Nestled in the heart of apple orchard country, Autumn Harvest Winery was opened in
July of 2005, by John & Marykay McIlquham. The John McIlquham family has been
growing apples for three generations in the small township of Lafayette, Chippewa
County, Wisconsin. Our story goes like this:
In 1924, John D. McIlquham and his brother, James, purchased an orchard on County
Hwy OO. They operated the orchard together until 1929. At that time, orchard was
split (each brother taking half). John D. and his wife, Elsie, and their four children
operated the orchard until 1976. After John D.'s retirement in 1976, their eldest son,
John J. Mcllquham and his wife, Katherine, purchased the "OO" orchard. John and
Katherine already owned and operated an orchard one mile north, which they purchased
in 1964, called "J&K Orchard" They made this orchard their home along with their
three children. The J&K Orchard was so named for two reasons (first initial of each of
their names) and (it is located on the corner of county highways J & K). John J. and
Katherine owned and operated both orchards as John McIlquham Orchards until their
retirement in 2000.
Today, John E. McIlquham, his wife, Marykay, and their two children own and operate
the families orchard on the corner of Co. Hwy J & K. Sadly, John J. McIlquham
passed away September 22, 2004 and never saw the reopening of the "J&K Orchard".
Katherine McIlquham, along with John E.'s sister and brother, continues to help out in
the day-to-day operation of the family orchard business.
By taking Marykay's hobby of wine-making and adding it to the existing John
McIlquham Orchard family business, they have added something new to the traditional
orchard experience. Autumn Harvest Winery was the first winery in the Chippewa
Valley. In the three years since opening, the winery production as grown from 6 wines and
1,000 gallons to 11 wines and 4,000 gallons. We produce 10 wines that are light, crisp
and full of fruit flavor. All of our wines are fermented in small batches (50 gal to 300 gal).
We use a variety of apples, grapes, whole fruit and fruit juices to produce our wines.
Three of our wines are apple based, using apples grown in our orchard. Everything from
start to finish is done by hand. We produce just over 1,600 cases of wine annually - all of
them bottled, corked and labeled by hand at our winery facility east of Chippewa Falls!
New in September of 2007, is Grampa Mac's Hard Apple Cider. The cider is a
crisp, lightly carbonated fermented apple beverage. With an alcohol content of 4.5%, this
beverage is lighter than an apple wine yet still has the full apple flavor cider enthusiasts
crave.
Visitors to the orchard and tasting room can enjoy complimentary wine tasting during
regular business hours, sample gourmet foods or peruse the gift shop. The patio
provides seating to enjoy wine by the glass or bottle, fresh baked goods on the
weekends, fruit tea smoothies, crepes made on site, fresh breads and Wisconsin
cheeses. During the fall season, 17 varieties of apples are available ready picked or pick-
your-own, including Honeycrisp. Pick-your-own pumpkins and a FREE corn maze will
surely delight kids of all ages!
We also offer:
July of 2005, by John & Marykay McIlquham. The John McIlquham family has been
growing apples for three generations in the small township of Lafayette, Chippewa
County, Wisconsin. Our story goes like this:
In 1924, John D. McIlquham and his brother, James, purchased an orchard on County
Hwy OO. They operated the orchard together until 1929. At that time, orchard was
split (each brother taking half). John D. and his wife, Elsie, and their four children
operated the orchard until 1976. After John D.'s retirement in 1976, their eldest son,
John J. Mcllquham and his wife, Katherine, purchased the "OO" orchard. John and
Katherine already owned and operated an orchard one mile north, which they purchased
in 1964, called "J&K Orchard" They made this orchard their home along with their
three children. The J&K Orchard was so named for two reasons (first initial of each of
their names) and (it is located on the corner of county highways J & K). John J. and
Katherine owned and operated both orchards as John McIlquham Orchards until their
retirement in 2000.
Today, John E. McIlquham, his wife, Marykay, and their two children own and operate
the families orchard on the corner of Co. Hwy J & K. Sadly, John J. McIlquham
passed away September 22, 2004 and never saw the reopening of the "J&K Orchard".
Katherine McIlquham, along with John E.'s sister and brother, continues to help out in
the day-to-day operation of the family orchard business.
By taking Marykay's hobby of wine-making and adding it to the existing John
McIlquham Orchard family business, they have added something new to the traditional
orchard experience. Autumn Harvest Winery was the first winery in the Chippewa
Valley. In the three years since opening, the winery production as grown from 6 wines and
1,000 gallons to 11 wines and 4,000 gallons. We produce 10 wines that are light, crisp
and full of fruit flavor. All of our wines are fermented in small batches (50 gal to 300 gal).
We use a variety of apples, grapes, whole fruit and fruit juices to produce our wines.
Three of our wines are apple based, using apples grown in our orchard. Everything from
start to finish is done by hand. We produce just over 1,600 cases of wine annually - all of
them bottled, corked and labeled by hand at our winery facility east of Chippewa Falls!
New in September of 2007, is Grampa Mac's Hard Apple Cider. The cider is a
crisp, lightly carbonated fermented apple beverage. With an alcohol content of 4.5%, this
beverage is lighter than an apple wine yet still has the full apple flavor cider enthusiasts
crave.
Visitors to the orchard and tasting room can enjoy complimentary wine tasting during
regular business hours, sample gourmet foods or peruse the gift shop. The patio
provides seating to enjoy wine by the glass or bottle, fresh baked goods on the
weekends, fruit tea smoothies, crepes made on site, fresh breads and Wisconsin
cheeses. During the fall season, 17 varieties of apples are available ready picked or pick-
your-own, including Honeycrisp. Pick-your-own pumpkins and a FREE corn maze will
surely delight kids of all ages!
We also offer:
- Weekend and Weekday motor coaches welcome.
- Patio Party! for groups of 10 or more.
- Corporate gift packages.
- Custom made gift packages.
- Wine and apple shipment.
| Here's Our Story...... |
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| John D. McIlquham - 1976 With a bumper crop! |
| State Fair Awards 1957 |
