Speaker to share experiences of owning a winery

YORK, Pa. — Little did Carl Helrich, co-owner of Allegro Winery, in Broque, Pennsylvania, know that his experience helping his father bottle home-brewed beer in the 1970s would one day help him determine his career choices. Helrich will discuss the business of growing grapes, wine-making, and marketing during a presentation at noon on Tuesday, Feb. 23, in Room 107 of the M.S. Grumbacher Information Sciences and Technology Center at Penn State York. The program is free and open to the public.In addition to sharing information about operating the business, Helrich will also talk about the good soils in the land around the winery and how important they are to growing good grapes.Helrich’ s memories of helping his father stayed with him as he majored in philosophy and religion in college. After working in a variety of jobs, including garage worker, wheat harvester, truck driver, warehouse manager and more, he realized that he needed to pursue a career that would allow him to be his own boss while doing the things he loved.According to Helrich, he had an epiphany while working at a local winery that led to the realization that his unique skill set could be successfully combined with his desire to create new liquid and aromatic sensations.  This idea ultimately resulted in a career path that provided an artistic outlet he had always been looking for.Helrich and his wife, Kris Miller, also a co-owner of the winery, purchased Allegro Winery in 2001 and have been operating the successful winery since then.