CLEVELAND, Ohio – When winemakers go outside, they usually look down and check out the soil, vines and grapes. When Tony Debevc goes out, he looks up.
The Debonne Vineyards owner keeps a constant eye on the sun. Any farmer has to deal with Mother Nature, but Debevc has special reason to do so. In February, after two years of work, the Madison winery installed solar panels.
“This solar guy shows up on my door one day and says, ‘You’d be in a perfect place for solar panels, you’ve got all this open space. I hear wineries are doing it out west. You would be a good example.’ ”
Debevc mulled and researched it. He had some Covid money that came in, and he was pitched grant money. He also was told write-off possibilities would happen sooner rather than through amortization. And he talked to an Ohio turkey farmer familiar with solar panels.
“So I said, ‘OK, we’ll do it.’ ”
It took two years. He signed the contract in November 2022. A little more than a month ago, the panels were up and running in the winery located 45 miles east of downtown Cleveland.
Five rows of 200 panels, each about five feet by three feet, fill a section of the property. Panels are dark so they absorb heat and can melt snow naturally, plus they are angled so snow can slide off.
“They don’t need direct sunlight,” Debevc said. “They need light.”
Tony Debevc Sr. of Debonné Vineyards.Marc Bona, cleveland.com
To understand solar power you need a primer in two types of energy. Direct current and alternating current. Serbian-American Nikola Tesla invented AC. Thomas Edison invented DC.
For a while, back in the late 19th century, Tesla worked for Edison.
Anyone who has driven by solar panels sees a bunch of glass squares. What you don’t see is their interconnection to a nearby power system. Underground lines connect a transformer in one of Debonné’s buildings to the panels, which are perched and angled in a field about 100 yards away.
Tesla batteries the size of a dorm fridge line a wall in a winery building. They sit under breakers and interconnecting machines. A transformer serves to switch power from DC to AC – AC being the high-voltage power that goes to homes and businesses.
“These are the brains of the operation,” Debevc said.
“I was astonished how much this is all for the solar system. We’re producing DC out there – current power. We use AC, alternating power, normal mechanical power you’d use in your house.”
Debevc and his son, Tony Jr., keep track of the dips and rises of their power usage through an app, of course. That allows constant vigilance, the way some people obsessively check the stock market or sports scores.
“I watch it all the time. It is interesting to see – ‘Hey, when did the sun come up? What is it producing at a peak?’ It is a bell curve.”
This winery building houses the brain trust for the solar system Debonné uses.Marc Bona, cleveland.com
Jagged levels on the app are peaks showing when it’s sunny. Orange shows load usage. At one point last Thursday, 18,000 watts were being produced despite the day’s cloudy and rainy weather. Cloudy days – especially with snow-covered panels – show lower production.
The energy is fueling a lot of things at the winery.
The panels supply about 60 percent of the winery’s total power needs, much of which are in major operations including the bottling line – which has a lot of moving parts - and labeling machine. The on-site Double Wing Brewing Co. requires energy for its brewing processes. They also power two walk-in units and a big chiller unit for beer that runs 24/7. One set of panels creates energy for lights and 110-volt outlets, basic home appliances. Other panels are for motors, refrigeration systems, compressors and other equipment.
“This is where we’re using a lot of energy and money,” he said. “Lights don’t take a lot, especially LED lights now; they’re real efficient. But when it comes to the cooler and refrigeration, that’s a whole different ballgame.”
The remaining 40% is for retail operations – some coolers, the kitchen and other parts of the winery’s original space.
“It’s all coming off that (solar) system,” he said. “On a sunny day, we’re banking power. And this is not Arizona.”
Debevc said he hopes to save about 50% on average every month plus in good months bank about 25%.
“If I use 1,000 watts from them (the electric company, CEI), but I sent them 1,500 watts, I get a 500-watt credit. That credit is moved forward to the next month’s bill. In the summer I may build up 30 or 40,000 credit watts. So come October when the sun is down and we don’t have as much sunlight, I can use those credits to carry it forward.”
Debonné Vineyards is in Madison, about 45 miles east of downtown Cleveland.Marc Bona, cleveland.com
The ability to banking credits “is real critical” to help get through the snowy, gray months Northeast Ohio experiences.
“On a sunny day we’re going to have enough power. And on a really bad day when we lose power we have some battery backup. Plus there’s a small generator that is tied into this that if we run out of power completely the small generator will keep the batteries charged so at least we’ll have some power to operate.”
The savings started immediately. A normal (electric) bill hovers around $2,000, and Debonné was able to cut it in half in the short time since the panels have been in use.
The savings are important since the system wasn’t cheap.
“This is a $436,000 project,” said Debevc, who said he is waiting on $90,700 from a USDA grant issued through the state of Ohio.
The system is supposed to last up to 85% efficiency for 25 years. Debevc said he expects it will take eight to 10 years to cover costs.
Use of solar power at wineries is not unprecedented. California wineries – with sunlight a precious and plentiful resource - are embracing it. Wine Business reported last year solar power is expected to generate 75% of Frank Family Vineyards’ electricity after the winery installed 800 panels in Napa Valley, California. Debonné appears to be the only winery in Northeast Ohio to have an extensive solar-power system.
“We’ve always been about sustainability,” said Debevc, who noted another benefit.
“It’s a backup in case power costs go through the roof. I’m making my own power. I don’t ever have to worry about starving from having a glass of wine. I’m always going to have a glass of free wine, right? Same thing with the beer.”
Stories by Marc Bona
I cover restaurants, drinks, sports-related and other topics on our life and culture team. For my recent stories, here’s a cleveland.com directory. WTAM-1100’s Bill Wills and I talk food and drink at 9:35 a.m. Tuesdays. Twitter and IG: @mbona30. To check out my books, go to marcbona.net.
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