Hawk Knob Hard Cider and Mead
www. hawkknob. com
Photo by Hawk Knob Hard Cider and Mead. area is plentiful with adventure. Owners Ben and Erika McKean provide honey house tours by appointment, which include a wine tasting. The couple produces and sells varietal meads and melomels, a combination of honey and fruit wine. Made with the waters running down from the mountain springs, the mead is a traditional, sweet and flavorful beverage, and the McKeans do not add any chemicals, preservatives, colors or additives.
Heston Farm www. hestonfarm. com
Photo by Heston Farm. scour for unique gifts at the on-site country store. The winery is known for its fruit and sweet wines like its best seller, Black Satin Blackberry, and is also home to a small distillery that produces bourbon, rye whiskey and moonshine. Whether you prefer wine or bourbon, the Dix family encourages guests to spend the afternoon at Kirkwood Winery, which is open Monday-Saturday, 9 a. m. to 5 p. m., and Sunday, 1-5 p. m., or come out for the annual Kirkwood Winery Grape Stompin’ Festival held every September.
Lambert’ s Vintage Wine www. lambertswinery. com
The owners of Hawk Knob Hard Cider and Mead do not follow the norm— nor do their products. The first cidery in West Virginia, Hawk Knob also proudly offers dry, aged meads in three different flavors: cyser, an apple honey mead; reserve cyser, which is aged in bourbon barrels; and elderberry melomel, which combines elderberry juices with wildflower honey. Located just miles outside Lewisburg, Hawk Knob Hard Cider and Mead also holds tastings and tours at their quaint facility and tasting room Thursday- Friday, 2-7 p. m., and Saturday, 12-7 p. m. Enjoy the quietness of the area over a picnic of fine cheeses and charcuterie on the cidery’ s pond-side porch.
Healthberry Farm and Honey River Meadery
www. healthberryfarm. com
At Healthberry Farm and Honey River Meadery, it’ s all about producing the finest and most natural products and services. Located in the heart of the highlands of the Mountain State and encompassed by the Monongahela
National Forest, Healthberry is perfect for visitors interested in ecotourism. With a straw bale cabin on-site available for rent near Canaan Valley, Seneca Rocks and Elkins, the
Heston Farm was born out of a dream to turn a family farm into a place for visitors to enjoy everything West Virginia has to offer. Heston Farm offers highquality, sweet white and fruit wines, floral semi-sweet white wines, slightly sweet red wines and dry white and red wines aged in French oak barrels. With names like Mary Sue Blue Extra Sweet Blueberry and Spring Peeper Merlot, the products reflect the people, animals and tales of the Mountain State. Owners Mick Heston and Julie Smith want guests to enjoy the charismatic atmosphere and décor of their tasting room, which is open Monday-Saturday, 11 a. m. to 5 p. m. With picturesque views of the North Central West Virginia terrain, the rustic atmosphere is perfect for parties, weddings and events of all kinds.
Kirkwood Winery www. kirkwood-wine. com
Kirkwood Winery was the first in the Summerville area when its vineyards were planted in the 1980s. Today, the small farm winery is a staple in the community. Just a mile off US-19, travelers from all over stop by the scenic property to take the tour, taste the 34 flavors of wine and
Photo by Lambert’ s Vintage Wine.
Lambert’ s Vintage Wine opened its doors in 1992. Built by the Lambert family from the ground up, travelers will take delight in the nontraditional atmosphere of the facility, which is made from hand-cut stone. Depending on the season, guests can enjoy the winery’ s waterfall or stay indoors next to a roaring fire. Lambert’ s makes more than 20 varietal wines, but it is best known for its Niagara, a sweeter table wine with the flavor of a freshpicked grape. The winery offers daily wine tastings and tours at no charge Monday-Friday, 9 a. m. to 5 p. m.; Saturday, 11 a. m. to 5 p. m.; and, from April-December, Sunday, 1-5 p. m. Visitors can also purchase pottery made by owner Debbie Lambert in her on-site studio, enjoy wood-fired pizza on Wednesday nights or stay for the weekend in a cabin that overlooks the back of the winery.
34 2018 Discover West Virginia