Libra Wines

Libra Wines makes Pinot noir in the Yamill Carlton AVA of Oregon's Willamette Valley. Owner and winemaker Bill Hanson is assistant winemaker at Panther Creek Cellars. The winery owns an estate vineyard and uses organic and biodynamic methods in their grape growing. The vineyard is irrigated via rainwater collection.

Bill Hanson is the Assistant Winemaker at Panther Creek Cellars and a partner in the Matello brand. He and his wife, Linda, own and operate a small vineyard in the Yamhill-Carlton AVA, and use L.I.V.E. (Low Input Viticulture and Enology) standards along with some biodynamic practices. Both Bill and Linda have worked in the wine industry for over 20 years, and bring their experiences to your table.

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More About Libra Wines

Bill and his daughter in the Libra Vineyard

Owner Bios

A wine industry veteran with over 25 years of experience, Bill Hanson manages the National Sales and Marketing efforts for Panther Creek currently covering 37 states in America plus 4 Canadian provinces. He has been working beside winemaker Michael Stevenson since 2007. As Assistant Winemaker, Bill is responsible for every aspect of production including wine classification, blending and packaging.

A Certified Wine Educator, Bill previously spent 20 years in wine distribution as Specialty Retail Division Manager, On-Premise Sales Manager, Brand Manager, Fine Wine Manager and Regional Wine Manager with Young’s-Columbia and N.D.C. Prior to that, Bill was Assistant Winemaker at Parducci Wine Cellars in California. In 2002, he helped establish the Matello Wine brand with Winemaker Marcus Goodfellow and remains the co-owner. Bill served on the Board of the Oregon Wine Growers Association as Secretary, Treasurer and President of the North Willamette Chapter from 1996-1998.

Bill and his wife Linda live in Carlton where they farm their own vineyard using Low Input Viticulture and Enology standards (L.I.V.E.) as well as some Biodynamic practices for their LIBRA brand. Bill is proud to have guided Panther Creek Cellars through the pilot program of The Oregon Wine Board and L.I.V.E. to have Panther Creek become “Oregon Certified Sustainable” winery #13 on February 3rd, 2009 and he began serving on the Board of Directors for L.I.V.E. in April 2010.

Linda Hanson has over 20 years of Business Management experience. As the Senior Executive Assistant at Columbia Distributing she worked closely with Ed Maletis, his team of executives, board members, legal counsel, venture capitalists as well as banking partners during a time of mergers, acquisitions and rapid growth.

Linda also played a critical role on the Software Implementation Team introducing tools which greatly enhanced the ability to satisfy customers as well as suppliers while improving sales and inventory management. Even though she already possessed a Bachelor of Arts degree, in 2002 Linda completed another Bachelors Degree in Business Management while performing the rigorous duties of her job at Columbia. The coursework included Global Business Strategies, Marketing Research, Project Management, Quality Management and Productivity, Financial Analysis and Statistics.

Linda is currently the Sr. Executive Assistant, Sales & Marketing Coordinator for the Merlo Corporation/Merlo Foundation and Lago di Merlo Distributing. This is a privately held organization owning multiple businesses including the 250 acre Lago di Merlo Vineyard in California’s Dry Creek Appellation as well as the Lago di Merlo and Ca’ Bella Wine brands. Working beside Harry Merlo, his CFO, legal counsel and other staff members she continues to utilize her exceptional organizational skills and eye for detail to ensure all business and personal transactions are handled effectively.