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Arkansas
Wine Country:
120 Years in
the
Making
By
Jill M.
Rohrbach,
travel
writer
Arkansas
Department of
Parks and
Tourism
Altus was the
place to
experience "The
Simple Life"
long before the
recent TV
reality show of
the same name
billed it as
such. For many,
though, the
simplicity of
life involves
the
complexities of
growing grapes
and making wine
in this region
known as
Arkansas Wine
Country, which
boasts more
than 120 years
of viticultural
history.The
simple life
will soon be
enhanced with
new wineries,
restaurants and
lodging
establishments
currently in
the development
stages for the
Altus region, a
thriving, rural
area that
attracts
thousands of
visitors
annually.
Arkansas's
Wine
History
Drawn
by the
Benedictine of
Subiaco Abbey,
a colony of
German-Swiss
immigrants
settled in the
foothills of
the Ozark
Mountains and
began growing
grapes in the
1870s at Altus
in Franklin
County. These
early
viticulturalists
found great
potential for
grape
production in
the Arkansas
River Valley.
Early Arkansas
grape growers
made
significant
advances in the
development of
grape cultivars
that reached
far beyond the
state's
boundaries.
Joseph Bachman,
a Swiss
immigrant and
private grape
grower in the
Altus area
during the late
1880s,
developed grape
cultivars that
drew nationwide
attention. One
of his most
famous
cultivars won a
silver medal in
the 1904
World's Fair in
St. Louis. Some
of the other
early
winemakers in
the area were
Herman
Wiederkehr,
Jacob Post and
Henry Sax.
During
Prohibition,
many growers
switched to
table grape
varieties, some
legally made
wine for
sacramental
reasons and
others hid wine
they made
behind locked
doors. At the
end of
Prohibition,
approximately
40 wineries in
the Altus
region applied
for wine
permits and
many found a
market ready
for wines -
especially
among the
immigrant
railroad
workers and
coal miners
who, like the
early settlers,
were accustomed
to enjoying
wine with
meals. While
many of the
wineries were
very small, a
few would
become today's
historic
vineyards run
by the fourth
and fifth
generation
descendants of
the original
wine-making
immigrants.
Today, Arkansas
is the oldest
and largest
grape juice and
wine producing
state in the
southern United
States. In 1984
the federal
government
declared three
American
Viticultural
Areas in
Arkansas:
Arkansas
Mountain, which
includes Paris;
Ozark Mountain,
which includes
northwest
Arkansas; and
Altus. Italian
immigrants
established an
early grape
production area
in Tontitown in
northwest
Arkansas,
though none of
the wineries
operate
today.
The
Arkansas
Historic Wine
Museum at
Cowie Wine
Cellars in
Paris preserves
the
viticultural
past of The
Natural State
through
winemaking
artifacts and
biographical
histories of
winemakers. It
is the only
wine museum in
the nation
dedicated to
the wine
history of a
state."Whether
you're born in
Arkansas or
live in
Arkansas, this
is your state's
history and you
need to know
it," Robert
Cowie of Cowie
Wine Cellars
said. "We're a
marvelous wine
state."
Today's
Wineries
Four
wineries -
Post Familie
Vineyard and
Winery,
Wiederkehr Wine
Cellars, Mount
Bethel Winery,
and Chateau Aux
Arc - now
operate in the
Altus area, and
Cowie Wine
Cellars
operates in
nearby Paris.
Each offers
free tours and
tasting rooms.
Some have extra
amenities such
as gift shops,
restaurants, RV
parks or bed
and breakfast
inns.With roots
in the late
1800s, Post and
Wiederkehr are
the oldest
operating
wineries, and
they are also
among the top
100 wineries in
the United
States in terms
of volume.
While Mount
Bethel wasn't
bonded until
1956, its
vintners have
ancestral ties
to the Post
family. And the
owners of
Cowie, which
was bonded in
1967, have an
ancestral line
that reaches
back to Joseph
Bachman. The
newcomer is
Audrey House,
who opened
Chateau Aux Arc
in 1998 and is
one of the
world's
youngest
winemakers. All
of the wineries
vint classic
wines such as
Chardonnay and
Cabernet;
however, many
wine lovers may
not realize
that Arkansas
holds more for
their taste
buds since many
of the wines
the state
produces are
not made in
other
well-known wine
regions of the
U.S., such as
California.
Cynthiana and
Muscadine
grapes, for
example, are
native to
Arkansas.
In
the
Area
An
upscale dinner
restaurant,
Chef Larry's
Eclectic Ozark
Cuisine,
recently opened
in a
19th-century
rock building
on the square
and brings a
bistro-like
quality to the
heart of
Arkansas Wine
Country. (The
restaurant is
open for dinner
only from
Tuesday through
Saturday. For
reservations or
more
information,
phone
479-468-3663.)
At
Wiederkehr Wine
Cellars, the
original
hand-dug wine
cellar, listed
on the National
Register of
Historic
Places, is the
site of the
Weinkeller
Restaurant,
which features
Swiss and
Continental
cuisine.
In
addition to the
restaurants
that surround
Altus's
centerpiece - a
quaint city
park containing
a coal mining
memorial - are
shops full of
antiques,
collectibles
and crafts. In
the late 1920s
and '30s, the
coal mines
played a very
important part
of the economy,
and exhibits
interpreting
the region's
coal mining
history can be
found at the
town's Heritage
House
Museum.
Getting
There
Altus
is five miles
south of
Interstate 40
(Exit 41) on
Ark. 186. For
more
information,
phone Altus
City Hall at
(479) 468-4191
or visit
www.altusarkansas.com
and
www.arkwine.com
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ARKANSAS
HOSPITALITY
ASSOCIATON
NEWS
Effective
July
1,
2004,
the
following
services
will
be
subject
to the
Arkansas
State
Sales
Tax
and
any
applicable
local
taxes:
Wrecker
and
Towing
Services
Collection
and
Disposal
of
Solid
Waste
Cleaning
Parking
Lots
and
Gutters
Dry
Cleaning
and
Laundry
Services
Industrial
Laundry
Services
Mini
Warehouses
and
Self
Storage
Rental
Services
Body
Piercing,
Tattooing,
and
Electrolysis
Services
Pest
Control
Services
Security
and
Alarm
Monitoring
Services
Boat
Storage
and
Docking
Fees
Furnishing
Campground
Spaces
or
Trailer
Spaces
at
Public
or
Privately
Owned
Campgrounds,
except
for
Federal
Camp
Grounds,
on
Less
Than a
Month-to-Month
Basis
Locksmith
Services
Pet
Grooming
and
Kennel
Services
New
Installation
and
Replacement
Labor
for
Hardwood,
Vinyl,
Ceramic
tile,
or Any
Other
Types
of
Flooring
|
Are
You
Getting
the
Credit
You
Deserve?
If
you
are an
employer
in the
food
and
beverage
industry,
you
may be
entitled
to a
credit
for
the
social
security
and
Medicare
taxes
you
pay on
your
employees'
tip
income.
This
credit
is
available
under
the
Internal
Revenue
Code
(IRC)
section
45 B,
Credit
for
Portion
of
Employer
Social
Security
Paid
with
Respect
to
Employee
Cash
Tips.
You
must
meet
both
of the
following
requirements
to
qualify
for
the
credit:
1.
You
had
employees
who
received
tips
from
customers
for
providing,delivering,
or
serving
food
or
beverages
for
consumption;
and
2.
You
paid
or
incurred
employer
social
security
and
Medicare
taxes
on
these
tips.
The
credit
applies
only
to
tips
received
by
food
and
beverage
employees.
It is
not
applicable
to
other
tipped
employees.
IRC
section
45 B
credit
is
available
for
taxes
paid
after
December
31,
1993.
You
can
claim
or
elect
not to
claim
the
credit
anytime
within
three
years
from
the
due
date
of
your
return
on
either
your
original
return
or an
amended
return.
For
more
information
call
Bill
Wilde
with
the I
RS at
501-324-6269.
|
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Lake
Dardanelle
State
Park
named
Southern
Travel
Treasure
Lake
Dardanelle
State
Park
was
named
a
Southern
Travel
Treasure
by
AAA's
magazine
"AAA
Southern
Traveler."
Featured
in the
May/June
2004
issue
we
were
selected
for
its
appeal
to
typical
AAA
members.
"AAA
Southern
Traveler's"
popular
Travel
Treasure
series
is
part
of
each
bimonthly
issue
and
circulates
to
175,000
AAA
homes
in
Arkansas,
Louisiana
and
Mississippi.
More
than
70% of
readers
choose
the
South
for
their
vacation
destination.
Lake
Dardanelle
State
Park
was
also
named
as a
finalist
for
the
Natural
State
Award
in the
Henry
Awards
at
30th
Annual
Governor's
Conference
on
Tourism,
last
March.
The
Arkansas
State
Parks,
Recreation
&
Travel
Commission
News
Governor's
Office
Liaison
Rex
Nelson
is the
new
Governors'
liaison
to the
Department
of
Parks
&
Tourism.
Marynell
Branch
has
taken
a new
position
as
Deputy
Director
of the
Department
of
Arkansas
Heritage.
Logo
Signage
Program
A
highway
logo
sign
designed
by
representatives
of the
state's
wine
industry,
to be
posted
in the
Arkansas
wine
district,
was
presented
to the
Commission.
The
proposed
sign
included
the
following
symbols:
of a
bunch
of
grapes,
a wine
bottle,
a wine
glass,
an
arrow
pointing
to the
direction
of the
winery,
and
the
word
"winery".
Commissioner's
approved
the
sign
with
the
deletion
of the
wine
glass
symbol.
Contact
Charles
McLemore
for
more
information,
501-324-1520.
Recreational
Metal
Detecting
The
Commission
approved
a
pilot
program
to
allow
the
activity
only
on
beaches
in
certain
parks.
The
pilot
program
will
run
from
Labor
Day
2004
through
the
weekend
prior
to
Memorial
Day
2005.
Participants
will
be
required
to
register
at the
park.
For
more
information,
please
contact
Mac
Balkman
at
(501)
682-7639.
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Arkansas
River
Valley
Arts
Center
Summer
Classes
SPANISH
CLASSES
Two
new
offerings
have
been
added
to the
summer
classes
at the
Arkansas
River
Valley
Arts
Center.
Both
courses
are an
introduction
to
Spanish
taught
in an
exciting,
creative
atmosphere.
Mommy
and Me
is a 6
weeks
course
meeting
3:00 -
4:30
p.m.
each
Monday
for 6
weeks
starting
June
21.
Cost
is $60
per
couple
for
members
and
$65
for
non-members
plus
cost
of
resource.
Introduction
to
Spanish
meets
6:30-8:30
p.m.
each
Tuesday
for 6
weeks
starting
June
22.
Cost
is $60
for
members/$65
for
non-members
plus
cost
of
resource.
Call
for
information
or
registration
479-968-2452
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Volume
2 Issue 1