Celebrate Red Wine Day Close to Home

August 28 is National Red Wine Day, a celebration of a beverage people have enjoyed for thousands of years. Here in central Illinois, you don’t have to travel far to find locally produced wines, relaxing countryside settings and plenty of places to raise a glass.

Danenberger Family Vineyards in New Berlin offers an especially distinctive local wine experience, combining award-winning wines with a busy schedule of live entertainment. The family vineyard produces several red varieties, including Cabernet Franc, Marquette and other estate-grown reds. Visitors can enjoy a tasting while taking in the rural setting just west of Springfield.

Hill Prairie Winery in Oakford offers another nearby destination. Located in a century-old barn, the winery produces its wines on-site using grapes grown on land that has been in the family since the early 1800s. Its red selections include Prairie Barn Red and Chambourcin, and the winery also regularly hosts live music and special events.

Wine lovers can also head toward Petersburg and stop at West of Wise Winery, a family-owned, small-batch winery just south of town. West of Wise makes its wines from 100 percent Illinois-grown grapes, many from the family’s own vineyard in Kilbourne.

Tastings are available for visitors looking to sample a variety of locally made wines.

About a 45-minute drive from Springfield, Vixen Hill Winery near Palmyra offers another central Illinois option. The family-owned winery produces and bottles its wines on-site using grapes grown on its property and at other Midwestern vineyards. Its selections range from dry to sweeter wines, including several reds.

For those looking to turn Red Wine Day into a weekend adventure, the Shawnee Hills Wine Trail in southern Illinois brings together 11 wineries along a roughly 40-mile route. The trail winds through the rolling countryside of the Shawnee Hills, with wineries, vineyards and views of the nearby Shawnee National Forest.

Whether your preference is Cabernet Franc, Norton, Chambourcin or another locally produced red, National Red Wine Day is a good excuse to explore Illinois wine country. From New Berlin and Petersburg to Palmyra and southern Illinois, there are plenty of opportunities to support local wineries and discover something new close to home.