The 5 Best Wineries to Visit on the Hermann Wine Trail
By Jill Dutton
Hop on board Amtrak’s Missouri River Runner train that runs from St. Louis to Kansas City, Missouri, and you’ll pass rolling hills, small towns, and the Katy Trail, and follow the Missouri River until you arrive at your wine destination: Hermann, Missouri.
This German town set in Missouri Wine Country features quaint buildings, history museums and lessons, and lots of German food and festivals, plus the main draw, a trail of vineyards set in the abundant soil.
German settlers planted themselves into the area in 1837. Pre-Prohibition, Missouri was the second-largest wine producing state in the nation. In Missouri Wine Country, Hermann accounts for about one-third of all wine sales, at nearly 200,000 gallons of wine sales per year.
Hermann now boasts 10 area wineries, 4 distilleries, and 2 breweries within a 15-mile radius. Visitors flock to the area each year for annual festivals like Wurstfest, Maifest, and Oktoberfest. Whether visiting Hermann for a German heritage festival or a weekend to explore Missouri Wine Country, follow the Hermann Wine Trail and discover why this lush area is a top contender in wine production.
Don’t miss these top wine producers on your visit:
Stone Hill Winery
Established in 1847, Stone Hill Winery is the oldest and most awarded winery in Missouri. The pride of Stone Hill is the Norton grape, a red grape that helps produce lush, full-bodied wines and also happens to be the state grape of Missouri. The winery also uses French-American hybrid grape varieties such as Vidal, Chardonel, and Vignoles.
Start with a tour of the cellars, enjoy a wine tasting, and then stay for dinner at Vintage Restaurant, Stone Hill’s on-site restaurant that features contemporary world cuisine, including German specialties paired with Stone Hill’s award-winning wines.
Adam Puchta Winery
The oldest continuously family-owned winery in the country sits just two miles west of Hermann at the Adam Puchta Winery.
Enjoy your choice of three tasting experiences: a Featured Wine Tasting, which includes a guided sampling of 8 award-winning wines; a Complete Wine Tasting, which includes a guided sampling of the winery’s complete list of 16 award-winning wines (except for the Vinter’s Select wines); or the Vintner’s Select Tasting, which features premium and special release wines, including its Estate Bottled Norton, Sparkling Wine, Signature Port, and Mead.
Hermannhof Winery
The vineyards are located outside of town, but Hermannhof Winery’s tasting room and store are just steps from the train depot, right in the heart of downtown Hermann. You’ll find lots of festival celebrations happening on the winery’s patio with live music and lots of German foods, especially bratwurst and German potato salad.
The winery produces a full selection of wines ranging from sweet to dry, as well as a sparkling wine made in the original French method champenoise process.
Oak Glenn Vineyards & Winery
You’ll enjoy a breathtaking view of the river valley at Oak Glenn Vineyard and Winery. Set on a hill overlooking the Missouri River, Oak Glenn is one of the stops on the Hermann Wine Trail. Enjoy live music on weekends from April through November.
For a sweet wine, try the Moscato, a slightly sweet, effervescent wine with hints of creamy apple and honeydew.
Martin Brothers Winery
One of the newest wineries on the trail, Martin Brothers Winery is already an international award-winning winery that serves up Mead, wine made from honey. In 2017, it won Best Traditional Mead at the World Mead Challenge. Martin Brothers offers five varieties of Mead: Wildflower Sweet Mead and Wildflower Dry Mead, Orange Blossom Mead, Blueberry Blossom Mead, and Lucerne Blossom Mead. All the meads are made with only the best ingredients, so no flavorings are added or benzoates or sorbate preservatives are used. In the four years since the winery opened, it’s racked up more than 30 international awards.