It’s All in the Grapes for 1980 Alumnus and Family

The journey from making wine as a hobby to opening a winery has been a long time coming for

Class of 1980 alumnus Mark Murdoch and his family as they own and operate Worthington Vineyards and Winery in Somers, Conn.

Mark and his wife Karen have been growing grapes and making wine as a hobby for well over 20 years. Before moving to Somers, the couple lived in East Windsor where they had a crab apple tree and made jam with the fruit. It wasn’t long before they decided to try making wine out of the fruit and found it to be quite the success. Over the next two decades, they experimented with the winemaking process and different recipes. Once their sons, Alex and Kevin, graduated from college the couple decided to make their hobby a full-time operation.

“Worthington Vineyards was created as a result of my wife Karen and I thinking about what we would like to do in our retirement years,” said Mark. “Being that we like to keep busy and enjoy wineries ourselves, we began to look at opening a winery.”

To begin the process, they started looking at properties in the New England area including Pennsylvania, New York, and Connecticut.  Upon learning that their current town of Somers was passing regulations to allow wineries, they decided to fully commit to Connecticut. Through the search process, Mark and Karen were introduced to the Worthington Pond Farm property - a location that immediately resonated with both of them as their vineyard destination. Worthington Vineyards and Winery opened on May 1, 2022.

“We just celebrated our two year anniversary of being open for tastings and things have been going great,” commented Mark. “Our sons are also involved now, and we have over 25 part-time employees helping to operate our business and maintain our beautiful property. Our winery offers guests the opportunity to not only enjoy wine, but to host picnics, walk the trails, play games of bocce, and even fish on the pond. It really is an all-around experience for guests.”

Prior to opening the winery, Mark and Karen both worked as chemical engineers as both their sons previously worked as mechanical engineers. The whole family plays a vital role in the business operations with Mark as the managing director overseeing quality standards; Karen takes the lead on the winemaking process and the wines offered for the vineyard; Kevin manages the tasting room and also helps with the winemaking; and Alex oversees the maintenance and upkeep of the facilities, gardens, and lawn.

With the success of the business, Mark said he is looking forward to continuing to provide an exceptional, relaxing experience for guests and meeting new patrons. Additionally, the whole Murdoch family is dedicated to growing the business and being innovative with the wine flavors and offerings. More excitedly, Connecticut Magazine recently rated Worthington as one of the Top 5 wineries to visit in Connecticut in 2024.