Who would have thought that you could find a great vineyard and winery in Indiana? We're known for corn and soybeans, not grapes and wine. And yet nestled into the farmland of Southeastern Indiana you will find the delightful Huber's Orchard, Winery and Vineyards. It doesn't look like much from the outside, but once I was inside it didn't feel any different than the wineries that I visited when I took a wine bus tour in California several years ago.
The Farm and Winery
Huber's has been family owned and operated in Starlight, Indiana, since 1843. Over time it has changed from its original farming and dairy operation to a produce farming business and vineyard. The first wine was produced in 1978 (strawberry) and grapes were planted in 1979. I was surprised to learn that the grapes Huber's uses in its winery are grown in Indiana. I had always assumed that Indiana wineries imported their grapes because I had never seen mass grape vines in the state.
When you visit the property, you will find that it is massive and there is a lot for the family to do. We took our kids and met up with my husband's parents. We ate lunch in the counter service restaurant, The Starlight Cafe, and then visited the Farm Market and the Ice Cream and Cheese Shop. The restaurant serves great sandwiches and salads along with freshly made seasonal sangria. My kids loved the bakery in the Farm Market! It was too hot to pick any of our own produce on the farm, so we settled for peaches and blackberries from the market.
Wine and Wine Club
After our kids left with their grandparents, we visited the Tasting Loft. Next time I will know that we need to make plans to take the Daily Wine Tour to be able to see the behind-the-scenes facilities. We did the “Five S's of Wine Tasting,” which was $8 a person and included 8 different wines of our choice. I went mainly with dry whites and reds while my husband tasted the sweet wines. We knew that we needed to come together on a couple of wines and ended up settling on a red that would go well with steak (Generations), a semi-dry white (Vignoles) and a sparkling sweet wine for sipping by the pool (Razzy Apple).
Huber's does offer a Wine Club that is $30 to join (one time lifetime membership fee) and then you choose either Sweet Variety, Dry Variety, or Mixed Variety. The first two are 2-3 bottles a quarter and the Mixed is 4-6 bottles a quarter. Judging by the prices, the cost per bottle would be around $20-40 depending on the quarter. You can pick up the wine or have it delivered via UPS for an additional charge. It includes other perks that you can use at the Winery including free tastings and discounts on merchandise. I did not join the club at this time because I recently joined the Cellars Sweet Wine Club and thought it was too similar to the Huber's Sweet Variety club, the one I was considering. That will not keep me from coming back to visit again soon though!
If you have the chance to make the trip, Huber's Winery may be out of the way but is well worth visiting. It combines Midwest farming with upscale wine and class. Make a family afternoon of it or check out all of their Wine Tour Packages, including its part in The Indiana Uplands Wine Trail.
Huber's Orchard, Winery & Vineyards
19816 Huber Road
Starlight, IN 47106
812-923-9813 Farm Market
812-923-9463 Winery
