A vintage year

Union Wine Company sets up shop in a Tualatin warehouse

By Stover E Harger III

The Times, Sep 10, 2009, Updated Oct 30, 2009

Jaime Valdez / The Times

TOWERING TANKS — Union Wine Company co-founder Ryan Harms walks between 10,000-gallon tanks that will soon be filled with wine that his company plans to create at its new warehouse location in Tualatin.

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In a nondescript Tualatin warehouse, Ryan Harms walks between 12 towering fermentation tanks, inspecting the empty metal structures. Soon these stainless steel containers, capable of storing 112,000 gallons of wine, will hold — literally — the fruit of his labor.

Harms, a Portland resident and veteran winemaker, along with business partner and Sherwood vineyard operator George Hillberry, have recently opened their winemaking operation, Union Wine Company, in the 10,000-square-foot Tualatin facility.

Both Harms and Hillberry have worked in the wine industry for decades, but this is the first time they have operated a winery that is all their own. They paired up in 2005 and crafted their Kings Ridge wine, an already established brand that they bought from Rex Hill Vineyards, as well as their Underwood Cellars and Alchemist Cellars wines at rented facilities.

Now, after months and months of planning, purchasing and fretting, the two are prepared to start the real work. The fruit harvest comes in at the end of September, and soon after that, the wine will start flowing.

Hoping to grow

Union Wine Company, located at 19550 S.W. Cipole Road, was created by Hillberry and Harms after years of marketing their wine brands as separate companies. Now, with the increased capacity and decreased cost that comes from operating on their own in their new warehouse space, Harms and Hillberry hope to grow their upstart wine company into a powerful Oregon wine business by keeping prices low and quality high.

Harms said the company uses grapes in their wines that would normally only be tasted in bottles that cost $10 more.

A bottle of Underwood pinot noir sells for about $10, $17 for Kings Ridge and $30 for Alchemist.

“What we are trying to do for all those levels is over deliver for what people would expect,” Harms said.

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