Family Tradition
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.
The Boss
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.
Our Winemaker
Like most starving artists, Sean M Quinn waited tables while studying Theater Production and Design at the College of William & Mary in Virginia. While working alongside a prominent local wine director, he was inspired to learn how grape juice could taste so good, and agreed to a two year stint at Williamsburg Winery. After learning everything from scrubbing tanks to filling barrels, he traveled to McLaren Vale, Australia to intern for the following winter’s harvest. The summer of 2008, he ventured out to California, alternating between cellar jobs during harvest and hospitality in the off season. For the next several years, he worked for numerous wineries in the region while earning his Certificate of Viticulture and Enology from Napa Valley College. Since graduating in 2013, Sean has been Cellar Manager at Viader Winery, Winemaker at Hannah Nicole in Contra Costa County, and most recently, Associate Production Winemaker for Amici Cellars, overseeing the custom crush program and bottling for their larger Olema and Appellation Series brands. The opportunity to work with a small estate vineyard in Rutherford, and to be hands-on from vine to wine was an offer he couldn’t refuse. When he’s not making wine, Sean enjoys bocce ball, golf, snowboarding and the occasional sailboat race.
Trusted Advisor
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.
Rutherford Dust
Our estate vineyard is nestled against the eastern foothills of the Vaca Mountain range, in the northeast corner of the Rutherford AVA. According to the UC Davis Soil Resource Lab, its primary composition is the Cortina series of very gravelly, sandy loam consistent with our proximity to the Napa River. Due to its considerable depth, this soil is excessively well drained, which forces the vines to extend their roots in search of water. From 18 to 48 inches below the surface is a layer of “tufa”, white rock that was originally compressed ash cast out of the Vaca’s extinct volcanoes. Replanted in 1991, Bill’s modest seven-acre vineyard grows all five of the Bordeaux red varieties. The yield is small, producing roughly 1600 cases of boutique wines annually, including Cabernet Sauvignon, Cabernet Franc, and a Meritage-style blend called Rutherford Reserve.