Vintage Ohio Wine Tasting Festival
A Buckeye State Event with good wine, food, music and fun
Jul 2, 2007
Updated for 2008.
Vintage Ohio is Ohio’s premier wine tasting and retail experience. The event is held at Lake Metroparks Farmpark, about an hour east of Cleveland, on the first weekend in August. For 2008, this will be Friday and Saturday August 2nd and 3th. Hours are from 1 to 10 p.m. There will be over 30 wineries in attendance, offering hundreds of wines for tasting and purchase.
How it works
For one fee, ($17 advance, $25 at the gate), patrons gain admittance, a wine glass and a tasting card, which allows tasting for up to 100 one-ounce wine samples, which is enough for all but the heaviest samplers. Ohio law prohibits limitless tasting. Booths from the wineries are set up, and the sampler can taste one or all of the wines from a particular winery. Wineries usually offer 5-10 selections, varying in color and sweetness. Wines are also available for purchase by the glass. Each winery provides a list of the wines offered, as a prompt for later purchase.
In the last few years, a newer innovation is a separate tent, with additional admission, for icewine tasting, due to the high cost of this intensely sweet beverage. Those that choose to taste the icewine from six or more wineries in attendance receive a special icewine glass. If you are not sure you will enjoy this dessert wine, Vintage Ohio is an excellent place to sample.
The minimum drinking age is 21, and a reduced price is available for designated drivers and patrons under 21, which includes a souvenir cup and unlimited soft drinks. Lines for tasting increase as the day goes on. The shortest lines are on Friday afternoon, and with nice weather and large crowds, some wines run out before the end of the day. The event is held outdoors, and parking is free. Transportation is available, and as with any event with alcohol, responsible drinking and safe travel is most important.
Other attractions
Farmpark is a working farm, with a petting zoo, horseshows, carriage rides and demonstrations of farm life. There is music throughout the event, and vendors offering wine related merchandise, crafts, as well as other collectables. There are a number of food vendors, with enough selection to cleanse your palate between tastings, as well as something for your sweet tooth. You can explore Ohio’s Gourmet Food Marketplace during a break from the tastings. As you leave the event you pass through a tent where the wine being sampled is available for sale.
Ohio wines offer a fine balance of drinkability and affordability. Vintage Ohio is a great place to enjoy a rare summer weekend in Northeast Ohio.
