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Brick Arch set to close in January
by Gregory R Norfleet · News · November 10, 2021
After more than a decade in downtown, the Brick Arch Winery plans to close its doors in January while the owners enter retirement.
Ilene Lande and John McNutt in March 2011 opened the business at 116 West Main Street. On Sept. 26, 2021, they announced that they would follow through on their plan — from three years ago — to retire.
“It’s been wonderful,” operating the winery in West Branch, Lande said. “We love being the only venue with live music throughout the winter. It has been such a good place to enjoy live music.”
She said they needed to set a date three years in advance to properly manage production and inventory — it takes time to produce wine. They began dialing back production, but then the coronavirus reached this area and “derailed” an orderly rollback.
The winery initially sold, of course, wine and other drinks, then added snacks and enlarged their menu. With the tasting room and dining area that can hold parties up to 150, the business hosted small weddings, rehearsal dinners, anniversary parties, and baby showers.
The winery originally bought a 1907 brick building that housed everything from a post office to a gas station. During construction of the dining area, an unknown “cold joint” in the historic building separated, collapsing part of the building and leading to its immediate demolition.
However, Lande and McNutt preserved many of the original bricks to create a backstop for a small stage in the dining area, which has hosted bands like Dogs On Skis, Red Rock Hill, Danika Holmes, and Tin Whisker.
The West Branch Times organized a public forum for West Branch City Council candidates and put them on the stage. West Branch Community Development Group chose this as the location for their annual “Sweets for Success” fundraiser, and the West Branch Football Team held its Trivia Night fundraiser there.
“We get to meet so many nice, new people,” Lande said of running the winery, adding that she will miss seeing the regulars. “We will miss them all. They’ve been stalwart regulars and great supporters.”
She remembers one couple who chose Brick Arch while seeking shelter from severe weather. They all went into the storm basement for safety and socializing.
Jessi Simon, executive director of WBCDG, said the organization is “sad to see such a wonderful local business closing.”
“But we hope to celebrate the long-lasting impact Brick Arch Winery has made to our historic Main Street district and support this well-earned transition,” she said in a statement.
Simon said the group is prepared to help recruit another business to fill the winery’s space and help it thrive.
“It’s a beautiful building with endless potential to become home to another new favorite in West Branch so we welcome the opportunity to connect with area entrepreneurs and discuss the benefits of opening a business on Main Street in West Branch,” she said.
Lande also praised Bonnie Leslie, who manages the establishment and has been with the company since it opened downtown.
“She has an amazing memory” for remembering what customers prefer to drink, Lande said of Leslie, whose time with the winery dates back nearly 16 years.
One of the most popular drinks they serve is the Frozen Sangria. And, over the years, they have developed and sold 25 different wines. The wines change, Lande said, as the grapes change.
The wines have brought in various awards from contests, too.
“If you want medals, go to enough competitions,” she said. “The judging is subjective.”
But customers are the driving force for the business, Lande said, so Brick Arch strives to make the best flavors from the grapes available on the market.
From the windows of the West Branch Times, one can see busloads of tourists unloading downtown, many from out of state. Sometimes, the visitors come for the winery. Sometimes, they come for Cotton Creek Mill quilt shop. Often, they come for both.
Lande said the two companies work together to draw more visitors to West Branch. One time, they had eight busloads of tourists in just two days. They first visit the quilt shop then cross the street for lunch.
“It’s been a great collaboration,” Lande said.
Cotton Creek owner Tami Urmie calls it “very sad” to see the winery closing.
She said the two companies joined forces to work with churches, the former coffee shop Reid’s Beans, Main Street Sweets, and more.
“It has great food and atmosphere,” Urmie said.
Closing the winery would leave a “hole” in downtown, she said, like the loss of Reid’s Beans, though The Serving Cafe filled that demand.
Lande and McNutt spent five years operating Wallace Winery at 5305 Herbert Hoover Highway (currently the home of The Village Community) before relocating to downtown West Branch and taking over the space formerly occupied by Virgil Gingerich’s Virgil’s Sinclair gas station.
They received support from WBCDG — then known as Main Street West Branch — Gingerich and the City of West Branch to help land a $100,000 Iowa Department of Economic Development Main Street Iowa Challenge Grant, the largest single downtown investment in more than 30 years.
Before the 103-year building collapsed, the owners of Elmira Winery planned to simply call the establishment, “1907,” to denote its heritage and historical significance. But afterward had to change the name due to business regulations. They decided to change the name to Brick Arch to at least capture the signature design element of the former building’s entrance.
They also lost the original $100,000 grant because it was tied to restoring historical structures. However, Main Street West Branch found another grant, this time for $500,000 from the state’s I-JOBS program, giving an even greater boost to the $947,000 building project.
On March 26, 2011, the winery finally opened its doors. In January 2022, it will close them for the last time.
Today, the building has been for sale, and Lande said Covid-19 made it difficult to find a buyer. But should it sell, the 71-year-old thinks the full commercial kitchen would give new owners the opportunity to open a nice restaurant or brewpub.
Urmie agreed that if new owners could find a good chef, the space could make a great restaurant.
Lande sent out an email to loyal customers and noted that Brick Arch in October would feature a sherry, “Michael,” named after her son who works for Adamantine Spine Moving Co.
“(He) has been known to move a refrigerator by himself. So this wine is like Michael — strong and sweet,” she wrote, adding later that, “There is, of course, some sibling rivalry with our dry sherry, ‘Ellison.”
As for what Lande and McNutt will do next, she smiled and said, “something else.”
One thing for sure, though, is they expect to have more time to visit their grandson in Virginia.
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