Iowa Wine Trails

My wife and I, and some friends of ours, recently decided to explore one of Iowa’s eight wine trails. Since we live in central Iowa, we chose the Heart of Iowa Wine Trail, which includes wineries surrounding the Des Moines area. We did not have time to visit all of the wineries on this trail so we decided to explore the wineries located Northwest of Des Moines.

We were fortunate to have a perfect day for our visits. It was warm outside, but there was a cool breeze. Most of the wineries we visited had both indoor and outdoor seating. Unfortunately, due to the COVID-19 restrictions, wine sampling was limited at most of the wineries, but we were able to purchase bottles of wine to share with our friends in an old restored barn or out on a shaded patio. I was surprised to learn that many of these wineries host regular events, usually consisting of music, wine, and food. This was something that we all agreed we’d have to follow up on very soon.

Iowa has 100 wineries located throughout the state, so there are surely several close to wherever you reside in the state. I highly encourage you to visit some of the wineries located near you or explore one of the Iowa wine trails. The Iowa Wine Growers website has more information about Iowa wineries and the Iowa wine trails. If you find a wine that you really like and would like to purchase a little closer to home, let us know. We plan to sell a variety of Iowa native wines at Old Station Craft Meats.