When I got remarried it saved me, that I didn’t tell my husband or his children the winery was mi…

The Secret That Saved My Life’s Work

I’m 64 years old, and if you had told me five years ago that getting remarried would nearly cost me everything I’d spent three decades building, I would have laughed. But that’s exactly what happened.

The only reason I still have my vineyard, my winery, and my freedom today is because when I married Richard Barnes, I made one critical decision. I never told him or his three adult children that the estate we lived on wasn’t just family property; it was mine, all mine—every acre, every vine, every bottle.

Let me back up. My name is Katherine Morrison, though everyone calls me Kathy. I bought my first five acres in Sonoma Valley in 1989 when I was 34 years old.

I was a single mother working as a real estate agent, and people thought I was crazy. A woman on her own buying raw land in wine country? The bank nearly laughed me out of the office.

But I had a vision, and more importantly, I had grit. I started small, planting my first Pinot Noir vines with my own hands.

My daughter, Emily, was seven, and she’d help me after school. Her little fingers learned to tie the vines to the posts.

It took three years before those vines produced anything worth pressing. That was three years of working my real estate job during the day and working the land every evening and weekend.

For three years, people in town took bets on when I’d give up and sell. But I didn’t give up.

By 1995, I had 15 acres planted and my first vintage bottled. By 2000, I’d expanded to 50 acres and opened a small tasting room.

By 2010, Morrison Estate Winery was on the map. It consisted of 75 acres of prime Sonoma Valley terroir, a beautiful stone winery building, and a tasting room that seated 40.

My wines were even getting written up in Wine Spectator. Do you know what it takes for a single woman to build something like that?

I remember the 16-hour days and the bank loans I had to personally guarantee. I remember harvest seasons when I was out there at 2:00 in the morning checking on the crush.

Every single decision, every risk, and every victory was mine. I juggled late payments just to keep the lights on.

A Season for Love and New Beginnings

By the time I was 60, Emily had graduated from UC Davis with a degree in viticulture and was working at a winery in Napa. She didn’t want to take over the family business; she wanted to make her own path, and I respected that.

My estate had grown to 150 acres, and the property was worth at least $8 million, probably more. I wasn’t wealthy-wealthy, but I was comfortable, secure, and proud of what I’d built.

However, I was lonely. My first husband, Emily’s father, had left when she was three.

I dated here and there over the years, but nothing serious. I’d been too busy building my dream to focus on romance.

At 60, with Emily living her own life and the business running smoothly with the help of my incredible vineyard manager, Carlos, I found myself rattling around in my farmhouse alone. That’s when I met Richard at a charity wine auction in San Francisco.

He was 67, a retired investment banker, and recently widowed. He was tall, silver-haired, and charming in that polished way that comes from decades of expensive suits and country club memberships.

He bid on a case of my 2015 Reserve Pinot, and when he won, he came up to introduce himself.

“I’ve heard wonderful things about Morrison Estate,”

he said, shaking my hand.

“I’d love to visit your tasting room sometime.”

He visited the following weekend, then the weekend after that. By the third visit, we were having dinner together.

By the sixth month, we were talking about the future. Richard was attentive and thoughtful.

He brought me first editions of books about winemaking and planned romantic getaways to Carmel and Mendocino. He listened when I talked about the challenges of running a winery in an industry still dominated by men.

He seemed fascinated by my success story. Looking back, I can see exactly what I missed.

At the time, I was just a 60-year-old woman who’d been alone for most of her adult life falling in love. We got engaged after eight months.

He proposed at sunset on my west vineyard, the one with the view of the valley, with a ring that must have cost $20,000. I said yes with tears in my eyes.

The Vultures and the Appraisal

That’s when the questions started. They didn’t come from Richard at first, but from his children.

He had three: Derek, 42, who worked in finance like his father; Patricia, 39, a real estate developer; and Mitchell, 35, who did something vague in tech consulting. They all lived in the Bay Area, and Richard was close with them.

The first time they came to visit the estate, two weeks after the engagement, Patricia walked through my farmhouse like she was conducting an appraisal.

“How many acres is this property?”

she asked.

“What’s the annual production? Who handles distribution? Do you have any business partners?”

I kept my answers vague.

“It’s a family operation,”

I said.

“Everything’s been in the Morrison name for over 30 years.”

Derek wanted to know about financials.

“What kind of revenue does a boutique winery like this generate? What are your margins? How’s the debt structured?”

I smiled politely.

“We do well enough. It’s not really about the money for me; it’s about the craft.”

Mitchell actually asked about my will.

“Since you and Dad are getting married, have you thought about estate planning? It would be smart to get everything organized, you know, for tax purposes.”

I was 60 years old and healthy as a horse. I looked at Richard, waiting for him to tell his son that was inappropriate.

But Richard just squeezed my hand.

“Mitchell’s right, darling. We should both make sure our affairs are in order. It’s the responsible thing to do.”