Today we’d like to introduce you to Denise Riley.
Hi Denise, so excited to have you on the platform. So before we get into questions about your work-life, maybe you can bring our readers up to speed on your story and how you got to where you are today?
What began as a simple search for hunting land ended in a dream come true for one Missouri couple—and the birth of two thriving businesses.
In 2019, while sitting in a duck blind, Mike stumbled upon a listing for a scenic property tucked away on the backroads of Missouri. Curious, he and his wife scheduled a visit. It was love at first sight—but for very different reasons.
“For Mike, it was all about hunting with family and friends,” his wife recalls. “But I saw something more—I saw an opportunity to share this little piece of heaven with others.”
The couple began by restoring the property’s 100-year-old cabin, adding a hearth room and an inviting patio area. Next came the transformation of a century-old Quonset barn. Originally envisioned as a small event space, plans quickly expanded after a consultation with a wedding planner who encouraged them to convert their 4,000-square-foot green pole barn into a full-fledged reception venue. They took her advice—and in December 2021, they hosted their first wedding. The cabin began welcoming vacation renters in January 2022, and the full wedding season launched in April that year.
Their vision kept growing. After enhancing the outdoor ceremony area with benches and landscaping, the couple went on a wine tour, curious about planting grapes on their 323-acre property—which includes 80 acres of open fields.
“We thought we’d just grow grapes to supply local wineries,” she said. “But one thing led to another, and we ended up buying a winery.”
The Excelsior Springs winery they visited happened to be for sale. In a whirlwind few months, the couple created a separate entrance to their property, built a tasting room in just three months, and opened Shamrock Hills Winery on April 1, 2023—just one week after the winery they purchased closed.
They planted their first grapevines in June 2023, and while they initially sold the previous winery’s wines, they’ve since phased those out. Today, guests enjoy wines made entirely by Mike, who has taken on the roles of winemaker and vineyard manager.
What began as a hunt for the perfect spot in nature has grown into a vibrant destination where guests can celebrate, relax, and raise a glass to something special.
“Mike found a place to hunt,” his wife says with a smile. “But together, we found a place to build something beautiful—and to share it with others.”
Would you say it’s been a smooth road, and if not what are some of the biggest challenges you’ve faced along the way?
Nothing is smooth! Our biggest challenge is getting our name out beyond Excelsior Springs, MO. We are only 35 miles from downtown Kansas City and 25 minutes from Liberty, but when people come out there and see the property, whether it’s for a wedding that they are attending, or for a wine tasting, or the entertainment we have at the winery–they all comment how beautiful it is. It’s definitely worth the drive even if we are located on gravel. Other challenges for the wedding space–is because we are on gravel, and gravel is not the first thing plowed when it snows (usually it’s the last to be plowed)–we don’t host weddings between December through March. We don’t host in November because that’s the deal I made with my husband. No weddings during hunting season. Weather can also be a challenge for the winery–if it rains, people don’t like to drive out there when actually it’s the best time to drive on gravel–no dust, and when it snows (even if it’s flurries, people are hesitant to drive out to the winery). Weather can also affect our grapes–this year for example, grapes were late to be harvest due to our cooler temperatures in August. We deal with late frosts and various insects or diseases that can effect the grapes if you don’t stay on top of them.
Thanks – so what else should our readers know about Shamrock Hills Vineyard and Winery and Shamrock Ranch Events?
We are a family-owned, veteran-owned, and woman owned Vineyard and Winery and event space. With our Shamrock Hills Vineyard and Winery we are in our 3rd season making wine. Mike is a mechanical engineer by trade and owns a successful engineering firm in Lee’s Summit, Missouri. He has picked up wine making and become pretty good at it. Our goal is to take a Missouri grape and create something that compares to something similar that you would get in any part of the world. We’ve entered our wines in the Missouri Governor’s Cup for the past couple of years and our first year we received 3 awards which we were ecstatic about being new to the business and this year we received awards on all 12 wines that we entered. But our best award is when we hear a customer say–Wow! You’ve got a great wine here. We owe all of our accomplishments to the team at the University of Missouri-Viticulture and Enology Extension program and fellow winemakers across Missouri as well as relationships we’ve made with winemakers in other regions. Now we are working on branding our wine and pushing it out to local boutiques and restaurants within Kansas City.
As for the Event space–we want all of our couples to enjoy a stress free wedding weekend. Therefore, we only do one wedding a weekend and they get to stay on the property and set up at their leisure and tear down without being rushed. We offer a Weekend package that consists of checking in on Thursday afternoon before their wedding and checking out on Sunday afternoon after their wedding. We truly want them to make special memories not just rush through their day, but enjoy the entire weekend. We are a one of a kind venue for their one of a kind day.
If we knew you growing up, how would we have described you?
My husband has always been a go-getter and went above and beyond–we dated since our junior year of high school. Me I like hosting and planning. I grew up on a farm, 20 miles from my closest friends. So especially in high school, I always had to go to “town” to see my friends and not many wanted to travel out to my house to hang out. So I think that’s why I enjoy this adventure so much–it’s a way to host people every weekend. I was in Human Resources for 25 years–majority of it in the recruiting field. I love talking to people. I actually used to get in trouble at school for talking. So this is a great fit!
Contact Info:
- Website: https://www.shamrockhillsvineyard.com
- Instagram: @shamrock.hillsvineyard
- Facebook: @shamrockhillsvineyard
- Other: https://www.theshamrockranch.com
