CONNEAUT, Ohio – Five years after the passing of its founder Arnie Esterer, Markko Vineyard and Winery in Conneaut is for sale.
The sale goes beyond an ordinary business transaction. The new owner is buying more than 130 acres of vineyards and wooded property as well as a tasting room and winery. More importantly, the new owner is buying dreams manifested. The new owner is buying Ohio wine history.
That’s because in the late 1960s, Esterer did what was considered undoable. He brought vinifera -- European wine grapevines -- to Northeast Ohio’s unpredictable climate and kept them productive despite the region’s harsh winters.
He grew these grapes and made award-winning wines that won the respect of wine lovers and winemakers in the region and beyond. He garnered admiration from wine writers like Dave McIntyre of the Washington Post and Leon Adams, who wrote the definitive “Wines of America.”
He demonstrated to other winemakers that these vines could survive and started a revolution in Ohio winemaking. Because of Esterer’s perseverance, Northeast Ohio vineyards are nearly 70 percent Chardonnay, Cabernet Sauvignon, Riesling, Pinot Noir and other vinifera - grapes he proved could survive, even thrive.
Unlike his peers, Esterer chose to not grow hardy American or French-American hybrid varietals in his vineyards. He stuck to vinifera and created a winemaking operation and winery steeped in European traditions.
“Arnie was the visionary that let us know we could grow vinifera in Ohio,” said Donniella Winchell, executive director of the Ohio Wine Producers Association. “He showed that Ohio could do world-class wines, and his vineyards are still there.”
She added: “We hope the family will find someone to buy the winery and maintain the legacy. The Conneaut AVA has the opportunity to grow exceptional fruit.”
AVA means American Viticultural Area. AVAs are assigned to U.S. grape-growing regions, recognized for its specific geographic, geologic and climatic features that make it different from other areas. Esterer is responsible for getting the Conneaut Creek AVA recognized.
A new owner will be buying more than just a local winery in a distinctive AVA. They’ll buy a place where dreams, vision and a pioneering spirit have created some of the state’s (some say the country’s) best estate wines.
This legendary man did this all on humble ground.
The boutique winery and vineyards are tucked away in what Northeast Ohioans consider deep country about 70 miles from downtown Cleveland and 40 miles from Erie, Pa. Most of the drive is freeway; the last 0.25 miles is dirt road. The property sits where Ohio 84 ends, near the Pennsylvania border.
Visitors to the winery, which is open to the public, crunch down a gravel driveway and park outside a rustic tasting room. Inside a small building is a European-style communal dinner table where guests are invited to drink wine and eat local cheese from Mayfield Creamery. The goals here are equal parts hospitality and wine sales. Outside seating, under the canopy of towering trees is more spacious.
The wine cellar is small, with squat, stainless steel tanks and two rows of American oak barrels. A half-ton bladder press sits outside undercover.
The reason for American oak barrels is to embrace the terroir. You’ve heard of local food? Now think local wine on a microlevel. In fact, many of the winery’s oak barrels were even made from trees grown on the property.
The approach works. Over the years Esterer gained a reputation for dry, oaky, European-style Chardonnay. The only time Markko produced a stainless-steel tank aged Chardonnay was the year the winery ran out of oak barrels.
Overall, the Chardonnay appeals to customers and judges. Most recently, Markko received a bronze award in the 2025 Ohio Wine Competition for its 2021 Chardonnay. Other awards in the 2025 competition were 2021 Cabernet Sauvignon (gold), 2020 Pinot Noir (silver), non-vintage Pinot Gris (bronze).
The estate is surprisingly small for such a big reputation. Just 12 acres of grapes produce 4,000 or so cases of wine per year. (Each case has 12 bottles.) Consider that many of Ohio’s larger wineries produce 48,000 to 50,000 cases per year.
“We only bottle what we can grow,” said Todd Stevenson, current winemaker and caretaker of the operation. Stevenson started working with Esterer in 2017, three years before the founder passed away. The budding winemaker absorbed everything he could from the master.
“We do everything by hand,” he said. “That includes everything from manicuring the vines and picking grapes to bottling, corking and labelling.”
It may be old-school but in a good way in that it brings intentionality to production.
“The wine is what it’s going to be,” Stevenson said. “We let it be, and we nurture along the way.”
The location gives visitors a similar vibe of intentionality.
“Markko winery is different,” Stevenson said. “It’s the dirt road that forces you to slow down. By the time you get up the driveway it puts you in a different mindset than what you felt. You’re not in a rush.”
Paul Esterer, one of Arnie’s four children, agrees that being deliberate in everything is characteristic of his father. He’s hoping someone with a similar aesthetic will take the winery to its next iteration.
The timing of the sale makes sense to Paul and his siblings.
“We are at the point where we need to make decisions 10 years out,” he said. “We don’t see a third generation taking over. The second generation wants to partner or sell to the right strategic partner to take this legacy and grow upon it.”
The family is offering flexible sale terms and will be available to consult during the transition to new ownership.
“We have so much knowledge we want to pass on,” Paul said. “These vines that make great wine are the true value of the property. [The value is] … its location, its proximity to the lake, its soil, its weather conditions.”
Stevenson sums up the intangibles.
“It comes with a lot of history,” he said, “and it comes with a lot of passion.”
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