Meet our winemaker for Shamrock Hills Vineyard and Winery—owner, Mike Riley. Mike has always been a jump in and get it done type of guy—from his days as a scout, his years as an officer in the military, a leader in Scouts, an owner of his engineering business, a father of 2 sons, and as a husband. He doesn’t shy away from hard work and doesn’t just talk the talk but he walks the walk. Now as we enter this new adventure as winery owners, Mike is diving into the art of wine making which he doesn’t take lightly. He has been a mad scientist as we embrace the grapes we have picked or purchased to introduce not just 2-3 wines this year under the Shamrock Hills label but 13 upcoming wines in 2024 from our 2022-2023 vintage.
Mike loves to learn and what better way to learn than hands on. He has had a few trial-and-error situations, but he’s been absorbing the knowledge he has gained from the Viticulture and Eulogy department of the University of Missouri Extension, wine makers he has talked to, and the reading he has done, soaking it all in. He’s had fun introducing a barrel program to Shamrock Hills as well! He then confirms he’s on the right track by involving customers, and employees in tasting the wines he’s creating to gain feedback and allow him to tweak until he gets the perfect blend or single grape varietal. He loves problem-solving, diligence, and attention to detail, which he has learned are key traits to wine making.
So coming this spring—look for some sweeter wines like our Sparkling Moscato, and Sweet Hadley Jo (named after our new granddaughter); to semi sweets like our Chardonel; to off-dry’s such as our new Vignoles and 2023 Chloe’s Cuvee; to dry wines like some of our Reserve wines and St. Vincent. We will have a variety of wines for you to try this spring!
The next time you are at Shamrock Hills, we invite you to meet the wine maker! If Mike is around and not deep in grape juice, he’d love to show you some of the processes that go into making your bottle of wine!
Written by Denise Riley