Sunset Point to launch new wine honoring WWII aviator

By Brandi Makuski

Sunset Point Winery is launching its newest vintage on Saturday—one that benefits a local veterans organization and honors the legacy of a WWII pilot.

The first cork of Grand Slam will be pulled by 97-year-old Donald Wertz, whose WWII plane of the same name is the inspiration behind the new wine. Wertz is the grandfather of Don Guay, co-owner of the winery.

“We thought, while grandpa’s still alive, let’s name a wine after him,” said Kathy Johnson, Guay’s mother-in-law.

Johnson said charcoal artwork, drawn from photos of Wertz’ time serving in WWII, will be on display during the wine’s launch party on Saturday. Wertz will also make the trip to the downtown winery from his home in Escanaba, Mich.

Johnson said Grand Slam is a dessert wine, “a sweet, white grape wine, with 18 percent alcohol,” using grapes from Rock Ridge Vineyard in Amherst.

“We picked them at 6 a.m., so it’s like an ice wine, but we can’t call it that because the grapes weren’t frozen when we picked them,” she said.

Like all Sunset Point Winery’s vintages, the wine was bottled onsite. The wine sells for $35, with $5 from each purchase benefitting the Never Forgotten Honor Flight.

The Honor Flight provides free trips for veterans who served during WWI, WWII, the Korean Conflict, and the Vietnam War Era, to Washington, D.C. to see the memorials built in their honor. The daylong tour is known as a “trip of a lifetime” by those who’ve taken it, which includes Wertz.

The launch party will be 3:30-5:30 p.m. on Saturday, March 9. Special guests include Mayor Mike Wiza, Assemblywoman Katrina Shankland, and State Senator Patrick Testin. A representative from Congressman Ron Kind’s office will also be in attendance.

Sunset Point Winery opened in 2015 and has over 30 proprietary wine recipes, about half of which are seasonal vintages.

The winery is located next to Mid-State Technical College in Downtown Stevens Point at 1201 Water St.