Starting a winery involves three overlapping projects that must converge before the first bottle ships: a federal permitting process with TTB, a state ABC licensing process, and either vineyard establishment or a sourcing strategy for grapes. On top of these, you are running a winery construction project, a winemaking equipment procurement track, and a brand and sales channel buildout. No single project alone would be complicated. All six running in parallel — with multi-year grape maturation timelines on one end and 90-day federal permit windows on the other — demand a Gantt chart from the first week.

This guide builds the winery startup Gantt phase by phase, with specific regulatory checkpoints, cost benchmarks, and critical-path dependencies.

Regulatory Framework Before You Spend Anything

US wine production is regulated at three levels: federal (TTB), state (ABC or equivalent), and local (zoning, building, health). All three approvals must be in hand before you produce wine for sale. Research your state's specific license types before drafting the schedule — California ABC, Oregon OLCC, Texas TABC, and Virginia ABC each have materially different license structures, timelines, and fees.

Federal — TTB Basic Permit (Winery): The Alcohol and Tobacco Tax and Trade Bureau requires a Basic Permit under the Federal Alcohol Administration Act for any winery producing more than 200 gallons per year for interstate commerce. The permit application is filed through myTTB.gov and requires entity documentation, EIN, premises description, and equipment list. Processing time: 60–120 days. Do not wait until construction is complete to apply.

State ABC: Each state issues its own winery manufacturer license. Most states allow direct-to-consumer (DTC) shipment under the manufacturer license, but 12 states prohibit DTC shipment entirely. Confirm your DTC rights before building the sales model — DTC typically produces 40–60% of a small winery's revenue.

Local: Zoning approval is the most commonly underestimated local requirement. Agricultural zoning (A-1, A-2) typically permits wineries as an allowed or conditional use. Conditional Use Permits (CUP) take 45–120 days and require public notice. If you plan a tasting room that draws significant traffic on rural agricultural land, expect additional county review and potentially CEQA (California) or SEPA (Washington) environmental review.

Phase 1 — Entity, Site, and Business Plan (Weeks 1–6)

Entity formation: Form the legal entity (LLC is most common) in your target state. File for an EIN immediately. Both are required before the TTB application can be submitted.

Site selection: The choice between growing your own grapes vs. sourcing from established vineyards defines your timeline. A planted vineyard takes 3–5 years to produce commercial-quality fruit. A sourced-grape (négociant) winery can produce wine in Year 1 from purchased grapes or bulk wine. Hybrid models — sourcing grapes while establishing estate vineyard — are common for capital efficiency.

Site criteria for a winery facility:

Zoning compatibility with production and tasting room use
Access to three-phase electrical service (for refrigeration, glycol chillers, and crush equipment)
Water availability: wine production requires approximately 1–2 gallons of water per gallon of wine produced (cleaning, sanitation, cooling)
Floor drains: stainless tanks, barrel rooms, and crush pads require sloped concrete with floor drains — retrofitting is expensive
Temperature-controlled barrel storage: target 55–60°F year-round; achieving this via underground cellaring, earth-berming, or mechanical HVAC is a major construction cost driver

Business plan anchor points: Determine production volume target (cases per year), grape source strategy, tasting room plans, and DTC vs. wholesale mix. These decisions drive every downstream decision in the Gantt.

Gantt anchor: Entity formed Week 1. Site selected Week 4. Lease or purchase agreement signed Week 5. TTB application prepared Week 5.

Phase 2 — TTB and State ABC Permitting (Weeks 5–22)

TTB Basic Permit application: Submit via myTTB.gov at Week 5 — as soon as the entity is formed, EIN is in hand, and the premises are secured. Required documentation:

Completed TTB Form 5100.18 (Application for Basic Permit)
Entity formation documents and operating agreement
Premises diagram showing bonded wine premises boundaries
Winery equipment list (tanks, barrels, crush equipment)
Background check consent for all principals with 10%+ ownership

TTB Bonded Winery: Separate from the Basic Permit, a Bonded Winery (BW) registration is required for production. Most TTB-registered wineries file both simultaneously.

Federal Excise Tax (FET): Wine is subject to FET based on alcohol content. Under the Craft Beverage Modernization Act (extended through the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act), small domestic wineries producing under 250,000 gallons annually receive reduced FET rates ($0.07/gallon for the first 30,000 gallons produced, $0.17/gallon for the next 100,000 gallons). Track this from Day 1 — FET must be reported monthly once production begins.

State ABC license application: File concurrently with TTB if the state allows it (most do). In California, the ABC Type 02 (Winegrower License) costs $1,175 in base fees and takes 90–150 days. In Texas, a Winery Permit costs $340 and takes 30–60 days. Budget $500–$3,000 in state fees depending on state and license combination.

Label Approval (COLA): Every wine sold commercially requires TTB Certificate of Label Approval (COLA). Apply for COLAs via myTTB.gov. Standard processing: 5–10 business days for electronic applications. Apply as soon as label designs are finalized — do not wait until bottling.

Gantt anchor: TTB Basic Permit application Week 5. State ABC application Week 6. TTB permit expected Week 17–21. State ABC license Week 20–22. COLA applications Week 20 (concurrent with label design finalization).

Phase 3 — Vineyard Establishment or Grape Sourcing (Weeks 1–260+)

Vineyard establishment (if planting estate grapes):

Vineyard establishment is a 3–5 year track that runs concurrently with all other phases. For planning purposes:

Year 1: Site preparation — soil testing ($50–$150/sample), land clearing, drainage installation, irrigation system installation ($2,000–$5,000/acre), trellis system installation ($5,000–$15,000/acre depending on configuration), and vine planting ($4–$8/vine, 600–1,200 vines/acre)
Year 2: Canopy training, vine growth management, no commercial harvest
Year 3: First small harvest — typically 25–50% of mature vine yield, suitable for small production runs
Year 5+: Full commercial yield — Cabernet Sauvignon yields 2–4 tons/acre in California, Pinot Noir 1–3 tons/acre in Oregon's Willamette Valley

Total vineyard establishment cost: $40,000–$80,000/acre over the first three years before any revenue is generated.

Sourced-grape strategy (négociant/custom crush):

For a capital-efficient launch, purchase grapes from established vineyards under multi-year contracts. Key grape-sourcing costs by variety and region:

California North Coast Chardonnay: $1,500–$3,500/ton
Napa Valley Cabernet Sauvignon: $8,000–$20,000/ton
Willamette Valley Pinot Noir: $2,500–$5,000/ton
Washington Riesling: $700–$1,200/ton

Lock grape purchase contracts by March of the harvest year — September/October harvest timing in most regions.

Custom crush facilities: For the first 1–3 years before your own facility is permitted and equipped, contract with a licensed custom crush facility. Custom crush rates: $200–$500/ton for crush and press, $1–$3/gallon/year for tank storage, $1.50–$3/bottle for bottling services.

Gantt anchor: Grape sourcing contracts signed by March of Year 1. Custom crush facility contracted Week 8. Estate vineyard planting begins Week 12 (spring planting season).

Phase 4 — Winery Facility Construction (Weeks 6–26)

Production facility requirements:

Crush pad: outdoor or covered concrete pad with floor drains for grape receiving, destemmer/crusher, and press operation. Minimum 1,200 sq ft for a small winery producing under 5,000 cases/year
Tank room: temperature-controlled (55–65°F for white wine fermentation, 60–75°F for red wine fermentation); epoxy concrete floors with slope to drains
Barrel room: temperature-controlled (55–60°F year-round); typical storage density 100–120 barrels per 1,000 sq ft
Bottling and case storage area: temperature-controlled finished goods storage prevents wine damage
Laboratory: basic winery lab requires pH meter, titration equipment, dissolved SO2 analyzer, and refractometer — budget $5,000–$15,000 for essential equipment

Tasting room: A direct-to-consumer tasting room is typically the highest-margin sales channel. Budget $100–$300/sq ft for tasting room buildout depending on finish level. Reserve permit requirements and CUP traffic analysis in rural agricultural areas can add 3–6 months to tasting room approval.

Winery equipment procurement timeline:

Stainless fermentation tanks: 8–16 week lead times from domestic fabricators (Spokane Industries, Marks Design & Metalworks, Premier Stainless)
French or American oak barrels: $250–$1,400 per barrel depending on cooperage and toast level; order 4–6 months in advance for French cooperages
Pneumatic bladder press: $15,000–$80,000 depending on capacity; 8–12 week lead time

Gantt anchor: Building permit application Week 7. Construction start Week 10. Certificate of occupancy Week 24. Equipment installed and commissioned Week 25.

Phase 5 — Winemaking and First Release (Weeks 24–72)

Harvest to bottle timeline by wine type:

Crisp white wines (Sauvignon Blanc, Pinot Gris, unoaked Chardonnay): harvest September → bottle March–May → release 6–8 months after harvest
Barrel-aged white wines (oaked Chardonnay): harvest September → 8–12 months barrel aging → bottle → release 18–24 months after harvest
Rosé: harvest September → tank fermentation → bottle January–March → release 4–6 months after harvest
Light red wines (Pinot Noir, Gamay): harvest October → 12–18 months barrel aging → bottle → release 22–30 months after harvest
Cabernet Sauvignon/Bordeaux blends: harvest October → 18–24 months barrel aging → bottle → release 30–40 months after harvest

First releases: A sourced-grape winery launching in Year 1 can release white wines and rosé by Month 8–10. Reds will not be available for 18–30 months. Plan the product launch schedule around wine type maturation.

Winemaking software: Vintrace (Australia, US edition), VinNow, and VinSuite are purpose-built winery management platforms covering production tracking, cellar management, inventory, and compliance reporting. Budget $2,000–$8,000/year for a platform at 5,000–25,000 case scale.

Phase 6 — Wine Club Launch and DTC Sales Channel (Weeks 20–36)

The wine club is the highest-lifetime-value DTC channel. A 500-member wine club shipping 2 shipments/year at $150/shipment generates $150,000 in annual recurring revenue with no distributor margin.

Club structure decisions: Quarterly vs. bi-annual shipments; curated selection vs. member choice; tiered membership levels (3-bottle vs. 6-bottle vs. case allocation); club-exclusive access to library wines and futures.

Wine club management platforms: Commerce7, WineDirect, and Vin65 (now Commerce7) are the dominant platforms. Cost: $200–$500/month plus transaction fees. All three integrate with ecommerce, club shipment automation, and compliance-aware shipping restrictions (DTC is prohibited or restricted in 12+ states).

DTC compliance software: ShipCompliant (Sovos) automates DTC shipping compliance across state lines — required for any winery shipping to consumers in multiple states. Cost: $1,500–$4,000/year. Do not ship wine across state lines without compliance software; violations result in state ABC sanctions and loss of DTC shipping privileges.

Gantt anchor: Wine club platform selected and configured Week 28. Wine club launch with first shipment Week 36. DTC compliance software integrated Week 26.

A winery startup Gantt that shows all six tracks simultaneously reveals the critical path immediately: TTB permitting and grape sourcing contracts are the longest-lead items in Year 1. Estate vineyard establishment is the longest-lead item in the entire business. Build the Gantt to see these clearly, and resource the critical path first.