Manhattan, Kansas and began building Liquid Art Winery and Estate. The decision to begin the winery in Kansas came after David recognized the similarities between the soil and topography of Manhattan, Kansas to that of the vineyards in Bordeaux, France. After months of clearing cedar trees from the land, preparing the ground for planting, trenching underground irrigation, and driving wooden and steel posts into the land by hand, the couple hosted a planting party in May of 2015. Approximately 100 volunteers planted over 7,000 grapevines on the Estate vineyard.

 

In August 2015, the groundwork for the building began. To ensure the quality of Liquid Art’s project, David was the general contractor on the job.  The couple were on the construction site nearly every day and did as much work themselves on the building as they could. The Event Center opened in April 2016, and shortly after opening, hosted its first wedding. The Tasting Room opened in July 2016.

 

Since January 2018, ten additional acres of vineyard on Liquid Art's Estate property have been prepped and planted with grapevines, as well as approximately 100+ acres on satellite properties across Kansas.  The primary grapes planted are Vitis Vinifera grapes, such as Cabernet Sauvignon and Chardonnay. Prior to prohibition, Kansas was the largest grape-growing region in the United States.  Liquid Art is working to make a new name for our state in the wine industry and put Kansas back on the map for its quality grapes.

 

Also in January 2018, a new product expansion was brought to life: Dave & Dani Craft Cider. Groundwork for a facility expansion, to allow Liquid Art to bottle their new cider line, began in January and was completed in June 2018. In 2023, construction of an outdoor Amphitheater was completed, as well as an expansion of the indoor space with The Barrel Room. The Barrel Room, opened in November 2023, is an intimate and eclectic private event space that houses aging barrels of premium Kansas red wines. 

 

Thank you for supporting David, Danielle, and their team as they continue to share the art of grape growing and wine-making in the Midwest.

Cheers, from our family to yours,

Dave & Dani

© 2022 by DUGANHAAS & LAWE LLC.

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