Urban Harvest

Chateau Hough grows grapes, people and community. BY RHONDA CROWDER

On a sunny Saturday morning, volunteers who were young, old, Black and white came from as close as around the corner and as far away as the West Side suburbs to Chateau Hough vineyard and winery, located at 1650 E. 66th St. and Hough Avenue to pick grapes during the vineyard’s 10th annual harvest. The vineyard has been operating for 10 years and the winery for four. The yearly harvest typically yields about 1,800 bottles of wine.

Throughout the years, Chateau Hough has become quite an attraction. Actor Michael Jai White and his wife, Gillian, visited Chateau Hough during a tour of Cleveland.

Founded by community stalwart Mansfield Frazier and his wife, Brenda, Chateau Hough’s mission is to use innovative educational and entrepreneurial strategies to encourage, prepare and assist at-risk youth, veterans and those who have returned to neighborhoods after incarceration. The project’s goal is two-fold: introduce a broader audience to the Hough community by establishing a chic, upscale and innovative venture; and improving the economics of a community, which goes hand-and-glove with improving public safety.

Kathy Wanek of Parma says she’s wanted to volunteer during the harvest for the last five years, ever since she visited during a tour led by the Natural History Museum, but other commitments always prevented her from doing so. Last year, the pandemic was the culprit. This year, she saw the post on Facebook and made plans to attend.

Sheree Green-Bland, on the other hand, has been coming to the harvest for the past six years. The main reason she keeps coming back is Frazier. ”He’s a good man,” says Green-Bland, who credits Frazier for changing the life of her son, Marvin Foster, 31, Chateau Hough’s foreman and winemaker. Green-Bland says she also loves to give back to the community. She brought her grandson and daughter, Le’Ajan Green, who is 12 years old, to the harvest. Le’Ajan has been coming since she was 5. “I wanted to teach her to give back to the community and learn to work. And, she loves it,” says Green-Bland, as Le-Ajan clips clusters of grapes from the vine.

Several of the other volunteers working the harvest credit Foster for them being there. Foster, who’s been at Chateau Hough since 2010, says he lived in the neighborhood, and his little brother would volunteer at the vineyard. When Frazier began to recruit workers, Foster decided to give it a try. Before coming on board, he performed odd jobs, such as rehabbing houses, yard work, etc. But Chateau Hough provided him with steady pay. “I like the work. It keeps me active,” Foster says, while feverishly processing buckets of grapes as volunteers bring them into the winery. He does the bottling and labeling, as well. “My co-worker taught me the format, and I caught on to it.”

Frazier says he’s seen Foster mature as an individual. “He’s more dependable,” he says. “He knows quite a bit more about what we need to do to work and repair the machinery. As a result, he’s become self-sufficient. “The hope for Chateau Hough is to build a bigger building to allow for the growing of more grapes,” says Frazier, adding that Chateau Hough acquired the abandoned structure next door.

Chateau Hough has served about 50 at-risk youth, veterans or returning citizens throughout the years. Frazier is most proud of what it has done for the young people, particularly Marvin. “We’ve helped them move on and stabilize their lives,” he says. 

As volunteers prepare to pick grapes during Chateau Hough’s annual harvest, Mansfield Frazier, founder of Chateau Hough vineyard and winery, gives them a quick tutorial on how to clip the grapes from the vine.

Author, Journalist, Community Activist and Vintner

The subject of this story, Mansfield Frazier, lost his battle with cancer on Oct. 9. He leaves behind a wife and two daughters. Frazier was known for his community activism, as well as his work in print and radio. However, his greatest legacy may just be Chateau

Hough, which has become a source of pride for Cleveland’s Hough community. Cleveland Magazine’sCommunity Leader decided to print this story as a tribute to the man and his work. Frazier has left an indelible print upon the city.