Issue link: http://winesandvines.uberflip.com/i/513570
June 2015 WINES&VINES 67 WINE EAST WINE INDUSTRY NEWS L iverpool, Pa.—Hunters Valley Winery, a 33-acre property located high on a hill overlooking the Susquehanna River north of Harrisburg, Pa., joined The Winery at Wilcox group of wineries April 17, changing its name to The Winery at Hunters Valley. Bill Kvaternik, who started growing grapes in 1981 and founded Hunters Valley Winery five years later with his wife Darlene, ap- proached Mike and Carol Williams, owners of The Winery at Wilcox, about the possibility of the Williamses purchasing Hunters Valley in February 2014. According to Mike Williams, "Bill told us he admired the way we've done business and liked the family aspect of our business. He thought it would be a good fit if we were to buy their winery." Kvaternik passed away May 13, 2014, and it took some time for the Williamses to decide to make the acquisi- tion and months to work out the details, but the transaction is now complete. The Winery at Hunters Valley will initially be operated by the Williams family as an additional Board- approved location of The Winery at Wilcox. Jamie Williams, son of Mike and Carol Wil- liams and vice president of The Winery at Wilcox (as well as president of the Pennsylva- nia Winery Association), told Wines & Vines that the Williamses plan to maintain the vine- yards and make wine at the Hunters Valley location. "We want to build on what the Kvaterniks did, and to honor them in that way," Williams said. The Williamses said they plan to retain any staff who want to stay. The Hunter Valley property has 5 acres of vineyards producing primarily Cabernet Franc, Chardonnay and Riesling and small amounts of Cayuga, Delaware, Niagara and Catawba. Mike Williams would like to plant another 10 acres either next spring or in 2017. The winery facility makes approximately 1,400 cases of wine per year. The location in southeastern Pennsylvania will give the Williamses the po- tential for vineyard acreage as well as access to the larger population base of the Philadel- phia and Baltimore regions for wine sales. While the Kvaterniks were not looking to grow their winery, the Williamses have ex- panded their wine business continually since they opened The Winery at Wilcox in 1994. The Williamses added a second winery in 2002, that time in Ohio. The Winery at Ver- sailles, north of Dayton, has 10 acres of grapes and annual wine production of 16,000 cases. Located in a remodeled tobacco barn, the tast- ing room has three seating areas and a view of the vineyard. —Linda Jones McKee Wine East Covering Eastern North America Winery at Hunters Valley Joins List of Properties Owned by Williams Family