alumni feature
Alison Wrigley Rusack:
When Alison Wrigley
Rusack '76 left Latin School
Alison Wrigley Rusack and
husband Geoff Rusack
20
Latin Magazine
after her ninth-grade year, she could not have
envisioned the winding roads of her future. Certainly
none has been more picturesque and bucolic than
the road leading to Rusack Vineyards, nestled in
Ballard Canyon in the center of the Santa Ynez
Valley, California. Passing rolling, verdant hills, sundappled valleys, and breathtaking vistas dotted with
majestic oak trees, the road provides the perfect
introduction to the gem that is Rusack Vineyards.
The winery's elegant simplicity belies the
intricacies of excellence in winemaking that is at its
heart. Alison and her husband, Geoff, are vintners
from the ground, and the vines, up. Their story of
creating the winery is a tale of hard work and
sheer perseverance. Their mission is deceptively
simple: "to establish a boutique vineyard and winery
dedicated to growing top-quality grapes and
producing outstanding handcrafted wines . . . and to
offer a limited production of ultra-premium wines
that will appeal to connoisseurs." Their hope is to do
so in the most eco-friendly way possible.
But that is getting ahead of our story.
