CLEVELAND — In the heart of Cleveland’s Hough neighborhood, once synonymous with civil unrest and urban decay, a three-acre vineyard stands as a symbol of community renewal and second chances.
Château Hough Vineyards and Winery, founded in 2010 by late writer and community activist Mansfield Frazier, is not just a place where grapes grow. Neighbors view it as a testament to rehabilitation, innovation and the belief that beauty and purpose can thrive in unexpected places.
Frazier died in 2021. His wife, Brenda Mansfield Frazier, runs the vineyard and winery. On Aug. 5, she welcomed a group of student journalists from National Association of Black Journalists’ JSHOP, a journalism workshop for high schoolers run by NABJ during its national convention, held in Cleveland this summer.
“I thought about the years when Mansfield was a mentor,” Brenda Frazier said.
What started as a bold experimental venture on three vacant city-owned lots, supported by a 2010 re-greening grant from the City of Cleveland, has since blossomed into one of the city’s only vineyards.
According to Frazier, the story of Château Hough begins not with wine, but with transformation. Her late husband, a Cleveland native, was a respected journalist who wrote for publications including The Cleveland Leader, The Call and Post and The Daily Beast. Before all that, he served time in prison.
He authored a memoir titled From Behind the Wall chronicling his experiences and lessons learned. He also started a greeting card company that sold artwork from fellow inmates, helping supplement their commissary funds.
His creative energy and deep love for Cleveland soon turned toward a new kind of reinvention.
“He wanted to give back to the city that he loved,” Frazier said, adding that her husband wanted to provide educational opportunities and support his nonprofit organization, Neighborhood Solutions, Inc., which offers education and engagement opportunities that promote community building and economic freedom, specifically targeting marginalized residents in Northeast Ohio.
“He decided to either grow hops for beer or grapes for wine,” she said. “He settled [on] grapes.”
The neighborhood surrounding Château Hough was once the epicenter of the 1966 Hough Uprising, a four-day rebellion sparked by racial tensions, police brutality and deep economic inequality. The riots resulted in four deaths and dozens of fires, leaving a scar on the city’s east side that persisted for decades, according to Case Western Reserve’s Encyclopedia of Cleveland History.
Now, vines wind around trellises where abandoned buildings once stood. The vineyard cultivates Frontenac (red) and Traminette (white) grape varietals, both hybrids chosen for their ability to withstand Cleveland’s harsh winters.
Grapes are harvested annually on the third Saturday of September, with the help of community volunteers and transitional workers from Oriana House, a local halfway house.
In 2019, the Fraziers transformed an old Victorian house adjacent to the vineyard into a winery and tasting room. The facility was originally designed as a “biosellar,” a solar-heated greenhouse, but was repurposed into a wine production space because of Cleveland’s weather limitations.
Château Hough produces eight types of wine. It also offers community “grape stomps” and events such as “Paint & Sips” and karaoke nights, according to their website.
“It’s a place that has a lot to offer, the vineyard in particular,” Frazier said. “I like to look at it as an educational place.”
“There are a lot of people who aren’t going to go out to Napa Valley,” she added.“There are a lot of people who aren’t going to go out on I-90 East, but here they get to see (the vines) up close and personal.”
Château Hough’s tasting room is open to the public seasonally, and there are volunteer opportunities for the fall harvest annually. For more information, visit chateauhough.com.
