Vintrendi Wine Company Owner Shares His Favorite Black Owned Businesses

Rick and Carin Nesbitt are the owners of Vintrendi Wine Company, located in Olympia Fields. Photo provided by Purple Group.
Rick and Carin Nesbitt are the owners of Vintrendi Wine Company, located in Olympia Fields. Photo provided by Purple Group.

Vintrendi Wine Company Owner Shares His Favorite Black Owned Businesses

By Tia Carol Jones

Rick Nesbitt and his wife Carin Nesbitt established Vintrendi Wine Company in 2017. The Nesbitts were inspired to open the wine company and become a brand manufacturer as a way to have more creative control over the products they produce and more stability. The Nesbitts have used their years of experience in the wine and spirits industry to create a brand of small batch, handcrafted wines that range from sweet to dry, sparkling and crème, as well as specialty wines.

According to the Association of African American Vintners, less than 1% of American winemakers and winery owners are Black. The family-owned wine company is the first Black-owned, licensed, operated winery in Illinois and it is part of the Illinois Made program.

Nesbitt said that with the Vintrendi Wine Company being part of the Illinois Made program the winery’s exposure had increased. He said that there have been people who have visited the winery because they saw it listed on the Enjoy Illinois website.

As part of the Illinois Made program, Nesbitt partnered with the Illinois Office of Tourism to recommend other Black owned businesses that he enjoys. Nesbitt’s picks include the Poisson Rouge-Haitian Red Snapper from Lior’s Haitian Restaurant in Chicago, the French Toast Flights from Batter & Berries in Chicago and Culinary Incubator Poppin Plates in Lynwood.

Nesbitt said that it is important to be able to speak on other entrepreneurs’ behalf and show different aspects of the food and wine industry. While he is a winemaker, Nesbitt said that it is imperative to provide awareness for other businesses in the industry. He said it is necessary to have as much Black representation in the industry as possible.

He said the food at Lior’s Haitian Restaurant is great, Batter & Berries does innovative things with their offerings and Poppin’ Plates is unique as a Black-owned incubator space that provides culinary entrepreneurs a place to commercially produce their products.  “Poppin’ Plates fills a void where I wasn’t aware there was a void. In doing so, it helps a lot of businesses and gives them an opportunity to grow,” he said.

Nesbitt added that Batter & Berries highlights Black-owned wine and spirits companies and he likes the symbiosis of doing that, as a way to recycle Black dollars throughout the community. He said Batter & Berries being intentional in serving Black-owned wines and spirits in their restaurants shows their commitment to the community. Vintrendi Wine Company and Batter & Berries collaborated on a Valentine’s Day event recently.

He said that Poppin’ Plates gives young people who are interested in the culinary arts the opportunities to take classes in the space. He said it is something that is very needed in the community.

Nesbitt said it is important for people to support Black-owned businesses year-round, not just during Black History Month. He said that one month of revenue is not enough to carry businesses and it is necessary for people in the community to recycle the dollars throughout the community year round. He said that businesses need regular support so they can stay in business. He added that supporting Black owned businesses means that there is more economic stability for the community.

“We need more business owners and entrepreneurs in our community. In order to do that, we have to support them year-round,” he said.

Vintrendi Wine Company is located at 3408 Vollmer Road in Olympia Fields. For more information about Vintrendi Wine Company, visit vintrendiwines.com. For more information about the Illinois Made program, visit www.enjoyillinois.com.



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