Day Trip: Winery

You could always do a bourbon tour instead.

The gf and I had a good experience a few weekends back at Equus Run. Only really offered one bottle I was thrilled with (think it was the Cab), but I go mostly for the experience, not expecting winery genius. Take a basic picnic with you, and you can eat it on the theater stage overlooking Elkhorn Creek. Good picnic location, as you don't need to pack and carry a blanket. Our tour guide was exceptional, although he did have a super soft voice.

Midway's a nice little town too, although some of the shops were more corporate and less "unique" than I expected. We had a nice snack at a place on the main drag. Can't really remember the name of the place, but it's right above a used bookstore. We ordered off the dessert menu. Although their were eight choices, both of us chose the jam cake. I'm glad they did not include the nutritional info with the cake, as you could taste the excessive (but palate rewarding) brown sugar in each bite. Fresh press-pot coffee too.

I'd like to go back and eat here: http://heirloommidway.com/.

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FWIW, I used this website to help plan the trip: http://www.kentuckytourism.com/interestfinder.htm. I've only used the site this one time so far, but seems the gov't has made something good here.

The way I used it was:
1. Search for "Wine" in all cities
2. Once I found wineries that interested me, I then searched for "All Interests" in the city in which a specific winery is located.

That approach allowed us to make a day out of it, instead of just picking a winery. We had plans to make "Lovers Leap" in Lawrenceburg, but I guess we spent too much time over that jam cake.

One of my local favorites is Thomas Family winery in on the river in Madison, IN. It is in a beautiful old building in the riverfront area of Madison (which is a treat itself to visit) with an old-world pub feel. They make more traditional wines, not the sweeter wines that are dominate in the area. They also make some of the best ciders I have ever had.

Here is their website: http://www.thomasfamilywinery.us/. They have their wine list up, which includes a very good Pinot Grigio, a Cab-Petite Sirah blend, and one of the few places I've seen that makes Sack, the Colonial-era sherry drink.

I have a couple of suggestions for your Kentucky wine explorations.

The Kentucky Grape and Wine Council has a nice website at http://www.kentuckywine.org. It has regional maps that will link you to several dozen Kentucky wineries. It is helpful.

I would echo the suggestion to visit Wight-Meyer Vineyards. Jim Wight is close to Louisville and consistently winning awards with his wines.

If it's not beyond the geographic range of your curiosity, I would also recommend a visit to Ruby Moon Vineyards a few miles past Owensboro. I met these two ladies last month and tried their wines. They are fierce, hardworking winemakers/grape growers. I was impressed and am optimistic about their future success.

There are many more Kentucky wineries that have been mentioned and could be mentioned but these are two that are not yet available in stores.

Cheers,

Roger.

Anyone know anything about Turtle Run Vinyard in Lanesville? I've driven by it but never had the time to stop. It's off the beaten path a bit but a very pretty setting.

Our family actually visited Turtle Run a few weeks ago on a Sunday. It was easy to find. The owner and his wife were present (Jim and Laura Pfeiffer), along with their adorable children and another woman who was very friendly and informative while presenting the wines for sampling.

Jim took us into the winery area and explained all the chemistry, agriculture, packaging, etc. behind 'his' wine. He is high-energy, very intelligent and interesting.

The sampling room/gift shop is small; just a small room to sit and enjoy. Or you could go out on the porch. He did tell us of wine events coming up soon. They are planning an expansion in the future.

We did buy a few bottles of wine; I truly enjoyed the Chard and Catherine's Blend. My husband likes the reds; he liked the Raspberry one. They had some cake along with recipe that included using the wine.

All in all, we had a good time. Then we headed into Corydon for some lunch. We will go back for sure, and bring some more wine loving friends.

[Robin Garr]

I wrote an article about Turtle Run - for Louisville Mag, if I recall correctly - several years ago when they opened. It's definitely worth a visit: Nice people, beautiful setting and an attractive little tasting room. Their wines were also quite good by Eastern standards.

It could be fun to visit Huber's (very large winery by Eastern standards, but making decent wine these days) and Turtle Run (tiny and artisanal) on the same trip. Even if you're a wine geek with reasonable quality standards, you can find wines at both places that will please you.

No worries about staying on topic, by the way: Wine, beer, Bourbon and other good things to drink are definitely on topic here ...

My girlfriend and I are in the mood for a little day trip this weekend and a winery seemed like a fun way to spend a Saturday. Only problem is we don't know where to go. We aren't expecting Napa Valley but we would like to visit a place that not only has good wine but a welcoming and pleasant atmosphere. Does anyone have any suggestions? We would like to keep the drive under 2 hours. Of course, we would have to find someplace to eat (keeping it on topic, Robin), so dining recommendations would also be appreciated. Thanks!