Can't we just all get along? When Amy Smart and husband Carter Oosterhouse decided to extend their multi-talented reach (Smart is an actress who has starred in 2005's Just Friends; Oosterhouse is an eco-carpenter and host on HGTV) into the crowded wine industry, they knew they wanted to approach it with tact.
In fact, Smart told Us Weekly exclusively, the name of their winery, Bonobo, reflects that intent.
"It's a chimpanzee," Oosterhouse explained with a laugh. "In this crazy society, they have sort of figured out how to get along with each other, and that is pretty nice to see. So there is a lot of similarities that they have with what we sort of embody, they don't beat each other up, they don't fight, they sort of live amongst each other really nice."
The HGTV host revealed that when he and his brother first started the winery three-and-a-half years ago, it was the ninth one to crop up in his native Traverse City, Michigan, in an area called Old Michigan. Consequently, they knew they would have to do something to differentiate their product from the wineries next door.
"It's a place for people to come enjoy themselves, relax, [and] we are hoping to make it dog-friendly," Smart, 37, told Us with a laugh. "So it's not just a place to come drink wine, though of course the wine will be amazing, but it is also a place for people to come and have a little experience."
Oosterhouse added that every step of the business development thus far has proven to be extremely detail-oriented. And, because the couple, who wed in September 2011, don't have children yet, the winery has become their primary project.
"We don't have kids yet or anything, but naming something is one of the hardest things in the world," Oosterhouse told Us. "Naming this business was really tricky because we wanted to embody so many things, and so we unveiled it. It is sort of this new, new venture in this project of something that I know we will be a part of for a very long time."
And the location couldn't be more perfect. The couple tied the knot in Traverse City back in 2011 in front of 215 of their closest family members and friends. "He's from there and my parents live there, so it's been my second home since I was very young," Smart told Us in a statement at the time.
