We love to visit the Coshocton Area every chance we get. For us it makes a nice weekend trip to get away. The Cochocton Area is also home to the Three Rivers Wine Trail. This area has some great wineries and even really cool brewery with little pigs running around.
On this trail we found one of our favorite wineries, Killing Tree Winery and got these huge stemless glasses from YOLO.
“There’s something for everyone on the Three Rivers Wine Trail! Eight unique wineries and a brewery are all within a scenic drive of one another in East-central Ohio. The Appalachian Foothills of Coshocton County serves as the backdrop for this eclectic trail. Wine lovers can taste Ohio wines at a California-style bar, in a converted flour mill, or a big yellow barn. Stop at a working farm for a glass of Bavarian-style beer. Each is operated independently and the wine-makers and brew masters are on site to say hello and share their stories with you. Some offer full-service restaurants, small plates or food trucks and live music is often available to go along with the beautiful views. Be sure to pick up a passport and have it signed at each location to earn your free Three Rivers Wine Trail T-shirt.” – From the Three Rivers Wine Trail Site.
If you get to Coshocton make sure you visit the Welcome Center and if you can figure out Geocaching the Coshocton Ring Trail is a fun waste of time and very good exercise.
“Grab your donut loving family and friends and head out on a sweet trail in Butler County, Ohio. Follow the trail to find all of the delicious mom-and-pop donut shops. Prep for your trail travels by downloading a map and passport. Once you’ve conquered all of the donut shops stops with your passport you’ll be rewarded with the official Donut Trail T-shirt!”
Ok, I know this has nothing to do with wine, but who does not love donuts and after you eat them all you get a nifty t-shirt. After the sugar shock wears off you can head over to Hanover Winery (www.hanoverwinery.com) and try one of their 25+ wines. Try the Dammit Anne and the Unleashed.
More information and other adventures you can find in Butler County, Ohio visit The Butler County Visitors Bureau at https://www.gettothebc.com/.
So, we have been hiding under the stairway since last March. It has been cramped and someone really needs a shower. But, we hope the Global Pandemic will be over soon and we can get back out to visit our favorite wineries and maybe even a few new ones. Watch our site and the Facebook Page for more details.
Oh, and until we get the all clear, WEAR YOUR MASK!
TagaWine is a brass tag you collect on your wine trail..
Each tag has the winery’s name and town. Comes on a 27in. chain with a wine bottle charm and unique bead that represents the winery. TagaWine tag is also sold on a 8in. chain with a your unique bead or a TagaWine charm. You can collect the TagaWine tag and beads on your TagaWine trail!
The Ohio Wines VIP (Visitor’s Incentive Program) is designed to reward you for visiting Ohio’s nearly 200 wineries. For each participating winery you visit, you will collect a ticket and receive the following points for each individual visit to that winery throughout the year. You may only enter one ticket code per individual winery per day.
First Visit = 500 points Visits 2-10 = 100 points each visit Visits 11+ = 10 points each visit
Visit Ohios Wineries and start collecting your points today at www.ohiowinesvip.com.
Pick up a passport, and travel the Wines of the Valley Wine Trail — visit each of our six participating wineries listed below, purchase a glass of wine, get your passport stamped and receive a wine charm exclusive to each winery. Collect five or more stamps and redeem your passport at one of our redemption locations to receive a keepsake charm box plus a bonus charm. Offer good through September 29, 2019.
Visit the Wine Trail website for more information.
As you can see from the photo above, we recently did the Youngstown Area Wine Trail and had a great time. There are a few other wineries in the area that are not on the trail but still worth visiting.
Find Ohio Wines is the website we usually use to find new wineries or plan out trips to new wineries. They have a wonderful interactive map and you can order a copy of the Sip Magazine for free.
A couple of miles down a few one lane roads leads you to a beautiful vineyard surrounding a lake. Down a long and twisty gravel drive leads you to a wonderful winery and tasting room. We sat down at the counter and tasted a few of the wines they had available.
The Frontenac Gris and the Just Cherry were our favorites and we sat out under the covered patio and enjoyed a glass. You can walk the grape vines and they have both covered and non-covered patios and clean bathrooms. As is obvious, we enjoy the sweeter wines, but thier Brix and Frontenac were both very tasty.
Caesar Creek Is well hidden, I already mentioned the one lane roads, but well worth the trip. We went and walked though Caesar Creek Flea Market before the winery and it made a very enjoyable day trip.
Visit their website at www.caesar-creek.com/ for more information about this wonderful winery and don’t forget you VIP tickets.
We have been to quite a few wineries in the last year but Meranda-Nixon is one of the most inviting we have found. The owners made us feel very welcome and were enthusiastic about not only their wines but wines from their neighbors and Ohio in general. We picked up our Ohio Wines Cork Board and got our first cork. They shared with us their wines and made us feel like long lost friends. They encouraged us to continue our quest to visit the other Ohio wineries and even mentioned a few of their favorites.
If you are looking for a light summer sweet wine we recommend the Trotter White Wine and for something a little drier (but not too dry) we recommend the Red Oak Creek (not oaked but named after the creek on their property).
If you are looking for great wine, wonderful asnosphere and lively conversations about wine, grapes and life in general Meranda-Nixon should be on your MUST visit list.
2019 Ozarks Tap and Pour Tour Underway in Southwest Missouri
Springfield, Missouri – On the heels of an outstanding 2018, the Ozarks Tap and Pour Craft Beverage Tour is expected to be even more successful in 2019.
More than 10,000 Tap and Pour booklets were distributed in 2018 and hundreds of people completed the tour in its inaugural year.
This year, the Springfield Convention & Visitors Bureau printed 20,000 booklets and people have already begun achieving the goal of getting stamps from at least 10 participating businesses in the booklet. Once they get those stamps, they receive a collector T-shirt while supplies last.
Tara and Doyle Stradling, of Troy, Ohio, decided to take the challenge after discovering the booklets at Bear Creek Wine Co. in Walnut Shade. They completed the tour on June 16 and were among the first to submit their booklets for prize redemption.
“We have the trails back home and like to do them,” Tara Stradling said. “As soon as we saw it, we said, woohoo, look what we’re doing!”
In the two days it took to complete the tour, the Stradlings discovered their favorite thing was talking with the vintners, brewers and owners of the shops.
“It was great fun,” Tara Stradling said, explaining they added a jaunt to Springfield to their trip just so they could get their booklet stamped.
The Stradlings’ enjoyment is exactly what the tour is about. The goal is to enhance the visitor experience along with highlighting one of the area’s growing tourism assets.
It’s also been good for business, said Greg Pope, owner of Missouri Ridge Distillery in Branson, who estimates $30,000 in sales last year were directly related to the tour.
“It’s been tremendously successful,” Pope said. “In fact, it’s been the only aspect of advertising that’s given me a return on my investment.”
Derek Shimeall, co-owner of 4 By 4 Brewing Co. in Springfield said the tour increased his business last year by introducing craft beverages to people who may not have considered them in the past.
“It’s been successful,” Shimeall said. “We had a really good turn out the first year. We’re happy to do it a second year.”
He could tell the tour was making a difference because it was easy to track when people came in to get a stamp. The patrons were a mix of tourists and local residents, he said.
“Almost all those people were first-time guests,” Shimeall added.
The free booklets are available at the Route 66 Springfield Visitor Center, 815 E. St. Louis St. in Springfield, at the 20 participating businesses listed below or request them at https://www.springfieldmo.org/tapandpour.
Great Escape Beer Works, 4022 S. Lone Pine Ave.
4 By 4 Brewing Co., 2811 E. Galloway St., Suite A
Show-Me Brewing, 1925 E. Bennett St.
Tie & Timber Beer Co., 1451 E. Cherry St.
Missouri Spirits, 507 W. Walnut St.
Mother’s Brewing Co., 215 S. Grant Ave.
Springfield Brewing Co., 305 S. Market Ave.
Lost Signal Brewing Co., 610 W. College St.
Hold Fast Brewing, 235 N. Kimbrough Ave.
7C’s Winery, 502 E. 560th Road, Walnut Grove
Leaky Roof Meadery, 1306 Azalea St., Buffalo
Boat Town Brewing, 18146 Campground Road, Phillipsburg
Back Home Brewing Co., 1502 S. 3rd St., Ozark
Bear Creek Wine Co., 1320 Keithley Rd., Walnut Shade
Copper Run Distillery, 1901 Day Road, Walnut Shade
Crown Valley Distillery, 1420 W. 76 Country Blvd., Suite 100, Branson
Curling Vine Winery, 601 State Highway 165, Branson
St. James Winery, 405 State Highway 165, Branson
Lindwedel Winery, 3158 State Highway 265, Branson
Missouri Ridge Distillery, 7000 State Highway 248, Branson
Learn more about the CVB, a nonprofit marketing organization dedicated to improving the local economy through growth in tourism, and Springfield at www.SpringfieldMO.org or call 417-881-5300 or 800-678-8767.
