Our first stop was at Post and I'm happy it was. According to their website, they are the largest Arkansas winery and the first commercial vineyard to produce here. When we first arrived, we had our tasting with the assistance of a very friendly lady, Barbie. We were supposed to only get five free tastings, but Barbie slipped in another one. I guess we looked like we needed more. I tried their Chardonnay, Blue Parachute, Moscato, Strawberry Fields, Sherry, and Altus Port. I tend to not like the dry wines. I did enjoy the Moscato, Sherry, and Altus Port. The Blue Parachute had a strange taste that didn't quite catch with me... but it was packaged in a pretty bottle!!
We then went on our tour. Our tour guide was fittingly named Sherry and we were accompanied by a colorful couple and their dog, Chewbarka. They were definitely interesting and, by the end, had offered a "special business opportunity." Sarah is supposed to be in contact with him to find out what exactly it is... I'm definitely curious.
The tour was very interesting and we even got to sample some wine out of the "big keg" (according to Amanda).
We learned that Post is not allowed to ship directly in-state. There is a website, www.freethegrapes.org, that explains everything in more detail and lets you send a letter to your legislators to get the ban lifted.
Next - we went up the road to Wiederkehr's which was a let down. They were definitely not as friendly or helpful!! We asked about a tour and they said the next one was in 25 minutes, so we did the tasting first. We were informed that they had three that they let us try for free, but that we had to pay $3.00 to try five of anything. We opted for the free option. We tried those and then waited in the tour room for them to tell us when they were ready.... but they never came. When we went and asked about it, they said that the tour had already started and we missed it. We still purchased a few items from their store, but I would definitely recommend Post over Wiederkehr's!!
After we paid for our wine, we went over to their restaurant, Wienkeller Restaurant, for authentic Swiss cuisine. It's a charming restaurant and all three of us opted for the Swiss German feast which consisted of your choice of sausage (Bratwurst, Knackwurst, or Smoked Sausage), potatoes, and sauerkraut. It was quite tasty!
I'm quite happy we did this little excursion and I'm happy I got to spend some time with my wonderful friends!! I will REALLY miss them when I move. We have too much fun together.
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