Illinois wine from California grapes: New sipping space opens in Elk Grove

While they may have to trade the picturesque landscapes of Napa Valley for the industrial hustle and bustle of a suburban business park, wine connoisseurs can still get a taste at a new microwinery in Elk Grove Village.

MCG Winery is now open for private tasting appointments at 110 Joey Drive, just up the street from Lou Malnati’s on Higgins Road and a block away from Mikerphone Brewing, the first microbrewery that opened in Elk Grove in 2017.

The boutique winery’s new location doubles as a production facility and tasting room for the company founded by president Michael Goeringer in 2020. He plans to add a small craft brewery to the operation in 2026.

Goeringer started making his own at-home vino in 2014 by using wine kits. He began working with frozen must in 2018, then moved to fresh grapes from California in 2019.

Now, grapes arrive via refrigerated truck from three regions — the Paso Robles American Viticulture Area, Napa Valley and Sonoma coast — then are processed in Elk Grove within 24 hours of receipt.

Here’s how it works: Grapes are dumped onto a sorting table, where any other materials from the shipment are separated out. Then the grapes go into a machine where stems are removed and grapes are crushed. The product goes into stainless steel tanks for fermentation that lasts up to two weeks.

The wine eventually moves to French oak barrels to age for 20 months.

“From selecting grapes to bottling the wine, our focus is always on quality and authenticity,” Goeringer said. “Our goal is to create something exceptional for wine lovers right here in the Chicago suburbs.”

After receiving a winemaking certificate from the University of California-Davis in 2020, Goeringer made his first commercial volume sourced from California vineyards — 110 cases of a Bordeaux blend — in 2021.

He now handcrafts a variety of wines, including sauvignon blanc, a white blend, petit verdot blend, pinot noir rosé, sparkling pinot noir rosé and annual vintage red blends.

The 2021 Bordeaux blend won a gold medal from WineMaker International Wine Competition. And a 2022 red blend (a combo of cabernet, merlot and carignan) earned a gold medal with Best of Class honors at the 2024 Illinois Wine Competition at the Illinois State Fair.

To purchase wines, a no-cost wine club membership is required. For more information or to book a tasting, call (847) 258-3682 or visit mcgwab.com.