Episode
From Alcatraz to Budding Wine Dynasty
- Published
- Jan 28, 2026
- Duration seconds
- 2920
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Summary
In this episode of Do Small Business Like a Big Boss , host Aisha Massengill , Founder and Principal Attorney at Sedgwick Andrews Legal & Consulting, LLC , sits down with Nancy Belle Hansford , Founder of Watkinsville Wine , to talk about how she turned a passion discovered at 19 into a thriving winery business. Nancy shares her inspiring journey from making wine in her parents’ house during the COVID quarantine to founding a federally licensed farm winery. She talks about navigating complex alcohol regulations, turning wine-making failures into new product lines, and balancing a full-time job with running a 24/7 passion. This conversation is a masterclass on how to start small, think big, and build a business that funds your passion without burning you out. 🎧 What You’ll Learn in This Episode: Starting Young and Asking for Help : How Nancy learned to make wine with zero formal training, and why attending a dry college helped her business Navigating Legal and Regulatory Challenges : Decoding federal alcohol licensing and finding loopholes to launch a winery in a dry county Turning Mistakes Into Revenue Streams : How Nancy’s early wine failures led to profitable new product lines Building a Sustainable Business Model : How Nancy scaled her winery while keeping her passion and paycheck separate to prevent burnout Balancing Full-Time Work with a 24/7 Passion : Setting boundaries and making use of simple tools to manage both business and full-time work Redefining Success on Your Own Terms : Why Nancy defines success as loving what you do—and not just making money ⏱️ Episode Timestamps: 00:00 – Introduction 03:23–03:58 – How Nancy learned to make wine with no formal background 10:01–10:28 – Cold-calling government officials to get wine-making approval 25:10–25:45 – How…