A venue in Dauphin County is soon to be the first of its kind in Pennsylvania to brew wine and craft beer in the same production room.
21 various wines make up the Vineyards at Hershey.
Mike Wilson is the Vice President of marketing and outreach at the Vineyard. He says, “All the way from dry, sweet, blush, sparkling. We wanted to play around with what we offer and offer unique differentiators.”
The idea for a winery developed at a bar in 2008, when four guys, including “Merlot Mike” Wilson, were chatting over happy hour. Their vision continues to grow today.
“We’ll harvest these in the fall, just pressed juice, grape stomping competitions, all that good stuff,” says Wilson.
From wine, to beer, The Vineyard at Hershey provides the first winery and brewery production in Pennsylvania under the same roof.
Wilson says, “Craft and artful creations and customizations and being able to experiment and play around and put your own spin on it. That’s the rage right now.”
Brewmaster, Ryan DeLutis says, “Right now we’re at 151 degrees and it will get up to boiling in the kettle then ferment it at about 68 degrees.”
DeLutis is mastering 4 craft beers to stir up a brewery within the winery.
“It’s a unique opportunity in Pennsylvania where we have both things in the production center,” says DeLutis.
The Grand Opening of the Brewery at Hershey will be on August 10th.