| If you like wine, stop at the Door Peninsula | | | | but we managed. The winery produces quite a |
| Winery in Carlsville, Wisconsin the next time you | | | | few fruit wines from apple to blackberry to plum |
| get to Door County. The winery is north of | | | | to cranberry to peach to strawberry, along with |
| Sturgeon Bay on Hwy 42. It is located in an old | | | | their signature cherry wine which is made with |
| schoolhouse. | | | | Door County cherries. The fruits for some of the |
| My husband, one of my grown sons, and myself | | | | other wines come from other places, such as |
| stopped there during a recent trip to Door | | | | California, but all the wine is made at the Door |
| County. The evening before we had dined at | | | | County facility. |
| Shipwrecked in Egg Harbor, Wisconsin (also in | | | | The top selling wines at the Door County winery |
| Door County), and had been given a coupon for a | | | | are the Strawberry Zinfandel, Blackberry Merlot, |
| free tour of the winery and free wine tasting. It | | | | and Razzle Dazzle Raspberry. Our favorites were |
| seemed like too good of a deal to pass up. | | | | the Blackberry, Cranberry, and Sparkling Razzle |
| Even if you dont have a coupon for the tour, its | | | | Dazzle Raspberry. Other wines we liked included |
| a bargain at $2 for each adult. And if youre not | | | | the Port Reserve, a sweet desert wine; Sweet |
| interested in the tour but just in the wine tasting, | | | | Cherry, a sweet wine; White Christmas, one of |
| the wine tasting is free to anyone 21 years of | | | | the winerys holiday wines; the White Zinfandel, |
| age or older. | | | | one of the winerys signature series wines; and |
| We decided to take the tour and then taste | | | | Cranbernet, a wine made with a combination of |
| some of the wines. The tour started in the front | | | | cranberry and grape juices. |
| of the schoolhouse where our guide told us the | | | | The winery also offers several non-wine products |
| building had been used as a schoolhouse for 100 | | | | including cherry juice, sparkling juices, wine jellies, |
| years, from 1868 to 1968. At one point in time, | | | | gourmet mustards, and Door Peninsula Wine |
| the school had 60 students in 8 grades with only | | | | Cheese Spread which we thought was so good |
| 2 teachers. The building was purchased and turned | | | | that we bought two containers to take home. |
| into a winery in 1974. | | | | The large shopping area in the winery also has |
| After being given some history on the building, we | | | | hundreds of other items for sale including wine |
| were taken to the basement of the building, | | | | glasses, wine racks, gourmet foods, gift baskets, |
| which is where the wine is made. We saw how | | | | and wine butlers. |
| the wine was bottled, the vats it is made in, along | | | | In addition to taking home some of the winerys |
| with the barrels it is stored in for aging. Along the | | | | cheese spread; we bought a mixed case of wine |
| way we learned how the fruit juice the winery | | | | to take with us. And we didnt break the bank |
| uses gets turned into wine. Then we headed back | | | | buying the wine. The wines at the winery are a |
| upstairs to the wine bar to start tasting the | | | | good value. The wines start at around $8 for the |
| wines. | | | | fruit wines to a little under $30 for some of the |
| With over 50 wines being produced by the | | | | winerys signature series wines. |
| winery, it was difficult deciding which ones to try | | | | |