You don’t need to spend too much time with the husband and wife team of Larry and Sandra Manning to realize that the pair are driven mainly by one thing: a voracious entrepreneurial spirit. As it turns out, that spirit – one that’s shared by the entire Manning family – is matched only by their passion for wine and art. It’s only natural, then, for these qualities to have been personified by Freedom Run Winery, the family’s newest venture situated in the heart of the burgeoning wine region on the bench of the Niagara Escarpment. It’s no accident that the winery’s location evokes the hospitality of the sleepy farming community of Cambria, New York, where both Larry and Sandra grew up.
And so it’s with a palpable sense of excitement that Larry, a retired vice president and co-owner of a large manufacturing corporation, and Sandra, a preschool teacher, are embarking on this new aspect of their lives. After all, it’s only natural, as the two have spent a lifetime enjoying good friends, good food and great wines. With Larry’s progressive and well-developed business sense and Sandra’s eye for art, the two are helping redefine what the wine experience can be: something that engages your intellect as well as your senses.
Today, Larry – Freedom Run’s chief operating officer – oversees sales and production of the winery’s boutique offerings. If he’s not on the road selling Freedom Run Winery, he’s on a forklift in its state-of-the-art production facility, moving bins of grapes or pallets of wine. He and Sandra – along with brothers and co-owners Sean and Chip Manning, the winery’s agricultural manager – also know that Freedom Run couldn’t exist if it weren’t for the help and expertise of those they are surrounded by. It’s a tenet that has become a guiding force at the winery.
For Larry and Sandra, their main goal is simple: to provide a welcoming, friendly atmosphere at Freedom Run, one where wine lovers of all experience levels and tastes can come to indulge their individual palates and artistic sensibilities. This sentiment is echoed in a saying coined by Sandra: “We View Wine as Art!” Indeed, the notion that the winery offers something different for each visitor is at the core of the Freedom Run experience – and a philosophy that Larry and Sandra will continue to nurture.
