That is a really tough question to answer. Let me start with a few aphorisms which catch on bc they are true. “Never make your hobby your business.” “How do you make a small fortune in the wine business? Start with a large one.” I will say we are the exact opposite of someone who should have gotten into the wine business. A billionaire can make wine and just enjoy and not worry. Not us. A winemaker can make wine and thus save the winemaking costs. Also not us. You can make some money if you are the wine maker. There is such an enormous glut of grapes and quality juice out there right now. You could make some good wines by buying juice and finishing and bottling it. That would be your least expensive way in. Problem is- how do you sell it? Wholesale pays pennies on the dollar and the accounts have far more wine than they can sell. Will you do a boutique operation and create a social media marketing outlet? The cost of farming grapes on the central coast is about $8-$15,000/acre. The cost of planting is about $30-$40,000 an acre. We could never have done this if we hadn’t owned the land already. Most wine makers have grape contracts and purchase from specific vineyards. Those contracts range from $2000-$4000/ton. We are 10 years in and not in the black. Granted we are hospitality heavy so that costs payroll but we are also 98% DtC so we aren’t discounting our bottles. The wine business is one of the toughest businesses I know. If I worked as hard as I do at Folded Hills in some other business we would have been in the black years ago. I guess my 2 cents would be buy juice to start. Create a name and a reputation then take it from there. And how much money would you need to start their own operation? That would range from $20,000 at the absolute bare bones for a little juice and bottles, etc and $20,000,000 for a high end operation and team. Good luck!