get a wine and cheese sampler and head out to the bier garten in the back. nice place to just get away. a long time favorite.
It was my first time to Put-In-Bay (my wife has been here many times). We stopped at this winery with our little dog ( a dachshund which is very well behaved) and was on a leash. When we walked in to what appeared to be a very large, somewhat empty room, an older man sitting on a stool, without greeting us, in a very unfriendly and rude voice said that no dogs can be here because they had a food permit. There is a way to talk to people, and a way to talk to people! I worked with the public for 36 years and I would never talk to a customer in this tone of voice! We understand about the food permit, but his attitude was totally unexcusable! We will never go there again and would not reccomend it to anyone!
It is $7 for a tour of the cave (geode?) and the winery plus one small plastic glass of wine. The cave is tinier than tiny and not really worth the trip down the stairs. The winery is also small and unless they are actually doing something at the time it is pretty boring. The only beneficial part of the tour was the description of each of their wines. It made it easier to go to the bar and choose which one to sample. For slightly under the price of the tour I could have had three samples of wine instead. That's the way I would go.
I've been going to Put-In-Bay every summer for the past 10 years, and the Winery is always a fun time. We'll go there on Saturday from noon until about 5pm. make sure you get a picnic table out back, that's where all the fun is. They have an outdoor service counter where you can buy all the wine, cheese, and crackers you want. The perfect place to spend a Saturday with a group of your friends. Very laid-back and friendly atmosphere. If you're there with your significant other or family, I would probably get a table inside the building. If you sit at a table out back during certain times (Friday or Saturday afternoons), your kid might see boobs. Just warning you.
Heineman Winery has been a favorite of mine for many How many wineries have you seen with 100 golf carts in the parking lot? It is a dead giveaway that something is quite different about Heineman's. I'll admit that the place hasn't changed much since I first went there 3 decades ago but once you have been there for many years the place brings back old memories kind of like an old friend.Neither my wife or I are really wine drinkers though we have enjoyed some sweet white wines over time, and if you would enjoy a quality sweet white wine you must try Heineman's Niagara Concord grape white wine, which is probably one of our 3 favorite white wines.I will agree with another recent reviewer and say that their new guest plastic wine cups are small and a step down from the past, but even so even though it rained while we were there, we had a lot of fun hiding under a tree sitting on a picnic table out in their wine garden out back in the pouring rain too.I believe that Heineman's offers about a dozen wines plus champagne plus snack service, plus thll.
I absolutely love the atmosphere inside at the wine bar and the Iced dinner wine. However, the tour was a waste of time. There were too many people and the guide did nothing to stop people pushing others out of the way. The Crystal Cave was horrible, again, the staff packed too many people in and if you're claustraphobic (or not feeling great) it's a bad dea. Also, the person who took our tickets saw I had an open bottle in my hand and didn't bother to say anything until the entire pack of us were down in the cave to tell me I'd have to take it back upstairs.
This place is an oroginal on the island. My husband's grandpa did the landscaping for the place in the 50s and we stop every year to see the winery and taste some local wine. They have locally grown Niagara grape wine and many other local varietals. $2 for a 4-5 ounce pour or a bottle to share in the back courtyard or the main winery. They have cheese plates available. Oh, and they do tours.It is a must on the island!
Every time we go to Put-In-Bay we stop at Heineman's Winery. They offer samplings or whole bottles, and we always get the cheese place to go with it. Nothing fancy at all, but just very relaxing. Nice area out back with tables and chairs both covered and out in the sun...whichever you like. Sit around with your friends and catch up over some wine and cheese in a relaxed island atmosphere. Does not get any better than that. We did see some families there in the afternoon but since I have not taken kids there I do not know what they offer for them or what their rules are for kids in the evening.
This is a good place to take a brief rest in a busy day on the island. Yes, the decor hasn't changed in many many years & there is no "free" wine tasting (Ohio law) but it would be nice to get more for your $2 than a tiny plastic cup. We have had the wine before so we decided just to get a bottle of wine (Pink Catawba $10) & split it between the 4 of us. We took it out to the garden because there was a group of 12-15 drunks that according to the staff had been there all day & they were incrediably loud. The wine was good & it was nice just sitting in the garden. I would say this isn't the nicest winery with the best wine I have ever had but it was worth the stop & an average glass or two of wine.
I should preface by saying that I enjoy winery tours and have visited wineries throughout the United States. The winery tour was rushed and the tour guide didn't seem to want to be there. The cave 'tour' was a joke. You go down a set of steps, look at the geode, and then walk back up. Combined both tours took 15 minutes. They give you a 'glass' of wine with it. Its a small plastic cup. I wasn't impressed with the wine or the attitudes. the most laughable thing was the cheese plate. It was cubes of cheese with packs of crackers- like you get with soup- piled on a paper plate.The only upside is that its cheap.