Top Pours 2019

RAISE A GLASS TO OUR TOP POURS The best of St. Louis-area wineries, breweries and distilleries

P H O T O : H I L L A R Y L E V I N , P O S T- D I S PAT C H

16-PAGE PULLOUT SECTION

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Top Pours › Wineries

Crusty bread and cheese with wine at Blue Sky Vineyard in the Tuscany Romance Suite

t’s the kind of friendly argument you can get into at a bar: Who makes the best beer in town? The best booze? The best wine?

We put the question to you, our readers. And you responded by the gallon. It’s as if we opened a tap and all of your thoughts and votes spilled out. More than 10,000 votes were cast, based on nominations made by our food and drink experts. From them we have determined this year’s Top Pours in nearly 30 categories, from the trivial to the profound.

Prepare to have your taste challenged, your expectations dashed and your horizons broadened. Just don’t blame us if you get a little thirsty reading this.

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BY DANIEL NEMAN, NORMA KLINGSICK, AMY BERTRAND AND IAN FROEB

Blue Sky Vineyard • When you step inside Blue Sky’s spacious tasting room, keep your eyes open. From hand-carved columns to tiles on the wall, there are treasures to discover in every corner. Start with the beautifully carved wood doors: Those were refurbished from a Lutheran church in Minnesota. Look up to see large ceiling fans that look like windmill blades; those were found on a roadside in Kansas and were restored by a local expert. The blacksmith work — from the door handles to the chandeliers above the bar — was done by Velvet Hammer in Pomona, Ill. Blue Sky uses local artists for many of the decorative touches in its tasting room, putting a Shawnee Hills stamp on the Tuscan villa. (3150 South Rocky Comfort Road, Makanda, Ill.; blueskyvineyard.com) NK Other nominees • Cedar Lake Cellars • Crown Valley • Hermannhof Winery • Defiance Ridge Vineyards • Stone Hill Winery • Owl Creek Vineyard

Best name for a wine Crooked Creek Winery Long Shot • Long Shot fits not only the horse theme

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of Crooked Creek Winery, but also the way the wine was conceived. The wine is a blend of white and red grapes — an unusual combination — that was made out of necessity.

And like a horse with long odds, its creators weren’t exactly sure how it would turn out. The mix of Vidal Blanc and Norton grapes produced a lighter-bodied semisweet red wine with earthy, spicy notes from the Norton grapes. (24585 West 10th Street Road, Centralia, Ill.; crookedcreekwinery. com) NK

Blue Sky Vineyard’s Bolle, paired with lemon ice cream with a blueberry compote

Willow and waterfall at Blue Sky Vineyard

Other nominees • Hidden Lake Winery Old Hippie • Jo-Al Winery Jonnie Be Good • Sand Creek Vineyard Son of a Peach • Twelve Oaks Vineyard Hummingbird Dance • Wild Sun Winery Chaos Red

Best wine trail Shawnee Hills Wine Trail • Within a few hours’ drive from St. Louis, the Shawnee Hills Wine Trail boasts 11 wineries and takes visitors on a 40-mile route through Jackson and Union counties in southern Illinois. At Alto Vineyards, a rooftop deck and large patio offer sweeping views of the vineyard and rural

landscape. The building that houses Pomona Winery is made from all-recycled wood, and the elevated decks offer views of its wooded surroundings. Owl Creek Vineyard has moved and opened a large tasting room, and at Feather Hill Vineyards, the new owners have added a large deck to take full advantage of the landscape. It will take more than one day to enjoy all of the wineries, but

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the gorgeous scenery and other amenities — from great restaurants to hiking to a wide range of lodging options — will make you want to return again and again. (shawneewinetrail.com) NK Other nominees • Augusta • Carlyle Lake • Hermann • Route du Vin (Ste. Genevieve)

Best red Crooked Creek Winery E’ry Day Red • Good wine isn’t just for special occasions — it’s for any time of day, any day of the week. That’s the philosophy behind Crooked Creek’s new line of E’ry Day wines, which come in red, white and rosé, each with sleek packaging perfect for Instagramming. The E’ry Day Red — a blend

of Norton, Chambourcin and Arandell grapes — is a smooth, fruit-forward, medium-bodied wine that is aged in French oak. It pairs well with quick and easy weeknight dinners such as pizza or pasta. (24585 West 10th Street Road, Centralia, Ill.; crookedcreekwinery. com) NK Other nominees • Blumenhof Winery Chambourcin

• Mount Pleasant Estates Norton • Holy Grail Winery Norton Reserve • Noboleis Vineyards Norton • Stone Hill Winery Norton • Sugar Creek Winery Michael’s Signature Red • Chaumette Vineyards & Winery Assemblage Crooked Creek Barn Dance

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P H O T O S : C O U R T E S Y O F B L U E S K Y V I N E YA R D ( B L U E S K Y ) ; C O U R T E S Y O F C R O O K E D C R E E K W I N E R Y ( B A R N D A N C E )

Best tasting room

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Best white Feather Hill Vineyards Saluki White • Randall and Renee Feather bought and rebranded the winery — formerly Orlandini Vineyard — in 2017. They made changes to the wine list but kept some favorites including the Saluki White.

The semisweet wine uses riesling grapes grown in Michigan. It has flavors of tangy citrus, passion fruit and peach. The wine, named for nearby Southern Illinois University’s mascot, joins four other Saluki-labeled wines including SalukiZ, Savvy Saluki, Saluki Red and Saluki Blush. (410 Thorn Lane, Makanda, Ill.; featherhillsvineyard. com) NK

Crooked Creek Rosé

Top Pours › Wineries Blue Sky Vineyard

Other nominees • Crooked Creek Winery Chardonel • Augusta Winery Chardonel • Montelle Winery Dry Vignoles • Balducci Vineyards Mia Bella • Adam Puchta Winery Adam’s Choice • Twelve Oaks Vineyard Vidal Blanc

Hedman Vineyards in Alto Pass

Best sparkling Blue Sky Vineyard Bolle • Sweet, crisp Bolle is the first sparkling wine to be made in the Shawnee Hills.

Bolle (the Italian word for bubbles) is never the same recipe from season to season at Blue Sky. The vineyard uses some of its estate-grown grapes, pressing them to get the right amount of juice and taking the best to make Bolle. This year’s is made from a mix of vignoles, seyval and vidal blanc grapes. The wine is then sent to the Illinois Sparkling Co., where the bubbles are added. The light, fruitforward Bolle is perfect with appetizers or a light lunch. A recent pairing at Blue Sky matched it with fresh-squeezed lemon ice cream topped with a blueberry compote. Yes, please. (3150 South Rocky Comfort Road, Makanda, Ill.; blueskyvineyard.com) NK Other nominees • Adam Puchta Winery Sparkling Brut • Crown Valley Winery Chardonel Brut

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E’ry Day wines by Crooked Creek Winery. The white and rosé wines are sold in full- and half-size bottles.

• Hermannhof Brut Reserve • Mount Pleasant Estate Brut Imperial • Noboleis Vineyards Brut Rosé • Stone Hill Winery Brut Rosé

Best rosé Crooked Creek Winery Rosé • When Crooked Creek Winery owners Shannon and Mindy Cooney moved from California to southern Illinois five years ago, their goal was to make good, world-class dry wine. One of their successes was the rosé, which has been one of Crooked Creek’s topselling wines for the past two years. The rosé, made with Chambourcin grapes,

is a light-bodied, crisp, versatile wine with aromas of cranberry, watermelon and strawberries. Pair it with lighter fare such as grilled chicken or a salad. (24585 West 10th Street Road, Centralia, Ill.; crookedcreekwinery. com) NK Other nominees • Alto Vineyard Rosato • Augusta Winery Le Fleur Sauvage • Balducci Vineyards Rosé • Mount Pleasant Estates Rosé • Robller Vineyard St. Vincent Dry Rosé • Stone Hill Winery Rose Montaigne • Twelve Oaks Vineyard Rosé

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Best sweet wine Crooked Creek Winery Barn Dance • A Concord blend made with Norton and Chambourcin grapes, Barn Dance has been a mainstay at Crooked Creek since the winery opened five years ago. It’s always a top seller, along with Easy Red, another sweet wine. A sweet dessert wine that has complexity from the blend, it would work great in place of an afterdinner port. Barn Dance pairs well with chocolate.

(24585 West 10th Street Road, Centralia, Ill.;

crookedcreekwinery. com) NK Other nominees • Balducci Vineyards Dolce • Hidden Lake Winery Bluez Brothers • Martin Brothers Winery Orange Blossom Mead • Pomona Winery Strawberry Dessert Wine • Stone Hill Winery Cream Sherry • Twelve Oaks Vineyard Hummingbird Dance • Weingarten Vineyard Princess Sweet

Best view at a winery Blue Sky Vineyards • Great views come with the territory in the Shawnee Hills, and Blue Sky takes full advantage. Find a seat on the winery’s expansive patio or a shaded spot under one of the large blue-and-white umbrellas that dot the grounds, and take in the sweeping views of the vineyards and beautiful countryside.

The winery has 13 acres of grapes, including European varietals chardonnay and cabernet franc. A large waterfall,

a gazebo overlooking a pond, Portuguese tiles and artwork are all seamlessly incorporated into the winery’s wellmanicured grounds. (3150 South Rocky Comfort Road, Makanda, Ill.; blueskyvineyard.com) NK Other nominees • Alto Vineyards • Chandler Hill Vineyards • Chaumette Vineyards and Winery • Defiance Ridge Vineyards • Hidden Lake Winery • Montelle Winery

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P H O T O S : M I N D Y C O O N E Y ( E ’ R Y D AY W I N E S ) ; B L U E S K Y V I N E YA R D ( B L U E S K Y V I N E YA R D ) ; S C O T T K L I N G S I C K ( H E D M A N V I N E YA R D S )

A FEW NOTES • We included only breweries in the St. Louis metro area (St. Louis, St. Louis County, St. Charles County, Franklin County, Jefferson County, Lincoln County, Warren County and Washington County in Missouri and Bond County, Calhoun County, Clinton County, Jersey County, Macoupin County, Madison County, Monroe County and St. Clair County in Illinois).

• We included only wineries and distilleries that are in the St. Louis metro area or are located along or near one of these wine trails: Ste. Genevieve, Augusta, Hermann, Shawnee or Carlyle Lake. A winery is a place that makes its own wine and/or grows its own grapes.

• We did not designate wines by particular vintages, though we do acknowledge that the grapes and the wines change from year to year. We chose to do this mainly because this isn’t a juried wine competition. This is so our readers can find a wine they like, perhaps based on these recommendations.

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Top Pours › Breweries Best individual beer (overall) 4 Hands Brewing Co. City Wide • Not too strong, not too mild, this crisp American pale ale is just right, according to our voters. It’s a pleasant brew, with a malty flavor balanced by just enough hops, and it’s versatile enough to be either sipped or quaffed. In addition, a portion of each sale benefits local nonprofits.

It’s a chance to do well by drinking well. (1220 South Eighth Street; 4handsbrewery.com) DN

A beer flight at Hopskeller Brewing Co. in Waterloo

Other nominees • 2nd Shift Brewing Art of Neurosis • Civil Life Brewing Co. American Brown Ale • Perennial Artisan Ales Abraxas • Schlafly Tasmanian IPA • Urban Chestnut Brewing Co. Zwickel

Best beer lineup (overall)

P H O T O S : C H R I S T I N E TA N N O U S , P O S T- D I S PAT C H ( H O P S K E L L E R ) ; M I C A H U S H E R ( T O P P O U R S )

Urban Chestnut Brewing Co. • UCBC — that’s Urban Chestnut Brewing Co. — stands firmly with one foot rooted in tradition and the other in experimentation.

The traditional beers include well-loved varieties such as lagers (the peerless Zwickel), stouts (O’Florian’s) and pilsners

(Stammitsch), while the “Revolution” series includes a hard grapefruit soda (Big Shark Grapefruit Radler), a pale wheat dopplebock (Erlkönig) and a West Coast IPA called Fantasyland. If you like it, they brew it. (3229 Washington Boulevard and 4465 Manchester Avenue; urbanchestnut.com) DN Other nominees • 2nd Shift Brewing

• Civil Life Brewing Co. • Modern Brewery • Perennial Artisan Ales • Side Project Brewing

Best beer tasting room Hopskeller Brewing Co. • The pride of Waterloo is anchored by a gorgeous, spacious room full of woods and old brick. It’s a classy, inviting place to grab a pint or a flight and a pizza. And if you think

beer goes best with sports, the room is festooned with televisions tuned to the games of the day. (116 East Third Street, Waterloo; hopskeller.com) DN Other nominees • Alpha Brewing Co. • Earthbound Beer • Rockwell Beer Co. • Side Project Brewing • Wellspent Brewing Co.

Stephanie Dakin of 4 Hands Brewing Co. pours a sample for Rachel Sennett in 2018 at the PostDispatch Top Pours event at the Magic House.

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Top Pours › Breweries • 2nd Shift Brewing Art of Neurosis • Alpha Brewing Co. Hop, Lock & Drop It • Exit 6 Brewery Razmanian Devil • Narrow Gauge Brewing Co. Hoppy Meal • Rockwell Beer Co. Oxford Llama

scene that it is hard to remember a time that there wasn’t Zwickel. (3229 Washington Boulevard and 4465 Manchester Avenue; urbanchestnut.com) DN Other nominees

Best lighter beer Urban Chestnut Brewing Co. Zwickel • This Bavarianstyle lager was an instant St. Louis classic when it was first introduced, a true German beer that tastes just like the brews that the fathers of all those immigrants from the old country used to drink. It has become such an integral part of the St. Louis brewery

Schlafly Coffee Stout

• 4 Hands Brewing Co. Single Speed • Center Ice Brewery American Golden Ale • Good News Brewing Co. Belgian White • Schlafly Kolsch • Square One Park Avenue Pale Ale

Best darker beer Civil Life Brewing Co. American Brown • American Brown is Civil Life’s best-selling beer, and no wonder: It tastes of malt and caramel, with notes of bitter chocolate and dark coffee. Basically, it would be at home over a scoop of vanilla ice cream. But don’t do that. You would only dilute the beer’s smooth, rich goodness. (3714 Holt Avenue; thecivillife.com) DN Other nominees • Ferguson Brewing Co. Pecan Brown Ale • Heavy Riff Brewing Co. Velvet Underbrown • Urban Chestnut Brewing Co. Dorfbier • WellBeing Brewing Co. Hellraiser Dark Amber (nonalcoholic) • Wellspent Spice of Life Mild Ale

Best IPA 4 Hands Brewing Co. Divided Sky IPA • Are IPAs — India pale ales — still the most popular style of craft beer in America? There sure are a lot of them.

Divided Sky stands out from the crowd because it is brewed with rye, which adds an undertone of spice to the in-your-face hops. And you also get hints of citrus in the mix.

(1220 South Eighth Street; 4handsbrewery.com) DN

Best wheat beer Darrell and Jane Gaitch enjoy drinks July 18 at Hopskeller Brewing Co.

Other nominees • Earthbound Beer Meteor IPA • Modern Brewery Citrapolis • Narrow Gauge Brewing Co. Fallen Flag

Urban Chestnut Brewing Co. Schnickelfritz • The question with any wheat beer is how to deal with the citrus flavors inherent to the style. Schnickelfritz eschews adding fruit to the brew and lets the yeast do the citrus talking. Perhaps that is why the well-balanced beer has enough room in its profile for notes of spice. (3229 Washington Boulevard and 4465 Manchester Avenue; urbanchestnut.com) DN

• Rockwell Beer Co. New Feeling • Urban Chestnut Brewing Co. STLIPA

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Other nominees

Stubborn German Brewing Co. Schitzengiggles • All of the contending names are clever, and we’ll confess a certain appreciation for the surreal erudition of Oxford Llama. But come on: The faux German name Schitzengiggles is freakin’ hilarious. (119 South Main Street, Waterloo; stubborngermanbrewing. com) DN

Urban Chestnut Brewing Co. packaging manager Rob Bardgett aligns a machine that stamps the date on cans of Big Shark Lemon Radler at the company’s brewery in the Grove in June 2018.

P H O T O S : S C H L A F LY ( S C H L A F LY C O F F E E S T O U T ) ; S I D H A S T I N G S ( C H R I S S C H O E N ) ; C H R I S T I N E TA N N O U S , P O S T- D I S PAT C H ( G A I T C H S )

Best name for a beer

Chris Schoen of Oakville offers a toast while sampling beer at Urban Chestnut Brewing Co. in the Grove on January 2017.

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Top Pours › Breweries Other nominees

Find Go! Magazine’s Best Bets, reviews, guides and more interactive features in our free mobile app.

• Charleville Brewing Co. Half Wit Wheat • Old Bakery Beer Co. Citrus Wheat • Rockwell Beer Co. Passing Clouds • Schlafly Hefeweizen • Six Mile Bridge Blood Orange Wit

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Best stout/porter

Brewmaster Chris Rahn tests a sample of beer at the Stubborn German Brewing Co. in Waterloo in July 2016.

Schlafly Coffee Stout • Most stouts have at least an undertone of coffee, but Schlafly brings the coffee to the fore by using beans from Kaldi’s. It’s hard to get more St. Louis than that.

And while the thought of combining beer with coffee may seem like the result will be too bitter, fear not: The coffee Schlafly uses has less acid than most, and the stout provides a touch of sweetness. (2100 Locust Street and 7260 Southwest Avenue, Maplewood; schlafly.com) DN • Center Ice Brewery Puck O’ the Irish Stout • O’Fallon Brewery Smoked Porter • Old Bakery Beer Co. Porter • Six Mile Bridge Irish Stout • Stubborn German Brewing Co. German Chocolate Cake Stout

Best barrel-aged beer Perennial Artisan Ales Barrel-aged Sump Coffee Stout • Brewed with Sump coffee and then aged for a year or more in bourbon barrels, this jet-black beer presents a chocolaty flavor to go along with the coffee and the bourbon. It comes with a kick, too, boasting more alcohol — 11.5 percent ABV — than some wines.

(8125 Michigan Avenue; perennialbeer.com) DN Other nominees • 2nd Shift Brewing Katy • 4 Hands Brewing Co. Downfall • Cathedral Square Brewery Ave Maria Barrelaged Cherry Quad • Heavy Riff BarrelAged Dear Agony • Side Project Brewing Derivation series

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TASTE FOR YOURSELF

Beer kegs at the Civil Life Brewing Co.

Best seasonal beer Schlafly Pumpkin Ale • For many, fall doesn’t start until Schlafly Pumpkin Ale hits taps and the shelves.

Fans look forward to the release every year, and why not? It’s like eating a pumpkin pie and drinking a beer at the same time.

Like all seasonal beers, this one is only available for a short time, and that’s part of the appeal: It leaves fans

wanting more. (2100 Locust Street and 7260 Southwest Avenue, Maplewood; schlafly.com) DN Other nominees • 4 Hands Brewing Co. Passion Fruit Prussia • Charleville Brewing Co. Late-Night Karate Kicks • Excel Brewing Co. Winter Warmer • Ferguson Brewing Co. Imperial Vanilla

Bourbon Porter • Perennial Artisan Ales Suburban Beverage

Best beer brewed at the Anheuser-Busch brewery Michelob Amber Bock • This was a surprise. Five of the 10 most popular beers in America are brewed at the brewery complex on Pestalozzi Street, yet our readers’ favorite is

Bottles of Schlafly Pumpkin Ale roll off the production line at Schlafly Bottleworks in Maplewood in 2008. this more specialized brew. Made from 100 percent malt (no other grain), it’s a caramelcolored, full-flavored beer. (1200 Lynch Street; anheuser-busch.com) DN Other nominees • Beck’s • Budweiser • Bud Light • Busch • Natural Light

From 6:30 to 9:30 p.m. Aug. 8, explore the Magic House after hours while sampling from some of the breweries, wineries and distilleries featured in our Top Pours issue. There also will be food samples, live music, items from local vendors and more.

Tickets are $30 ($50 for VIP) and include a commemorative tasting glass, parking and cash bar. This event is for ages 21 and up. stltoday. com/ourevents

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P H O T O S : M I C H A E L T H O M A S ( R A H N ) ; J . B . F O R B E S , P O S T- D I S PAT C H ( B E E R K E G S ) ; D AV I D C A R S O N , P O S T- D I S PAT C H ( S C H L A F LY P U M P K I N A L E )

Other nominees

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Top Pours › Distilleries

The Pinckney Bend Distillery in New Haven, Mo., is open for tastings and tours on weekends.

Pinckney Bend American Gin • Nine botanicals go into making this classic, crisp gin from New Haven, but it’s the light citrus notes that make it stand out. It’s delightful with tonic (Pinckney Bend helpfully makes its own tonic, too) and especially great in martinis. Really, that’s all you can ask for in a gin. (1101 Miller Street, New Haven; pinckneybend. com) DN Other nominees • 1220 Origin Gin • Crown Valley Washtub Gin • Old Herald Ardent Spirits Gin • Samuel Berton Distilling Gin • Spirits of St. Louis Regatta Bay Gin • StilL 630 Volstead’s Folly

Best rum StilL 630 Expedition Rum • Our readers can’t get enough of StilL 630’s Expedition Rum, an easydrinking dark rum with hints

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of spice. It’s the type of rum you can drink straight (or on the rocks), though it certainly would not be out of place in a good cocktail.

It’s smooth and sweet and just a little bit mysterious.

(1000 South Fourth Street; still630.com) DN Other nominees • Old Herald Ardent Spirits Rum • Soulard Island Smoked Honey Rum • Spirits of St. Louis Island Time Amber Rum

Best whiskey Original Stumpy’s Spirits Old Monroe • The small-batch distillery in Columbia, Ill., grows all its grains on its own farm, and even the water it uses comes from its own limestone well.

That means a degree of control over the product you won’t find everywhere.

Our voters

loved Original Stumpy’s whiskey made from corn, winter wheat and barley malt. (1727 Centerville Road, Columbia, Ill.; stumpysspirits.com) DN Other nominees • Crown Valley Coldwater Whiskey • Pinckney Bend American Corn Whiskey • Samuel Berton Distilling Bourbon • Samuel Berton Distilling Rye • Spirits of St. Louis J.J. Neukomm Whiskey • StilL 630 Monon Bell Bourbon • StilL 630 Rally Point Rye

Best specialty spirit Original Stumpy’s Spirits Old Monroe Honey Flavored Whiskey • Honey goes with whiskey like cheese goes with crackers; it’s just the perfect combination. This version happens to be made with our voters’ favorite bourbon (see above).

Think there’s a connection?

Good things happen when you start with good ingredients. (1727 Centerville Road, Columbia, Ill.; stumpysspirits.com) DN Other nominees

Pinckney Bend American Gin

Cheesecake Vodka • Crown Valley Missouri Moonshine Absinthe Classical • Old Herald Ardent Spirits Agave Spirit • Pinckney Bend Apple Ambush • Spirits of St. Louis Vermont Night Whiskey

Best vodka Mastermind Vodka • At Mastermind, vodka is (nearly) all they do.

It’s a small-batch spirit, so distillers can keep a close eye on it at the Pontoon Beach facility.

Naturally, all of the grain comes from the Midwest.

(4262 State Highway 162, Pontoon Beach; mastermindvodka.com) DN Other nominees • Bluestem Vodka • Distillery of Defiance Judgment Tree Vodka • Original Stumpy’s Spirits Unbroken Vodka • Pinckney Bend American Vodka • Samuel Berton Distilling Vodka • Soulard Island Citrus Vodka • St. Louis Distillery Cardinal Sin Vodka

• Crown Valley Downhome Sweetwater Pumpkin

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Best gin

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Top Pours › Overall Best food at a winery, brewery or distillery

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Other nominees • Balducci Vineyards • Bretz Wildlife Lodge & Winery • Civil Life Brewing Co. • Chandler Hill Vineyards • Ferguson Brewing Co. • Schlafly Tap Room • Square One Brewery & Distillery • Urban Chestnut Brewing Co.

Best overnight stay Blue Sky Vineyard • If you can’t afford a weekend trip to Italy, a stay in one of Blue Sky Vineyard’s two suites might just be the next best thing. The winery offers two suites located above the winery’s tasting room. The luxurious Tuscany Romance suite has two balconies —

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6 W. Main St., Downtown Wentzville, MO 63385

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A wedding at the gazebo at Blue Sky Vineyard

one that opens up over the tasting room and another that overlooks the vineyard and the Shawnee Hills. The Blue Sky suite is smaller.

Both suites are furnished with antiques to give them a rustic, Tuscan feel, but they also have all the amenities to be comfortable. Your stay includes a European-style breakfast with croissants, ham and a nice block of cheese. (3150 South Rocky Comfort Road, Makanda, Ill.; blueskyvineyard.com) NK Other nominees • Chaumette Vineyards & Winery • Crown Valley Winery Brewery Distillery • Hermannhof Winery • Hidden Lake Winery • The Winery at Shale Lake

Best wedding venue Blue Sky Vineyard • Many couples have found the “Romance of Italy in the Hills of Southern Illinois,” taking their vows at Blue Sky Vineyard in Makanda, Ill. The winery hosts about 20 weddings each year,

drawing couples from Chicago and St. Louis. The venue also caters about 30 special events each year, including birthday parties and business and charity events. The natural setting of the Shawnee Hills, Blue Sky’s well-manicured grounds with a cascading waterfall and a stunning gazebo, and the Tuscanstyle architecture make a memorable backdrop for any couple’s perfect day. (3150 South Rocky Comfort Road, Makanda, Ill.; blueskyvineyard.com) NK

dessert is what put Schlafly Bottleworks over the top in this hotly contested category. After all, Bottleworks also features more than a dozen rotating and nonrotating beers on tap, live music (Miss Jubilee!), monthly philosophical discussions, classic Three Stooges films, a farmers market and a full menu of filling food. But really: It was probably the Sticky Toffee Pudding. (7260 Southwest Avenue, Maplewood; schlafly.com) DN

Other nominees

Other nominees

• Cedar Lake Cellars • Chaumette Vineyards & Winery • Defiance Ridge Vineyards • Earthbound Beer • Noboleis Vineyards • Villa Antonio Winery • Weingarten Vineyard

• Anheuser-Busch

Best overall experience

• Cave Vineyard • Crown Valley Winery Brewery Distillery • Charleville Vineyard & Winery • Defiance Ridge Vineyards • Pinckney Bend Distillery • Stone Hill Winery

Schlafly Bottleworks • We wouldn’t want to suggest that the fabulous Sticky Toffee Pudding

Alpha Brewing Company

Open seven days a week at noon for lunch stltoday.com/go

P H O T O : L E I G H B E D O K I S P H O T O G R A P H Y, C O U R T E S Y O F B L U E S K Y V I N E YA R D

MORE THAN 12 FLAVORS OF CHICKEN SALAD

Hedman Vineyards Peach Barn Cafe • The Swedish theme is apparent upon entering the Peach Barn Cafe, housed in a beautifully restored barn, at Hedman Vineyards. Scandinavian posters and artwork decorate the property, and the menu reflects owners Anders and Gerd Herdman’s home country. Try the wine and then share an appetizer: warm brie served with crackers and Swedish blueberry or raspberry jam, or a traditional sampler with pickled herring, boiled eggs, lingonberries, creamed caviar and meatballs. Stay for dinner and feast on Swedish meatballs, wiener schnitzel, cedar-plank salmon or artichoke chicken. (560 Chestnut Street, Alto Pass, Ill.; peachbarn.com) NK

The PERFECT SPOT for your own TOP POUR

we hope you like

Great Beer, Food & Company

STUDIO, 1, 2 & 3 BEDROOM MODERN APARTMENTS

in the Middle of Everything

Inspiring Community Spaces Expansive Sky Lounge and Lobby Dog Park and Resident Game Room Resort-Style Courtyard and Pool

Coveted Amenities High-Speed WiFi Access Throughout Building Underground Parking State-of-the-Art Fitness Center Gourmet Kitchen with Full-Size Appliances (Granite options available) Washer/Dryer in Every Unit Bike Storage 2019

Amazing Location Steps from Forest Park Best Highway Access in St. Louis

Award-Winning Service Five-Star Property Management Team 24/7 Maintenance and Concierge

5700 Highlands Plaza Drive St. Louis, MO 63110 314.833.6100 Encore@2BResidential.com www.encore.apartments Hopskeller is a brewery influenced by the beers of Northern England and the Pacific Northwest.

A gathering place for laughter, discussion and the joy of sharing a beer with friends.

stltoday.com/go

116 E. 3rd Street Waterloo, IL 62298 (618) 939-2337 hopskeller.com

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SMALL BATCH,

BIG PASSION Everything that is produced at Copper Run is hand crafted, starting with processing raw ingredients and ending with labeling and bottling.

Phone: 314.270.8538 8958 Watson Rd. Crestwood MO 63119 Follow us on Facebook: www.facebook.com/yolklore/

Award-Winning Small Batch Spirits, Traditionally Handcrafted in the Ozark Mountains.

Visit us at www.copperrundistillery.com and make sure you check out our selection online available for purchase!

20 SOUTH BELT WEST | BELLEVILLE, IL 618.257.9000 www.beastcraftbbq.com 28

Questions? Give us a call!

(417) 587-3336

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VOLPIFOODS.COM stltoday.com/go

stltoday.com/go

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