Massive concerts at the Huntington Center are still on hold as the pandemic continues on, but live music isn’t as scarce as one might think in northwest Ohio. Some bars and wineries are providing some much needed entertainment for people to enjoy. The Polish Ostrich, Bier Stube, Stubborn Brother, and lots of other bars are offering live music multiple times a week.
At Majestic Oak Winery, 13554 Mohler Rd. Grand Rapids, Ohio, just about a half-hour away from Toledo, patrons can enjoy live music every Friday, Saturday, and sometimes Sunday nights while they sip on their wine.
Owner and winemaker Laura Rufenacht said the winery has ample space for patrons, so the venue hasn’t faced any issues with allowing live music to carry on, like some other places were this summer.
“We’re on seven acres so I always say we have the largest patio in the area,” she said. “In the summertime we encourage people to throw their own chairs in the car if they would like to do that. They will be able to sit as far out as they would like to and still be able to enjoy the music and the food trucks, beer, and wine as well.”
Majestic Oak Winery, 13554 Mohler Rd. Grand Rapids, Ohio.
Info: majesticoakwinery.com
Six Fifths Distilling, 120 W. South Boundary St., Perrysburg
Info: sixfifthsdistilling.com
It isn’t uncommon for the more than 280 wineries in Ohio to have live music. In places like California, where there are entire financially stable industries built around wineries, they don’t have to offer much to get patrons in the door. For places like Ohio, it’s a little different.
“We’re agritourism,” Rufenacht said. “So we concentrate on trying to bring patrons to our facility and be able to offer dinners, live music, crafts, or other types of events. That’s just something that we do to draw people to the winery.”
Majestic offers music every Friday and Saturday, and in the summer on Sundays, too. The artists usually come from the Toledo area. Most people that perform make country, rock, and jazz music. Rufenacht’s favorite compliment from patrons is that they feel safe in her winery, even during the pandemic.
“Because of the size of our place it kind of gives you that maybe that festival feel,” she explained. “You can be sitting out enjoying and basically doing whatever you would like to do. You could be walking through the vineyard or hanging out with friends. You can be there specifically just for the music or that can just be an accessory for you too. It just depends on what you’re looking for, but we do offer a lot of opportunities and we’ve heard that word a lot.”
While things have been good for the most part, Rufenacht said because of social distancing rules, the amount of seating they can offer has gone down. She can’t wait for summer to offer patrons the better live music experience.
“We don’t do larger bands until it’s warm enough to make sure we’ve got enough space outside,” she said. “We have seven acres so there’s plenty of room. That’s why we really recommend that people bring their chairs so they can get away from everyone. It worked out well last summer and we don’t foresee that being an issue this summer. We have an attractive atmosphere. People often say it doesn’t feel like you’re in northwest Ohio when you’re here, it feels like you’re on vacation.”
You don’t have to get away to a winery to spot local musicians either. In Perrysburg, craft spirit company Six Fifths Distilling, 120 W. South Boundary St., offers live music Wednesday through Saturday night.
With showcasing live music incorporated into their business plan from the jump, instead of canceling performances when the pandemic happened, the company decided to hold livestreamed performances where the musicians were still paid.
“It worked out for everyone,” said owner Patrick Ryan. “They still got to play and perform, make some extra money on the side, and got our name out there a little bit.”
Like most places, the amount of seating had decreased since Six Fifths started having in-person performances. The line can get tricky. Dancing isn’t banned, but patrons are required to wear masks to and from the bathroom. Loitering with drinks in hand around the establishment is also prohibited.
“Everyone has a little bit of a different tolerance level,” Ryan said. “Most complaints of people are that they don't like wearing masks or they want to get up and socialize. We do have some ladies in our Thursday night crowd. They're pretty lively and fun. They always seem to can't help themselves but dance in their spots. They have a good time.”
Ryan said he can’t wait for guidelines to loosen so he can offer later and bigger shows. People have come in to enjoy themselves, but he can tell they’ve been conditioned by the pandemic to leave earlier and earlier.
“Before around 10 o'clock we’d bring in a whole band, or have a second show later that night was a little bit louder and geared more towards traditional live performance,” he explained. “Now with things starting to loosen back up a little bit, we plan on going back into that mode.”
First Published March 4, 2021, 12:41 a.m.
