A Guide to the Wineries & Vineyards of Illinois' Mississippi River Valley
[Alto Pass] [ Galena] [Pomona] [Galesburg]
[ Red Bud ] [Waterloo] [ Cobden ]
[ More Wineries along the Great River
Road! ]
"This is a Midwest niche market," Mark Renzaglia tells me as we sit near the vines at Alto Pass. "The Midwestern wineries are not competing with the California wines, for example. It's hard to compete with traditions already firmly established--the traditions of places like France, California, Italy or Australia. We compete very well with the Missouri and other Midwestern wineries."
Click on a green grape (or one of the towns above) for name, address, and phone number of a fine Illinois winery nearest your home or destination..
Enjoy Illinois Wines!
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for more on travel, recreation, and history along the Mississippi River.
Galena Cellars Winery
515 S. Main Street, PO Box 207
Galena, IL 61036
815-777-3330 or 800-397-WINE
New! Email us at gcwinery@galenalink.com and visit our website at galenacellars.com !
Located in the historic lead mining town of Galena, IL. Open daily at 9 am except major holidays. Family blends, ferments and ages, 18 award winning table and fruit wines. Offers tasting, tours and a wide array of wine accessories. Visit Grants Place Restaurant on second floor featuring our Galena Wines.
NOW OPEN - The Vineyard Tasting Room, open Fridays, Saturdays and Sundays - June - October. Relax on the deck and enjoy a glass of wine and our spectacular panoramic country views.
Travel Tip: Historic Galena, Illinois, presents an architectural pastry to the traveler. The beautiful Victorian homes of Galena are open to the public as bed and breakfast inns and a plethora of antique shops. The home of Ulysses S. Grant is open for tours.
Lau-Ney Winery, Inc.
1522 State Route 3
Red Bud, Illinois 62278
Phone or Fax: 618-282-9463 Email us: mollet@htc.net
Visit our Web Site at Lau-NaeWinery.com
Our winery is located approximately 35 minutes from downtown St. Louis on Illinois State Route 3, just 1/2 mile west of Red Bud in historic Randolph County. Sample the wines in our tasting room, tour the wine cellar or sit in the rocking chairs on our wide front porch and enjoy a glass of our wine. Note: All wines are made in our wine cellar.
Etched wine bottles and personalized labels are available for all special occasions. Look for hand painted wine glasses and ostrich eggs by a local artist in our gift shop. Also DISCOVER! Guides, homemade crafts, candles & gifts.
Hours: Wednesday - Saturday 10 a.m. to 5 p.m.
Sunday 12 Noon to 5 p.m.
Closed Mondays, Tuesdays and major holidays
Travel Tip: This area is rich in French heritage. French immigrants settled Red Bud around 1835 followed by German immigrants around 1850. Red Bud was an important stop on the stagecoach line between Belleville, Kaskaskia, Chester and St. Louis. The first state capitol of Illinois (Kaskaskia) is located in Randolph County along with the Fort de Chartres Historic Site.
Pomona Winery
2865 Hickory Ridge Road
Pomona, IL 62975
618-893-2623
The Pomona Winery, located deep in the Shawnee Forest west of Pomona, Illinois, specializes in award winning wines made from southern Illinois fruit. The tasting room and picnic areas in a beautiful sylvan setting are open daily.
April through December: Mon-Sat. 10 a.m. to 5 p.m., Sun. 12 to 5 p.m.,
March: Weekends only.
Closed: January and February.
Directions: Take Hwy 127 to 4 miles south of Murphysboro or 4 miles north of Alto Pass and follow the signs.
Travel Tip: The River to River Trail from Grand Tower to Battery Rock on the Ohio River is a hiker and horse rider's dream! Considered to pass through some of the most spectacular scenery in the Midwest. There are seven "wilderness trails" throughout the Shawnee National Forest.
Special Events:
October 14-15, 2000 Octoberfest Festival at the Pomona Winery. Food, Wine
and Music!
November 24-26, 2000 Holiday Open House at the Pomona Winery. Wine tasting
and release of new wines.
Von Jakob Vineyard
Visit Little Germany in the Heart of the Illinois Ozarks!
1309 Sadler Road
Pomona, Illinois 62975
618-893-4500
Taste award-winning wines, like dry white Cave Creek and sweet White Oak Port, or Honey Blush--unique to Von Jakob Vineyard. Enjoy our new 1200 square-foot Atrium (spring 1999), Tasting Room and Gift Shop year around. Bring a picnic lunch, sit on our deck, walk through our vineyards to the pond. We know you'll find us a great place to relax and get away from it all!
Hours (year around): Thursday, Friday, Saturday &
Monday, 10 a.m. to 5 p.m.
Sunday: 12 noon to 5 p.m.
Travel Tip: The Pomona Natural Bridge Recreation Area offers just one of many nature trails set in the hills and hollows of the Shawnee National Forest. A short .3 mile foot trail leads to a 90-foot natural bridge that arches 25 feet above a small stream. Call 618-658-2111 to request maps and other info.
Waterloo Winery
725 N. Market Street
Waterloo, IL 62298
618-939-8339 or Fax 618-939-4882
EMAIL wwinery@ns.htc.net
Waterloo Winery, is located 25 minutes from downtown St. Louis on Hwy 3 South, Illinois' Great River Road. Tours of winemaking in our 1818 mansion, tasting room, and outdoor patio. Our winery operation offers a unique blend of viticulture, art and history. The farming complex has experimented with up to 40 different cultivars, developing many species of French and American hybrid grapes. The varietal wines are all estate produced and bottled by Waterloo Winery, and have secured several awards.
The winery is open seasonally from the first weekend of April through the first weekend in January, Sundays, 12 p.m. - 5 p.m. or by pre-arranged appointment.
Grafton is thriving again after being completely flooded in 1993.
Travel Tip: Visit nearby Pere Marquette State Park, Illinois' largest state park. Newly remodeled lodge, meals, camping, swimming, equestrian trails. Dogwoods, redbuds, wild cherry, and ornamental crabs bloom from April through May.
Alto Vineyards
PO Box 51, HWY 127
Alto Pass, IL 62905
618-893-4898
Located in scenic Alto Pass, Illinois, Alto Vineyards is the largest vineyard and winery in Southern Illinois producing a variety of award-winning wines. Tasting room and retail sales.
Hours: January 1 thru March 31 - Wednesday, Thursday,
Friday and Sunday 1-5, Saturday 10-5
April 1 thru December 31 - Sunday thru Friday 1-5, Saturday 10-5
Closed New Years Day, Easter, Thanksgiving and Christmas
Travel Tips: Also Pass is the home of the famous Bald Knob Cross, with antique shops and a Bed and Breakfast. Surrounded by the Shawnee National Forest with great hiking, sightseeing, hunting, horseback riding and biking.
Seminary Winery
83 S. Seminary Street
Galesburg, IL 61401-4802
309-343-2512
Seminary Winery is located in the Seminary Street Historic District, surrounded by 21 unique shops and restaurants. In addition to our wines and wine tasting, we offer wine accessories, gifts and wine making supplies.
Hours Monday through Saturday, 10 a.m. - 5 p.m. Sunday 12 p.m. - 4 p.m.
Travel Tip: Carl Sandburg, a major 20th Century American Poet, was born in Galesburg, Illinois, about 30 miles inland of Oquawka on the Great River Road. The Carl Sandburg Birthplace Historic Site is open to the public.
Owl Creek Vineyard
2655 Water Valley Road
Cobden, IL 62920
618-893-2557
Owl Creek Vineyard, Illinois' newest winery, opened in December, 1995. It is located in beautiful Southern Illinois, 4 1/2 miles south of Giant City State Park, near Carbondale.
Hours Saturday & Sunday, noon to 5 p.m. or call ahead for an appointment. DIRECTIONS: From Carbondale, Illinois, take US Route 51 south toward Anna. At Mile Marker 16.55 turn east (left) onto Water Valley Road. Go 2 1/2 miles staying to the right at each fork.
Travel Tip: The Makanda boardwalk craft shops, regional antique stores and bed and breakfasts, fantastic hiking trails and scenic countryside surround the winery.
More Wineries along America's Great River Road!
[ Minnesota ] [ Wisconsin ] [ Tennessee ] [ Missouri ]
Lauderdale Cellars
196 S. Washington
Ripley, Tennessee 38063
901-635-4321
Travel Tip: Located just 25 miles south of Dyersburg on the Great River Road is Ripley, Tennessee. 5 miles to the south is Henning, the boyhood home of Alex Haley. The Alex Haley Home and Museum preserves the boyhood home of the author of Roots. 8 miles to the east on Hwy 19 is the town of Nutbush, girlhood home of singer Tina Turner. 20 miles to the west of Henning, on Hwy 87, is the Fort Pillow State Historic Area. The fort was captured by the union in 1862 and recaptured by the South in a controversial battle in 1864. Interpretive center and nearby wildlife refuge.
Spurgeon
Vineyards & Winery
16008 Pine Tree Rd
Highland, Wisconsin 53543
608-929-7692 or 800-236-5555
Email Us! spurgeon@mhtc.net
Enjoy a wide variety of grape wines from over 10 different varieties of
our own grapes, as well as strawberry, cherry, cranberry, and mead (honey) wines.
Extensive half-hour tour of winery & underground cellars. Wine tastings. Open daily
from April thru December 23, 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. and weekends from February thru March.
Located between Muscoda and Highland on County Hwy Q.
Travel Tip: Visit our Annual
Harvest Festival the Saturday and Sunday of
Columbus Day Weekend! Home of the Ruby Lady.
Scenic Valley
Winery
101 Coffee St. W.
Historic Downtown Lanesboro, Minnesota 55949
507-467-2958
Great Fruit Wines: Rhubarb, Raspberry, Apple, Wild Grape, Wild Plum
Cookng Wines: Green Pepper and Onion
Tastings, Gift Items, Shipping UPS.
Travel Tip: Historic Lanesboro,
located among the bluffs of the Root River, anchors the western leg of the Root River
State Bike Trail. The trail is used by bikers and hikers during the summer months and
snowmobilers and skiers during the winter. Shuttles are available to both bikers and
canoers on the Root River.
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