Home winemaker follows his bliss to Lake Region

Sal Maiolatesi fell in love with winemaking over fifteen years ago. He started out as a home winemaker, and the positive feedback he received from his friends inspired him to make it into a business in 1999. But, he didn’t just jump in full-blast. Sal kept his day job and worked on his wine business during evenings and on his days off; finally in January of 2003 he went full-time with his winery and tasting room on Route 6 in Childs, PA.

Unlike many other wineries, his 7200 square foot cellar is located underground in the basement of an old sporting goods store. Today, that store has been converted into a quaint shopping center that houses many small family-owned businesses. Sal’s tasting room is laced among these businesses, giving it a hometown personal atmosphere.

After achieving success in the Scranton/Wilkes-Barre area, Sal decided to branch out to the Wayne and Pike Counties to reach for tourists, vacationers, and residents of this fast-growing region. So in June of 2005 he opened a retail store at the northeast corner of Lake Wallenpaupack at The Lakes North Pole on Route 6, just minutes from beautiful downtown Hawley.

Maiolatesi has over twenty selections of wine, from dry reds and whites like Merlot, Cabernet Sauvignon, and Pinot Grigio to sweet wines such as Strawberry, Cayuga White, and Blackberry Concord. Sal takes pride in the production of his dry wines, and his tasting room boasts several medals from multiple wine competitions. Maiolatesi’s grapes come from several different vineyards across Pennsylvania and the North Fork of Long Island; this enables him to blend his wines to achieve optimal flavor and character.

Maiolatesi’s future looks bright. He plans on building a new winery with a wine bar. It’s currently in the design stage with plans to open in late 2007.

Maiolatesi Wine Cellars is open year round for tasting. For more info, check out their web site: www.maiolatesiwines.com.

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