The third week of former UVA dean Nicole Eramo’s $7.5 million defamation trial against Rolling Stone began October 31, and in a nod to Halloween, Eramo chose black and orange attire for her court appearance. Her attorney, Libby Locke, came in sporting crutches, but those were not a costume and came from a sprained ankle over the weekend, according to the judge.
Otherwise, it was a trial day with a hint in the air that it all might be over soon, especially after Judge Glen Conrad dismissed a portion of Eramo’s claim that the overall article, “A Rape on Campus,” defamed her by implication.
No reasonable juror would find that “the story implies that Eramo was a false friend to Jackie who pretended to be on Jackie’s side while seeking to suppress sexual assault reporting,” the judge ruled. He also found that Eramo did not establish that the defendants “designed and intended this defamatory implication.”
Rolling Stone called it “a critical element” of Eramo’s case, and said in a statement, “We are pleased that the judge recognizes the limitations of Plaintiff’s lawsuit and we trust the jury will find that her remaining claims also have no merit.”
Conrad refused to throw out other parts of the suit, and he said the jury will consider “the things Jackie said to Eramo, things that can be read that Eramo was indifferent to sexual assault victims” and whether Eramo discouraged the reporting of sexual assault.
And the magazine had less success in arguing that its republication of the story on December 5 and 6, 2014, with editor’s notes that first said the magazine’s trust in Jackie was misplaced and then that the mistakes were the magazine’s responsibility, did not constitute actual malice.
“Every time a publication enters a correction, that would constitute republication,” said Rolling Stone attorney Elizabeth McNamara.
“You and I are going to have to disagree on that,” said Conrad.
The judge cited Rolling Stone founder Jann Wenner’s testimony from Friday, in which Wenner said that in order to understand what is being taken back, you have to reread the article. ”That can be deemed republication under that law,” said Conrad. “I’m going to let the jury decide.”
The magazine called to the stand Susan Davis, UVA associate vice president of student affairs, who was the point person between the university and the Office of Civil Rights when it began its investigation into UVA’s handling of sexual assaults in 2011.
Davis’ name came up in testimony last week in an e-mail, in which she said she wanted to kill a story the UVA alumni magazine was working on about sexual assault on campus unless it was substantially revised. The alumni magazine piece was in the works that same fall Erdely was reporting the Rolling Stone piece, and it never ran.
Davis testified that the OCR investigation had been dormant for 17 months until November 20, 2014, the morning after Rolling Stone published “A Rape on Campus,” the now-debunked tale of first-year Jackie’s gang rape at a fraternity.
In its September 2015 findings, the OCR determined UVA did not promptly investigate two cases of assault at fraternities, presumably Jackie and Stacy, who was also in the Rolling Stone story, although Davis said she did not know to which cases the OCR report referred.
The jury got a replay of Erdely’s recording of a September 12, 2014, dinner she had with Jackie, Alex Pinkleton and Jackie’s boyfriend, Connor, who learns that Jackie allegedly got syphilis from the alleged gang rape.
“Oh, that made my heart leap a little,” Connor said. Jackie assures him the STD is no longer a problem. When Erdely asked her for medical records, Jackie said she’ll get them from her mother, and then back tracks. “Actually she doesn’t have them,” said Jackie. “I never told her.”
On rebuttal with Erdely back on the stand, Locke pointed out the inconsistency.
“She was thinking out loud,” said Erdely. “She was flustered.”
Locke also focused on Jackie referring to Phi Kappa Psi, the fraternity where she claimed the gang rape occurred, as “Pi Phi,” which is a sorority, rather than Phi Psi in an interview with Erdely.
“I knew Pi Phi is a sorority,” said Erdely, “and I didn’t think she was telling me she was raped at a sorority.”
Locke pointed to another instance in Erdely’s notes where Jackie says Pi Phi. “She doesn’t have her story straight,” said Locke.
“No, it isn’t that she doesn’t have her story straight,” said Erdely. “It’s all Greek to her.”
Shortly after 2pm, with all evidence in, the judge dismissed the jury for the day, and was greeted with an arm pump and a “yay” by one of the jurors.
The jury returns for closing arguments Tuesday morning.
After 11 days of evidence, plaintiff Nicole Eramo rested her case against Rolling Stone October 28– but not before testimony from magazine founder Jann Wenner raised stakes and eyebrows in this $7.5 million libel case.
“We have never retracted the whole article– and don’t intend to,” declared the magazine owner in a videotaped deposition played for the jury in federal court.
In the video, Rolling’s Stone’s colorful leader appeared relaxed enough to occasionally put his boots on the table and gesticulate. And curse– as when discussing an editor’s note that began the process of disavowing the 2014 story of a vicious gang rape of a woman named Jackie at the University of Virginia.
“Who wants to post something that’s, ‘Oops, we fucked up so bad’?” asked Wenner.
Dressed in a sage green jacket over an open-collared sport shirt, Wenner acknowledged the flavorful writing style and point-of-view journalism that have become Rolling Stone hallmarks, but said there was nothing casual about Rolling Stone’s approach to reporting and fact-checking. Even in this case.
“I think we were the the victim of one of these rare, once-in-a-lifetime things that nobody in journalism can protect themselves against, no matter how hard they try,” said Wenner.
The evidence has shown that Rolling Stone, to accommodate Jackie, avoided pressing its protagonist for the full name of the alleged rape ring-leader and failed to contact the three friends who comforted her the night of her claimed attack.
“We had virtually 50 years of a perfect record in the most extreme stories– highly reported, difficult, complex stories with a lot of controversy,” said Wenner. “And all of our systems worked.”
As it turned out, investigations by journalists and by the Charlottesville Police Department refuted practically every aspect of Jackie’s story, and previous trial testimony showed that the trio of friends could have done so– if only the reporter had asked. So Wenner apologized to Eramo– in his own way.
“To the extent that we have caused you damage, and obviously we have– the fact that we’re here– I’m very, very sorry,” said Wenner. A moment later, he said, “Believe me, I’ve suffered as much as you have.”
There were other moments. For instance, Wenner accused the New York Observer of manufacturing a quotation until a lawyer showed him he’d sent the words via email. But it was his claim that he didn’t retract the whole story that made Friday afternoon headlines.
“It was a full retraction of our support of all that Jackie stuff,” Wenner explained.
When pressed to explain how a reader– given Rolling Stone’s attribution errors– could ascertain which pieces of the 9,000-word story came from Jackie, Wenner conceded that he didn’t know.
“I haven’t read it in quite a while.”
Wenner’s partial retraction stance puts him squarely on the side of the defense’s theory of the case: that for all its faults and errors, Rolling Stone’s story rendered a public service by showing how UVA improperly handled sexual assault reports, an assertion validated several months later by the civil rights office of the U.S. Department of Education.
“We were not retracting the fundamentals to that story,” Wenner testified. “We’re not retracting what we had to say about the overall issue of rape on campus.”
After Wenner’s testimony, Judge Glen Conrad seemed to find Wenner refreshingly “unfiltered,” but said the partial-retraction comments kept alive the plaintiff’s allegation that Rolling Stone continued to publish defamatory statements about Eramo.
Another Friday witness– again appearing on video– included UVA’s VP for student affairs, Pat Lampkin, who declined to specify why she blocked Rolling Stone from interviewing Eramo. The magazine’s digital director, Alvin Ling, testified on video that the online version of story got 2.4 million unique visitors before the first editor’s note went up– and other 285,000 uniques before it was taken down in April 2015.
The final witness for the plaintiff– again on video– was Will Dana, the managing editor sacked in the wake of the debacle. Even after acknowledging widespread “fabrications” from Jackie, he declined to malign her.
“I feel bad for what this girl has gone through since the story came out,” said Dana. “I will give her the benefit of the doubt and assume that she has been victimized in some way.”
The final Thursday witness for the plaintiff in the $7.5 million libel trial against Rolling Stone was Sara Surface. A friend to Jackie, Surface seemed to have a purpose in alleging that reporter Sabrina Rubin Erdely had prejudged plaintiff Nicole Eramo.
“She disregarded me because I didn’t fit the narrative,” said Surface.
An email released during the case’s discovery phase showed that Erdely viewed Surface not as a true activist, but as a “covert mouthpiece for the administration,” something Surface denied.
“If she had listened to my personal experiences and feelings,” the testy former student testified, “maybe she wouldn’t be getting sued now.”
The bulk of the testimony, however, was the second day of Rolling Stone’s deputy managing editor Sean Woods being confronted by plaintiff’s counsel Libby Locke.
In the morning, Locke asked Woods and the jurors to look at their phones to contrast text messages with the screen shots Jackie provided of text messages by two other alleged victims. Locke said it seemed suspicious since the name “Jackie”– as if she were the sender– shouldn’t be at the top of the screenshots.
Amid laughter from Woods and the jurors, several pointing out that phones weren’t allowed in the federal courtroom, Locke turned to the judge.
“Well, this isn’t going very well, Your Honor.”
Locked shifted course to emails such as the one on October 23 when Erdely opens with an F-bomb expletive to tell her editor the protagonist Jackie is in “full freakout mode.” But Woods downplayed the prospect of a pulling-out protagonist.
“This happens all the time,” said Woods.
As late as November 3, Erdely emailed, Jackie had gone silent. But Woods says he remained calm.
“I had other articles I could have run,” he explained.
Once Jackie resumed communications, there were problems with the story. Woods emailed Erdely to urge some confirmation– beyond Jackie– about two other women allegedly raped in the Phi Psi house.
“I wish I had better sourcing for a lot of the Jackie stuff,” Woods replied. “A lot right now is resting on Jackie’s say-so, including the entire lede.”
Letting Jackie serve as the source not only for her now-disproven tale of fraternity house gang rape but for quotations from allegedly callous friends prompted Locke to blister that lede.
“It misled readers, didn’t it?” demanded Locke.
“It did,” admitted Woods.
Locke asked the witness to admit the story lacked corroboration.
“I thought we had a lot of corroboration,” Woods testified, “but here we are.”
“Here we are,” the lawyer repeated.
On questioning from the defense, Woods pointed to an array of official-sounding statements that seemed to bolster Jackie’s tale. There was a UVA administrator named Emily Renda who testified about it under oath to the U.S. Congress. There were the those real-looking text messages. And even the UVA president personally confirmed to Erdely that the fraternity was under investigation.
Yet Woods constantly conceded mistakes– particularly when reminded that he assured a inquiring reporter that Rolling Stone verified both the existence and the identity of the alleged rapists.
“Yeah, I stepped over the line,” admitted Woods. “And I deeply regret it.”
At one point, Locke spoke of another potential smoking gun. Three days after publicly disavowing the story online, Woods reached out to Jackie with a voicemail that noted, in part, “we’re standing by the story.”
“It’s like the stages of grief,” Woods explained. “I was in denial.”
Over the course of the interrogation, Woods admitted reporting, sourcing, editing and attribution errors– including giving up on attempts to reach the rape ringleader or the trio of supposedly rape-condoning friends.
“We did debate these things,” said Woods. “We just came to the wrong conclusions.”
If there is magic on this planet, it is contained in water. —Loren Eisley
If you love the idea of living on the water, but don’t want to give up easy access to Charlottesville’s many amenities, talk to your agent about Lake Monticello.This popular gated community in nearby Fluvanna County comes with a resort lifestyle accessible to everyone from first timers needing a starter home to move-up buyers longing for an elegant waterfront property where they can dock their boat and enjoy the view.While the main attraction here is the beautiful lake, residents of this community also enjoy an easy commute to town along withlower home prices than are available in Charlottesville and Albemarle.
Lake Monticello offers swimming, golfing, tennis and boating, allbig draws for families, young professionals, telecommuters and retirees many of whom also appreciate two other features of lake living, the laid back atmosphere and the security that comes with being in a gated community.The lake is also a popular place for second home buyers who want a place to go on weekends and get away from the day-to-day stress of their lives. However, after they experience the magic of being at the lake, many decide to sell their other home and enjoy their vacation lifestyle full time.
This popular lake community was originally the brain child of a group of developers who, back in the 1960s, envisioned aman-made lake surrounded by a residential community. Eventually the developers turned the community’s management over to the Home Owners Association (HOA), and by the early 1980s, Lake Monticello had developed into a modest 400 lot subdivision.
According to the HOA website the original lake had 35 to 40 feet of water, but it got a big boost from torrential rains that came withHurricane Camille in 1969.This in turn weakened a nearby dam and caused an influx of water from another nearby lake. Today the 350-acre lake has 22.5 miles of shoreline surrounded by 4,200 homes and a large cross section of people lucky enough to enjoy the Lake Monticello vacation lifestyle.
For buyers who want to join them, now is the time.The market is rebounding strongly, but prices are still reasonable and combined with low interest rates that means many good deals are still available. But don’t wait. Agents are reporting inventory shortages and multiple offers on listings, all of which will begin to push up prices and make this vacation lifestyle increasingly inaccessible as time goes by.
Lake Monticello’s Real Estate Market The second quarter market report from CAAR shows a 30.4 percent increase in home sales in Fluvanna County compared to the same time last year and these results are reflected in the optimism expressed by agents who work the Lake Monticello market.
“The Lake market is doing so much better,” said Maggie Gunnels Fornecker with Better Homes and Gardens Real Estate III. She received eight offers on her listings last month, four in one weekend.Six of the eight offers were multiple offers on the same properties.She described the market as the best she’s seen in ten years.
“There are 180 homes sold to date this year, 2016, as compared to 160 homes sold to date this time last year,” said Vicki Wilson, with Monticello Country Realtors.She added that this year has also seen the sale of 18 lots, a sign that people have plans to build.“Lots are the lowest prices they have been in years,” Wilson said urging buyers with plans to build to jump in and take advantage of this opportunity while it lasts.
“The market has definitely picked up since August,” said Patsy Strong with Strong Team Realtors. “With a vibrant fall market already in place, I’m pleased to see more higher priced homes now going under contract.With the contracts we have pending, I expect 2016 to end on a high note! And I am anticipating a very strong start in 2017,” she added.
Why Lake Monticello Lower prices compared to what are found in Charlottesville and Albemarle make the resort lifestyle available to a wide range of families willing to make the short commute. Residents also enjoy a variety of essential services that come with living there.
All residents are required to be members of the HOA and to pay annual dues that cover amenities such as common ground maintenance, trash pickup and snow removal.Fees also cover the security gate and a full time police force.
A fire and rescue squad stands ready to help just outside the gate and in the event of a fire or medical emergency, they and the police are quick to respond.Wilson described a winter night when she had an emergency at her home that prompted a call to the rescue squad.Even though the local roads were closed, help was there within five minutes.
The close in location is also a plus. “Buyers are willing to drive 30 minutes to work in order to enjoy the lifestyle of the lake,” Wilson said.She added that families with children also appreciate the quality of the local schools.Recently Fluvanna’s high school was one of 113 in the state to receive a medal from US News & World Report based on student levels of college readiness.
“Buyers are attracted to Lake Monticello because of the quality of life offered by the community and the entire Charlottesville area,” Strong said.“Whether people are looking for the fun and relaxing waterfront lifestyle, or the world-class experiences in Charlottesville, Lake Monticello offers an opportunity for people to have both.”
Affordability is also a benefit for people who live in Lake Monticello.Fornecker used to live in town in what she described as a “70s rancher.”Now she has a nicer home at Lake Monticello where she estimates that buyers can enjoy as much as two and a half times the square footage for the money as is available in town.
Many of the lake’s residents so love their lifestyle that they encourage family and friends to join them there.Strong said, “one of the most interesting things we see is people who move here and enjoy it so much they end up getting family members and friends to join them…it says a lot about the quality of life at Lake Monticello that people would move here, and then convince friends and family to do the same.”
Others find Lake Monticello when they are in the market for a second home, although often after they experience the magic ofbeing on the water they choose to move there permanently.“I have sold several homes in the past couple of years, where buyers have bought a second home with plans of retiring in the future.Most of them have taken an early retirement and moved here permanently,” Wilson said. “They fall in love with the lake and the ‘vacation at home’ feeling, so they move sooner than later.Some bring their work to their weekend home and decide this is the place to be.Lake Monticello offers high speed internet, which is very important these days for those who work from home,” she continued.
“I have seen it over and over again,” Strong said. “Buyers purchase a waterfront home for weekend use, then they start extending their weekends and working there on Fridays and Mondays. Eventually I run into them in the store in the middle of the week and they confide that they have made the move to the water permanent…and they are always smiling when they say it.”
Where Buyers Come From Back in the 1980s, the original developers looked for buyers in New York and other northern cities explained Keith Smith with Roy Wheeler Realty Co. Back in the 1980s he and his wife Yonna, also an agent, traveled down from New York City in response to an ad offering to pay visitors $150 to come and experience Lake Monticello. Like many others, they fell in love with the area and the lake, bought a lot and relocated.Although they soon realized they had over-paid for the lot, they urged Smith’s father to move there too. He in turn invited friends to join him in settling at the lake after experiencing the beauty of an area that was such a pleasant contrast to life in the City.
Today buyers still come to Lake Monticello from the northeast and from Northern Virginia Wilson explained.They come for the “low home and land prices, the proximity to Charlottesville and Richmond and the community activities and involvement. Many of my clients get involved in the volunteer opportunities within Lake Monticello and Fluvanna County once they are here,”she said.
“Our waterfront buyers this year have been a mixture of retirees and second-home buyers,” Strong said.Most have come from Northern Virginia, but we’ve also worked with local owners who are looking to live the waterfront lifestyle.”
Fornecker has a number of clients from out of the area, several of whom chose the lake lifestyle after being transferred here for jobs at places like NGIC and Martha Jefferson. One of her buyers, from New Hampshire, chose Lake Monticello for the laid-back feel and the variety of home styles available, all very different from what she termed“cookie cutter” neighborhoods.
Fornecker also has local clients including a recent first timer who looked at two properties and could not make up his mind.When he finally made a decision there were already two other offers on the property, and although he offered more than the list price, he still lost out.Another set of clients moved to the lake from Crozet, selling a $300,000 house there.These buyers were ready for a home with one level living and chose Lake Monticello in part because they got so much more for their money there than elsewhere in the area.
Essentials Close at Hand Back in the 1980s, in Lake Monticello’s early days, residents drove to Charlottesville for everything from groceries to medical, dental and vet care and even gas.Todayessential services such as medical facilities, dentists, attorneys, veterinary care, a pharmacy, a grocery store and restaurants are all immediately nearby and at Zion Crossroads where shoppers will also find Lowes and Walmart.In addition, very soon they can jump on the interstate and head west to Charlottesville where they can enjoy shopping at Wegmans and all the other great stores at the new 5th Street Station.
If you are someone who longs to live near the water and don’t mind a short commute to work, or someone who telecommutes or has a home-based business, or better yet is ready to retire and live the good life, ask your agent about Lake Monticello. The natural beauty and laid-back lifestyle may be just what you are looking for.
Celeste Smucker is a writer, blogger and author who lives near Charlottesville.
Buyers looking for a house with privacy to enjoy a laid-back country lifestyle for an affordable price should seriously consider contacting their agent about Fluvanna County. First-time homebuyers are welcome there as are growing families who want more space, horse owners looking for a farm, or active retirees wanting to be free of home maintenance. Buyers who love the water and like the idea of a gated community should also check out Lake Monticello.
Once part of Henrico, Fluvanna County became its own entity in 1777 taking its name from the Fluvanna River, a section of the James named in honor of Queen Anne of England. The county’s rich history is carefully preserved by the local historical society headed by a full time director with the help of an active group of volunteers who manage an impressive archive of documents as well as the Old Stone Jail Museum and the Holland Page Place, a post Civil War log cabin.
Agents are optimistic about the Fluvanna real estate market, which is rebounding nicely from the recent recession. As is true in a lot of our region, inventories are low making this is a good time to be a seller. Buyers will also be happy when they find they can afford a much nicer house for the money than is available elsewhere.
The Fluvanna Real Estate Market
“The market is doing better than it has in a long time,” said Maggie Gunnels Fornecker with Better Homes and Gardens Real Estate III, adding that it is the best she’s seen in her ten years in the real estate industry. Her biggest concern is lack of inventory, but she sees signs that the new construction market is coming back with a few spec homes underway and, she expects, more to come in the near future.
Pam Dent with Gayle Harvey Real Estate Inc. has lived in Fluvanna County for eleven years having purchased a house that dates back to 1760. She and Bridget Archer, also with Gayle Harvey Real Estate, often co-list homes and are active in the market there. Dent described the Fluvanna market as “steady,” noting that well-priced homes are selling.
Kendra Dunn, Southern Development Homes Sales and Marketing Manager, is excited about the market in Fluvanna as well stating that it has definitely “picked up.” She cited four sales in the last two weeks at her company’s Fluvanna County developments, The Villages at Nahor and Village Oaks attributing this success, in part, to momentum from the recent Parade of Homes.
Why Buyers Love Fluvanna
Part of the reason Fluvanna is popular is its proximity to Charlottesville, explained Vicki Wilson, Principal Broker and Owner of Monticello Country Realtors. “The amenities in central Virginia are truly world class,” she states on her website, where she references the high quality of local medical services, UVA, and the temperate climate with its four seasons.
“You get more bang for your buck than in Albemarle,” Dent explained adding that new construction on larger lots is more affordable in Fluvanna because land costs are less. She explained that buyers also like that they can enjoy a “country feel” but still be convenient to Interstate 64 while shoppers will find it’s almost as fast to get to Short Pump in the Richmond area as it is to reach Fashion Square Mall in Charlottesville.
Often buyers come to the area wanting to locate in Albemarle, but find they can’t afford what they want there Dent said. Many then realize their dream in Fluvanna where their money can buy a nice farm or horse property for less.
Fornecker agreed that Fluvanna draws buyers looking for acreage adding that they like the peace and quiet and slower way of life. They also like the location which is convenient for two career couples with jobs in both Richmond to the east and Charlottesville to the west. Similarly, retirees who relocate to the area to be near their children located in either or both of these cities often choose Fluvanna.
Fluvanna Buyers
The Fluvanna market’s wide range of prices and home styles attract buyers of all ages and income levels.
For example, it’s still great place for a first-time buyer to find a home. In a recent search of the Multiple Listing Service Wilson found forty-three homes under $200,000 at Lake Monticello and stated that this is “an awesome time for first-time home buyers.” She suggested buyers contact a lender to get pre-approved and to learn about types of loans available, including some zero down options for first timers.
At the other end of the buyer spectrum are the retirees, and while many long for the privacy of acreage, others prefer a close-knit community with no responsibilities for exterior maintenance. For the latter group, the 55+ communities of the Villages at Nahor and Village Oaks may be just right. With prices starting in the mid-$200,000s these communities are what Dunn calls “vibrant neighborhoods” offering a range of activities from bingo to water aerobics and wine tastings for adults who want to continue to be active.
If you are looking for a home in the country, and want to be near the many amenities of Charlottesville and Richmond, ask your agent about relocating to Fluvanna County. You may be surprised at the quality of homes there as well as the amount of acreage and square footage your money can buy.
Celeste Smucker is a writer, blogger and author who lives near Charlottesville.
Attorneys for plaintiff Nicole Eramo called her former boss, Dean of Students Allen Groves, to the stand October 26 to bolster her claims that she was unfairly portrayed as a callous administrator to victims of sexual assault in Rolling Stone’s article, “A Rape on Campus.”
“My first impression, and it remains my impression, it painted a picture of Nicole as someone who was cavalier, no pun intended,” as someone who suppressed statistics and who was not advocating for students, Groves said of the November 2014 article.
Student trust of administrators is “hugely important,” said Groves, and that was why Eramo was removed from her position as sexual assault intake counselor after the article was published. “Not because I did not believe she was anything but capable,” said Groves. “My fear was the perception of the student body was that she was not.”
Groves was aware that Jackie had reported her alleged September 2012 assault to Eramo months later on May 20, 2013.
And in April 2014, after she’d allegedly been beaned by a bottle thrown in retaliation for her advocacy work among assault survivors, Jackie came back to Eramo and reported two other women had similar experiences at Phi Kappa Psi, he testified.
On April 22, 2014, “Jackie said she was willing to talk to police,” said Groves. “I was ecstatic.” That euphoria quickly waned when Jackie said the detective she talked to was “aggressive” and she refused to name her assailant.
“I was angry that Jackie would not tell us this guy’s name,” said Groves. “I couldn’t understand how you could have that violent an act and not take action.”
Under cross-examination, when Groves was questioned about a September 17, 2014, text Eramo sent to Jackie and Alex Pinkleton that said the university was “flat-out fucked” because of Hannah Graham and the upcoming Rolling Stone article, Groves paused for an emotional moment.
“That was a very difficult fall for us, the most difficult I’ve encountered,” he said. “Sorry.”
He said if he’d known about that text and another in which Eramo referred to some of her survivor students as her “awesome bitches,” he would have advised her, “I’d prefer you don’t use that language in talking with students.”
Groves acknowledged that the university was already under fire for its handling of sexual assault cases, and the Office of Civil Rights had begun an investigation in April 2011.
When reporter Sabrina Rubin Erdely e-mailed Eramo for an interview, Groves wrote, “I’d prefer not to do it at all. In my opinion, Rolling Stone has not been objective in recent years. The description of hypotheticals, OCR, specific cases, etc., leads me to believe this is a hatchet job.”
That same fall, UVA’s alumni magazine also was working on a story about how UVA handles sexual assault, and Groves was sent a draft to edit, he said.
The article began with Emily Renda’s assault as a first-year after getting drunk. “My case is a fairly typical campus sexual assault story,” she’s quoted as saying. “How can this be a ‘typical’ experience at our nation’s institutions for higher education,” questioned the piece, which noted that no one has ever been expelled for rape at the university, a fact also included in the Rolling Stone article.
The alumni magazine story was killed.
Groves said he believed Jackie until the Rolling Stone article came out. So did associate dean Laurie Casteen. And so did Alex Pinkleton, according to their testimony.
Pinkleton, a sexual assault advocate active in One Less and a 2016 UVA grad, was a close friend to Jackie—at least before the article. Initially, she said, she was excited about the story because she wanted to draw attention to rape culture on campus and raise awareness. She said 90 percent of her comments to Erdely were about that, but she was quoted in the article as talking about how “hot girls” can get into fraternities.
“Obviously I was offended,” said Pinkleton.
“I”m very critical of UVA, but Dean Eramo is not part of that,” said Pinkleton, who said she respected Eramo and babysat for her. And she said she was concerned about how Erdely would portray Eramo.
Pinkleton said she encouraged Jackie to stay involved in the story “because it’s important to control your story.” And she said she’d never questioned Jackie’s story. “I just validated what she said. That’s what advocates do.”
During cross-examination, when describing her reaction to the article and how it portrayed Eramo, Pinkleton began crying. The judge ordered a short break.
When she came back, she said she was critical of how UVA handled sexual assault after Jackie’s tale of being raped by seven men at Phi Psi, and wrote in a 2014 e-mail, “They can investigate and notify students. That’s inexcusable.”
Pinkleton said she is represented by the same firm representing Eramo, Clare Locke, which helped her prepare for testimony for several hours. “The reason I did was because Rolling Stone subpoenaed my e-mails for two years,” she said.
Illustrator John Ritter, who did the now-notorious illustration that Eramo said made her “look like the devil,” testified that he had altered her eyes because they were downcast and not looking at the student figure he’d photoshopped into his illustration.
Jurors got to see other illustrations he’s done, including one of Hugh Jackman as Wolverine, whose eyes are altered, as well.
Rolling Stone deputy managing editor Sean Woods was the last witness of the day, and attorney Libby Locke grilled him on the decisions he made in editing Erdely’s story, including cutting out a section about Eramo taking Jackie to the police.
“You didn’t see that as relevant?” asked Locke.
“I disagree with that characterization,” said Woods.
Eramo’s team expects to finish with its witnesses tomorrow.
Outside the federal courthouse, Locke said it was another good day in court with Groves and Pinkleton testifying about how they read the article “as a negative portrayal” of Eramo.
Rolling Stone’s attorney David Paxton seemed equally pleased. “Through this part of the trial, we’ve heard no evidence there was any actual malice.”
Clarification 10:26 am October 27: Alex Pinkleton’s criticism of UVA’s handling of Jackie’s alleged rape was from a 2014 e-mail, about which she testified in court.
Charlottesville Fire Department recruit Michael Barber
When several vacancies in the Charlottesville Fire Department opened at the same time, Fire Chief Andrew Baxter (who’s been chief for a little more than a year) decided to institute a new hiring process. The in-depth application, which included a personal history questionnaire, was meant to find candidates who were not only qualified to be firefighters (although previous firefighting experience is not a requirement) but who also had leadership experience (everything from Boy Scouts to combat veterans) and who were involved in their communities.
The search began in March, and about 300 people applied for one of eight open positions. The field was eventually whittled to the top 22 “highly qualified” candidates, whom Baxter interviewed in person. The eight new hires then participated in a recruit academy, a five-days-a-week, 10-hours-a-day training academy from August 1 through graduation on October 4.
Training exercises included everything from physical fitness tests and in-class training on the science of fire and how to use equipment to applying lessons they’ve learned in a burn demonstration at the CFD’s training facility on Avon Street.
By holding the academy with all the new hires at once as opposed to training them individually, it not only allowed the fire department to imprint its values as an organization on the recruits, but it allowed the recruits themselves to form a unique bond. Baxter hopes that decades from now (he tells all recruits that he expects them to stay with the “family” for 30 years before retiring) they will still proudly look back on being part of Recruit Academy One.
Baxter says the department will have another hiring round in 2017, but says the single recruit academy model may not be sustainable because in the gaps between hiring, current firefighters often accrue overtime hours. But, he said they would possibly pursue a regional model, by teaming up with Albemarle, Orange and Louisa counties to organize a central training academy.
The graduates of the recruit academy officially went into the field on October 8. Photographer and volunteer firefighter for the Crozet Volunteer Fire Department and a career firefighter for the city of Waynesboro Justin Ide followed them through the recruit academy as well as their first few days at work. We asked the new firefighters about the training process and why they chose this public service-oriented profession.—Jessica Luck
Photos by Justin Ide
Ben Weidinger, Michael Barber and Micah Terrell work out in the bay prior to class at the recruit academy. Photo by Justin IdeRecruit Kelly Jackson holds a plank position during a workout. Photo by Justin IdeRyan Snoddy does planks for time during a workout. Photo by Justin Ide
The Charlottesville Fire Department has 91 full-time employees, three of whom are civilians. And the firefighters are stationed at three facilities throughout the city: on Ridge Street, Fontaine Avenue, and McIntire Road near the 250 Bypass. Each day there are a minimum of 19 firefighters working, including two firefighters/paramedics stationed with the Charlottesville-Albemarle Rescue Squad. Fire Chief Andrew Baxter says one of the biggest challenges in the firefighting profession is that people have a simplistic view of firefighting, something akin to “Chicago Fire.” But that’s only a small piece of what they do: Last week, for example, they read to first-graders as part of Fire Prevention Week. Other tasks include performing inspections and investigations, and EMS calls make up the majority of the emergency calls they receive.
Recruits are introduced to their bunker gear, also called turnout gear, by Jess Rodzinka, second from right, lead instructor of the recruit academy. Photo by Justin IdeRecruit Michael Barber, center, receives his helmet from firefighter Kevin Pfeilsticker, while recruits Ben Weidinger and Kelly Jackson try theirs on for size. Photo by Justin IdeFirefighter Kennon Snow, left, instructs Michael Barber on how to breathe with a mask while other new recruits watch and wait their turn. Firefighters have to go through a yearly fit test to assure they are getting a proper seal on their mask. Photo by Justin IdeFirefighter Kennon Snow, left, instructs Michael Barber on how to breathe with a mask while other new recruits watch and wait their turn. Firefighters have to go through a yearly fit test to assure they are getting a proper seal on their mask. Photo by Justin Ide
Micah Terrell organizes his gear while on his first fire call for a ringing smoke detector on his first day on the job. Photo by Justin IdeMicah Terrell installs a new detector at the resident’s home for free. Photo by Justin IdeCaptain Lee James, center in yellow helmet, talks with a maintenance man, left, while Micah Terrell looks on during a fire alarm call in a high-rise residential structure. Photo by Justin IdeRyan Snoddy, left, listens to firefighter Andy Soccodato talk about fire attack techniques and the advantages and disadvantages of the 2.5-inch attack hose in a structure fire. Photo by Justin IdeRecruit Kenneth Davis puts out a car fire on the department’s training grounds under the watchful eye of firefighter Kennon Snow. Photo by Justin IdeBrandon Leonard pushes past the pain while dragging a hose to the second floor of the burn building on the training grounds. Photo by Justin IdeMicah Terrell listens to firefighter Kennon Snow during training on car fires. Photo by Justin IdeKelly Jackson bleeds a 2.5-inch charged hose line prior to bringing it into the burn building on the training grounds. Photo by Justin Ide
Recruit Academy 1
Brandon Leonard, 30
Leonard, who has lived in the Charlottesville area for 10 years, says seeing 9/11 happen as a 16-year-old is what sparked his decision to become a firefighter. He served as a firefighter in the Navy on the USS Enterprise, before moving into the firefighting profession full-time. He worked in Campbell County most recently, and says the history of the Charlottesville department is what led him to apply for a position here.
“This department’s a lot more of family than my old department, that stood out in the recruit school,” he says. “They take care of their own—that’s pretty good to see.”
One thing people might not be aware of, he says, is that firefighters work on 24-hours shifts, sleeping at the facility and eating together as a family when not out on runs. He calls the department a “brotherhood.”
“This has just been my calling the entire time. I feel at home doing this kind of work,” he says. “I get satisfaction out of the job, but that’s not what I’m here for. It’s just something I enjoy doing, I enjoy helping people.”
Kenneth Davis, 36
Davis didn’t set out to be a firefighter. Instead, he followed his music passion all over the country, eventually joining Charlottesville rock band Under the Flood, which signed a multi-album deal with Koch Records. Davis still has a foot in the music world—he works as a manager at the Jefferson Theater—but says a December 2015 ridealong with a firefighter friend changed his life. He was soul-searching and looking for the next passion he wanted to pursue and says “when I found this it clicked right away. …When you watch the news you’re always like, ‘I wish there was something I could do to help.’ This is the opportunity to do that.”
For Davis, one of the most exciting aspects of the job is the chance to keep learning. “It’s one thing to learn in the classroom and books, but getting out in the real-world environment is another thing.”
Ben Weidinger, 24
UVA grad Weidinger is no stranger to helping people, especially when it comes to the EMS side of firefighting. He grew up working in his mom’s veterinary clinic in Yorktown, and after graduating with a pre-med degree he volunteered at Sentara Martha Jefferson Hospital and at a free clinic in his hometown. He chose to join CFD as “a way to increase my knowledge of medicine and be physical; help people, especially while I’m young.”
Weidinger says most people are likely not aware of how much EMS (emergency medical services) work firefighters do, in that they are often the first responders to a scene and start medical treatment before an ambulance arrives.
“I would say that coming from someone who had very little experience of public service in any regard about a year and a half ago, there’s so much more to it than you would believe,” he says. “You see a firefighter and think, ‘Oh, they’re going to put out a fire.’ That’s the only thing you see, and with public education and emergency medical services they respond to pretty much everything.”
Michael Barber, 30
Every day in high school on his walk home from rugby practice, Barber would pass the local volunteer firehouse. He often wondered what it would be like to join them, and he got his chance at Lynchburg College, after discovering the school did not have a rugby club. When a student rep for the college rescue squad gave her pitch to the freshman class, Barber decided to give it a shot. One week later he had an interview, and the week after that he was voted onto the squad. The following semester he became the organization’s secretary. Still, he always thought of firefighting as a volunteer gig (after college he volunteered in Lynchburg and in Chapel Hill, North Carolina) until 2012, when he received a call from his old fire chief in Virginia. Barber was looking for a change and decided to make firefighting a full-time career, joining the Wintergreen Fire Rescue Squad.
Barber is looking forward to working with a larger department (Charlottesville’s department is three times the size of Wintergreen) that receives a variety of calls each day. Being in a less rural area allows firefighters to be on an emergency scene more quickly, and allows them to enter a structure and put out a fire quickly before it does more damage.
“I’m most excited about being a part of this new family,” he says. “It doesn’t matter what department you ever run on, once you’re part of it, you’re a part of the family.”
Kelly Jackson, 25
New recruit Jackson never had aspirations to become a firefighter. But the former personal trainer was working in the Washington, D.C., area, and a couple of her firefighter friends encouraged her to switch careers. She shrugged it off until applying on a whim one day—she sent applications to several departments, including ones closer to her hometown of Lynchburg, as well as one in Maryland near her brother.
Because she’s new to the field, she said she had zero expectations going into the recruit academy.
“It was pretty difficult because it was so much information in a short amount of time,” she says. “It took a lot of discipline and studying on our own to really soak in everything that was thrown at us.” She said the best part of the academy was getting out of the classroom and going on ridealongs; seeing what a regular day was like. What she looks forward to most is that each day on the job is different.
“I couldn’t have an office job or something that you just do the same stuff over and over and over again,” she says. “Here you never know, you could have nothing or you could never sit down all day. It’s going to be a challenge, and I like that part.”
Jason Frazier, 31
Because of his military background (he joined the active duty Marine Corps after high school and is now in the reserves) Frazier says it’s the structure of the fire department that appeals to him most. He’s spent five years attempting to join the Charlottesville department, and has gained certifications along the way.
“With a lot of hard work and a little bit of luck I landed this position,” says the Crozet native.
Frazier joined the recruit class a little later than everyone else because he just came off a nine-month deployment in Qatar.
He knew what to expect in terms of firefighting duties because he’s volunteered for three years at the Crozet department, but he says the biggest takeaway in his time at CFD is how helpful everyone has been in answering questions and showing him the way they do things.
“For me it’s more that I like the brotherhood; the atmosphere of it is not just a job—it’s something you enjoy going to every day,” he says. “It’s a second family almost.”
Ryan Snoddy, 26
Firefighting is a true family affair for Snoddy. His dad, Vernon, retired after 30 years with the Charlottesville Fire Department, and Snoddy says he aspires to live up to his dad’s reputation.
“Growing up I learned from him that patience is the key to everything,” he says. “He did everything to the best of his ability, and his actions speak louder than words.”
Snoddy’s background as a car mechanic translates well into his new profession, because of the tactile, hands-on focus of both, he says. He made the leap into firefighting to help others and because of its team mentality, and he is looking forward to continuing to prove himself in this new job and earn the respect of his fellow firefighters.
“Being a firefighter you have to be a jack of all trades,” he says. “I’m looking forward to getting to learn every day.”
Wilco has always been a welcome sight, but I’ve never particularly invested much in Jeff Tweedy and his buds—Wilco’s ninth album, Star Wars, came out last year and I totally missed it. So here’s the 10th, and I’m feeling like a fool and a pushover, because Schmilco’s a total pleasure.
Tweedy’s voice never rises much above a whisper, and Schmilco isn’t dad rock—it doesn’t rock enough to qualify—but these songs build a quiet world and swing it. Just as much as ballyhooed contempo-classical artists like Nico Mulhy, Tweedy’s a composer. When he heightens the spooky vibe of “Common Sense” by adjusting the texture, it’s like watching a stranger on the street remember something and change direction. The acoustic guitar number “Quarters” burbles along until it staggers through some portal to a passage reminiscent of early Pink Floyd, with faint, gossamer organ and pastoral electric slide guitar. The lopsided groove of “Locator” recalls a gentler Captain Beefheart without losing tension. Engaging sonic accents and cool, unexpected chords abound, and throughout, Tweedy sounds worn but not worn out, a bittersweet old soul. Schmilco is good company.
The Limiñanas
Malamore (Hozac)
Unabashed revivalists The Limiñanas return from France with their fourth full-length, and it’s fairly in line with the first three. The band comprises Maria Limiñana and Lionel Limiñana, and the duo trades on the darker side of Jacques Dutronc and France Gall’s stripped-down ’60s French pop sounds. The Limiñanas are adept, but the challenge of formalism is to keep listeners from running back to the original source material, and there’s nothing here that matches any of their forebears’ best stuff (or their own—like the splendid early single “AF3458”). “Garden of Love” comes close, with an oddly moving mix of sweet glockenspiel and a thudding groove aided by bassist Peter Hook of New Order, but Maria’s self-consciously breathy, kiss-me-I’m-French recitation becomes tiresome. Lionel fares a bit better with Serge Gainsbourg-inflected vocalisms on the garagey psych of “Prisunic” and “Kostas,” and The Limiñanas shrewdly shake up the proceedings with several guest vocalists. But the most enjoyable song on Malamore might be the instrumental bonus track “Paradise Now,” which floats along on a dreamy two-chord bed and doesn’t seem to angle for cool points.
Vulfpeck
The Beautiful Game (Vulf)
Vulfpeck is a group of jazz nerds from L.A. by way of the University of Michigan conservatory. Actually, they’re just straight-up nerds, engineering a compression plug-in for home studio rats, commissioning an official typeface and gaming Spotify to ingeniously fund a free-ticket tour. Last year’s Thrill of the Arts showcased an exuberant rock-funk hybrid that evoked a friskier Steely Dan, as Vulfpeck simultaneously broke into jamband circles via well-received sets at festivals such as Lockn’.
The Beautiful Game continues Vulfpeck’s basic sound, and brings back vocalists from Thrill of the Arts: the wonderful Christine Hucal and the dorky, grating Antwaun Stanley. There’s actually a glut of guests on The Beautiful Game, and the album loses some focus. The material is spotty as well; some tracks feel like stunts—album opener “The Sweet Science” is a klezmer clarinet cadenza, a neat idea with, nevertheless, no apparent purpose. Other cuts feel like studies, such as “Dean Town”—the title is a riff on Jaco Pastorius’ “Teen Town,” and bassist Joe Dart aptly shows off his bountiful skills, but to clinical ends. On The Beautiful Game, Vulfpeck sounds like an incredible house band in search of a songwriter.—Nick Rubin
One of two cherished white deer often spotted in the Fry’s Spring neighborhood was struck and killed by a car on Jefferson Park Avenue Extended around 3pm October 23. Deer-lovers, who have christened the creature names such as “Enchanted” and “Half & Half” on Facebook, created a sidewalk memorial to their friend in the 2400 block of JPA. A note reads, “RIP unicorn. Thank you for the magic.”
While more than 200 Facebook users have expressed their sentiments, Janice Kaltenbach may have said it best: “My heart is breaking!! She was so beautiful! And a reminder to us all that ‘different’ can be a good thing and valued.”
Locals sue to extend voter registration
October 17 was the last day to register to vote in Virginia—and the system crashed. Charlottesville residents Kathy and Michael Kern tried to register multiple times October 16 and 17, and on October 18 became plaintiffs in a federal lawsuit. A judge extended registration to October 21.
Free speech case flounders
Jeff Fogel, who was representing Joe Draego in his suit against Charlottesville after he was dragged out of a City Council meeting, filed a motion October 18 to be removed as Draego’s attorney because their relationship “has deteriorated to the point I can no longer effectively communicate with him,” Fogel said.
Homicide arrest
Pierre Gerard Augustine, 26, was arrested October 18 and charged in the November 21, 2015, slaying of Floyd Randolph Alston Jr., 31, during a home invasion and attempted robbery on South First Street.
Another hazing lawsuit
Aidan Howard, a former UVA first-year football player, filed suit October 14 against UVA President Teresa Sullivan, athletics director Craig Littlepage, coaches Marques Hagans and Famika Anae, and players Doni Dowling and David Eldridge, the Daily Progress reports. Howard was barely on the team a month before alleged bullying and a locker room fight resulted in an injury and his abrupt departure from the team.
Influential teen
Gavin Grimm makes Time magazine’s 2016 list for his battle to use the boy’s bathroom at his Gloucester high school. Grimm’s case will be decided by the U.S. Supreme Court.
Friendship Court shooting
Ty Quane Pertell Gregory was arrested and charged with malicious wounding and two felony gun offenses in connection with an October 5 shooting of a man in the 400 block of Garrett Street.
Courts await final ruling
The renovation and expansion of the Albemarle County court system has been on the table for years, and just as a final decision was within reach, the Board of Supervisors called for revisiting the proposal—and adding four more.
Proposals
1. Downtown/Levy Opera House expansion: $39.7 million
The original proposal calls for renovating the opera house, demolishing existing structures and building a new three-story general district court with room for the county and city.
2. Relocate county and city general district courts to County Office Building: $37.7 million
Construct a three-story addition to the McIntire Road building. A partial relocation of government operations would be required. Minimal parking reconfiguration.
3. Relocate the county’s general district court to the County Office Building: $27 million
A three-story addition with little disruption to existing operations and no relocation of government staff.
4. Relocate county general district and circuit courts to County Office Building: $32.8 million
Requires parking expansion and partial displacement of existing operations.
5. Relocate county general district and circuit courts to new county site: $30.9 million
Construct a new 85,000-square-foot complex in the county with 350 parking spaces. Requires voter referendum to move county courts and seat.
Source: Albemarle County
Quote of the week
“Whoever is taking the [Clinton/Kaine] signs is leaving the Jane Dittmar signs.” —Fluvanna resident Mark Crockett, whose Clinton sign lasted one day before it was swiped.
Ian Glomski makes a foray into the local drink scene with his molasses-based liquors at Vitae Spirits. Photo by Amy Jackson
For Ian Glomski, 2012 was a watershed year. He turned 40 and narrowly escaped a massive wildfire while on a birthday fly-fishing trip in Wyoming. He served as a juror for the George Huguely trial and fought cancer for the first time.
“All of that added up,” he says, and with mortality on the mind, he started thinking about what he wanted to do with his remaining years. He had a good job as a professor of microbiology specializing in infectious disease at the University of Virginia School of Medicine, but knew he’d regret it if he kept doing what he was doing.
But his midlife crisis wasn’t a red Porsche or a young girlfriend, he says with a laugh. It was a distillery.
Glomski left his professor gig to open Vitae Spirits at 715 Henry Ave., next door to Ace Biscuit and Barbecue. Since 2015, he’s been making high-quality rum and gin to better serve the Virginia cocktail community, which has a cornucopia of local beers and wines, but few local liquors.
Glomski says he initially got into alcohol production to skirt the law—when he was 18, he could buy hops and yeast, but not beer, so he started making his own while a student at Tufts University in Massachusetts. Frustrated with the “crappy beer” he was brewing, he took a microbiology course to learn how to isolate and remove the microorganisms that were ruining his brews.
For a scientist interested in alcohol, he says distilling was the next mountain to summit, and he started with rum. In his opinion, there’s “no better spirit to pair with fruit juice than rum, especially white rum.”
Photo by Amy Jackson
Glomski says the production of Vitae rums (and gin) begins by fermenting sugar cane molasses into a molasses beer that’s about 8 percent alcohol (Glomski estimates Vitae uses about 27,000 pounds of Louisiana molasses every three months). They load the molasses beer into the custom-built copper pot still and heat it. Compounds in the beer that boil at low temperatures transition from liquid into vapor, and the vapors rise out of the top of the still. Once outside the still, the vapors are cooled back down to room temperature and turn into a liquid. Glomski says the very first vapors to boil off the molasses beer taste awful, but once they’ve boiled off completely, most of what’s left in the beer is water and ethanol (drinking alcohol). With continued heating, ethanol is next to vaporize, and those are the vapors cooled into a liquid to make rum.
The Alley Light bar manager Micah LeMon uses Vitae’s Platinum Rum in his Rose Hill Ruby cocktail; it’s different from most other white rums (e.g., Bacardi) in that it’s not filtered through charcoal, a process that can strip flavor from rum. “When you taste the molasses and then you taste the rum, you understand why people call liquor ‘spirits’: It is the fortified essence of molasses,” says LeMon.
The Golden Rum, infused with sugarcane grilled on Ace’s hickory next door, “is a great component for a split-spirit-based tiki cocktail” for its strong char, oak and molasses flavors, he says.
Glomski explains that to make gin, the Vitae team loads the still with ethanol drinking alcohol, and adds 17 different botanicals before heating it up. The vaporizing ethanol carries the aromatic oils from the herbs and spices out of the still and into drinking gin, while leaving the bitter flavors of the herbs and spices behind. Vitae’s gin is unusual in its molasses base: Glomski estimates that of the 800 craft distilleries making gin in the U.S., only about half a dozen of them use molasses, instead of corn and wheat, in the alcohol to make gin.
“The molasses is more muted in the gin [than in the rums], but still present, and complimented by lemongrass, lavender and pepper on the palate,” says LeMon.
All three liquors are available at Vitae’s tasting room, which opened October 15. The Platinum Rum hit ABC shelves April 1 of this year, but the Golden Rum and Modern Gin are special order bottles.
Per Virginia ABC laws, Vitae can serve a maximum of 3 ounces of liquor per person per day (that’s about two full-size cocktails), and can only serve alcohol produced on the premises. If Glomski wants to mix and serve a cocktail with a complementary alcohol, he must make it himself.
For those purposes, Glomski has a few other products in the works, including an orange liqueur made with local trifoliate orange zest, a coffee liqueur and an anisette made with fennel and Buddha’s hand zest. But for now, Vitae’s small bar serves up single-alcohol cocktails, such as the Gold ’n’ Stormy (Golden Rum, muddled lime, Reed’s Extra Ginger Brew), the Platinum Daiquiri (Platinum Rum, lime juice, vanilla bean-infused simple syrup) and the Modern Tonic (Modern Gin, muddled lime, Fever Tree Elderflower Tonic).
Vitae will sell about 3,500 cases of spirits per year, and while that’s enough to make it a successful business, Glomski expects the output to evolve as he incorporates more products and distillers reserves (like those liqueurs and some barrel-aged rums) into the repertoire.
He doesn’t plan to match big-distributor output or visibility, but he does plan to invite the community in. He’ll test plenty of products on adventurous tasting room customers and offer tours of the facility. He’s open to hearing tasters’ ideas and even doing custom production runs for those who have the means.
“We can’t beat the big guys on production, on quality control,” says Glomski. “So we have to offer something else—and that’s the direct connection to people who are vested in the product. We can adapt quickly, and we can be creative.”
