WILLIAM HARRISON VINEYARDS & WINERY - Key Persons
Bill Harrison's maternal ancestors have been making fine wine in Italy since the early 16th Century. His grandfather, Antonio Perelli-Minetti immigrated to California in 1902, and was one of the first winemakers in the State to hold a degree in viticulture and enology. He is widely considered one of the more prominent figures in California's winemaking heritage. Antonio's daughter, Conchita was born in Torreon, Mexico, where he established a 700-acre vineyard operation before the Revolution forced him back to California. Conchita married Bill's father just after the Depression, and her son now carries on the family's tradition of crafting fine wine in the Napa Valley.
William Moore Harrison grew up at his grandfather's winery in the San Joaquin Valley. After graduating with a Marketing degree from Santa Clara University, he earned his MBA at Cal with a ROTC scholarship, then served for two years as an Armor Officer in the First Infantry Division. After the Army, Bill went to work for his uncle Mario at the California Wine Association (CWA), a national marketing concern co-owned by his grandfather. When Antonio passed away in 1976, the family dissolved their interest in his eponymous winery and the CWA. A few years (and 40 lenders) later, Bill started a lucrative mobile bottling company, which gave him the resources to build his own winery. "Winemaking is part artistry, part science," he says, and "as luck would have it, I found a unique vineyard location in the Napa Valley which produces very good fruit, and makes very good wines." In 1993, he crushed the first vintage under his own label, and for three decades has produced world-class wines that would make his forefathers proud.
Inspired by his mother's work with Wente Vineyards in Livermore, Charles McKahn chose a career in wine at the tender age of fifteen. After earning his Enology degree at Cal Poly, San Luis Obispo in 2011, he moved to Napa Valley to work for our former consultant, Phillip Titus at Chappellet. As our full time Winemaker for six years, Chuck developed an intimate acquaintance with Bill's vineyards and the potential of the wines they create. In early 2022, however, he decided to refocus on his energy on his own consulting business, while continuing to produce Rhone varietals for McKahn Family Cellars. At a mutual custom crush facility in Stag's Leap District, he and Sean crossed paths, and got talking about next steps. We look forward to their shared vision of expertly crafted, Estate-grown wines here in Rutherford.