Kickapoo Creek Winery -- August 19, 2009

On August 19, more than 40 OLLI members spent a beautiful summer afternoon at the Kickapoo Creek Winery in Edwards, Illinois.

After lunch in the banquet facility, owner/winemaker Dave Conner hosted the group for a personalized tour of his breathtaking winery. Conner, a retired orthopedic surgeon, opened Kickapoo Creek Winery in 2005. The winery consists of 13 acres, including nine different vineyards.

There are 500 plants per acre; each acre of plants produces between three and six tons of grapes. In 2008, the winery produced 42 tons of 19 varieties of grapes. Each ton equates to 750 bottles of wine!

During the tour, Dr. Conner explained the production process, and showed the group the machinery used to crush the grapes and bottle the wine. After our visit to the production room, we were treated to a tasting of three of the 24 varieties of wine produced onsite.

To conclude our visit, we boarded the Grape Train for a ride through the vineyards. Dr. Conner's timing was impeccable -- we finished our tour and boarded the Bradley vans just in time to avoid the approaching thunderstorm.

OLLI extends a big thank you to Dr. Conner and his staff at the Kickapoo Creek Winery for a wonderful day of wine and learning!

For more information about Kickapoo Creek Winery, please visit www.kickapoocreekwinery.com