Part of our “tourist at home” week was a day spent at Harpersfield Winery in Geneva in the Grand River Valley.
The plan was to bring the whole family – including Stella the wonder dog. I called first to make sure they were dog-friendly and was told they are indeed, as long as the dogs are on the small side and kept on a leash.
After an easy 50 minute drive (Harpersfield is located not too far down the road from the more well-known Ferrante and Debonne wineries), we turned onto the short gravel road and drove through the vineyard towards the main house. It’s a family-owned vineyard that sits on 18 acres.
Even during the day, there was a nice-sized crowd (apparently everyone had the same thought given the picture-perfect weather that day). We grabbed a seat outside overlooking the vines and apple trees and took turns walking inside to sample the wine (dogs aren’t allowed inside).
Since neither of us are white wine fans, we sampled the pinot noir, cab franc and musette red, a blend of their pinot noir, cab franc and chambourcin. I was pleasantly surprised with the cabernet franc (we bought some for home) but didn’t care for the pinot. The musette was nice, too. If we didn’t have Nat and Stella, it would have been nice to spend some time inside at the tasting table and really learn more about each wine, maybe even try the white, as well. Perhaps we’ll have to go back when it’s just us (this was we can take advantage of the giant fireplace inside).
Harperfield also offers a decent-sized menu, complete with sandwiches, flatbreads, soup and cheeses. We had the flambe flatbread with caramelized onion, Swiss cheese, bacon and thyme ($13.50) and cheese plate with fresh fruit, pepperoni bread, Smoked Gouda, Havarti and cheddar ($10). The flatbread was enjoyable and plenty big enough for two to share. The cheese hit the spot, though I would have preferred a better offering.
Although we couldn’t stay as long as we might have preferred, and would have enjoyed more conversation with the owners, bringing the whole family and enjoying the day together made for an iconic late summer day. There’s much more out that way to explore and we look forward to a long fall to do just that.
Oh and I meant to mention this in my comment. I don't know if you've ever done the Tannebaum Trail through the Ohio Wines Association but it's a great way to discover the far east side wineries. You visit, I believe, 13 wineries over two weekends sampling food and wine pairings at each. You get a Christmas tree and collect ornaments and recipe cards at each stop. A very fun pre-holiday season activity and a great time to pick up wine gifts for friends and family.
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