Charleville Vineyard

Visited here on a weekend during the Midwest heat wave of 2012. This place is way off the beaten path, over a mile of gravel roads and driveways from highway WW in rural Missouri. Based on the location and small brewing system, I’m surprised how much Charleville beer we see up in STL. Kudos to these guys. Anyway, the log cabin-style building sits up on a hill surrounded by woods and rolling hills. So scenic. A long bar makes up the right side, with the brewing system behind it. A wine tasting booth is in the far right corner, with a few tables on the left and a nice big porch outside that overlooks the hills. There were probably 8-10 beers on tap, with a few more in bottles (Barleywine and Bourbon Barrel Hairy Cow) and regular Hairy Cow on the beer engine. I had the brewery-only (for now) Pilsner and the Hairy Cow. The place was really well-staffed, with 4-5 friendly people behind the bar at any time. There were a couple pouring wine. Probably 10 different Charleville beers were on sale in the cooler along with a couple cheeses and meats, with a chip and salsa display next to it. Prices were great; bottles consistent with the modest prices you find at STL retailers; tap prices were good, too. Great place to visit if you can make it out here.

Visited on a January 2012 afternoon, pretty good crowd there. Met the owner, Joel, was very friendly and talked with us for quite a long time. Gave us the history of how it all started to where they are today. A little out of the way, but well worth the trek up the hillside. We were able to vote on the next possible beer they will mass produce down the road. Definitely worth the trip, since you can visit two breweries not that far from one another.

First the address of this place is St. Genevieve but its really about 14 miles outside the town on a 2 lane country road the last mile of which is gravel so a DD is a must. Once you get there though its quite a lovely place. Perched on a hill with epic scenery of the rolling MO hills. The have about 6 of their own beers on tap for $4.50 a pint plus a deposit on the glass. All of the beers are decent to excellent and some are in bottles to take home. Bring a picinic grab a beer and sit on the patio and stare at nature for a while. Sounds good to me.

Stopped here twice over the weekend because their Barley Wine was amazing. This is a winery that also brews some very nice beers. Most of them are available in bottle but some of them, such as that barley wine, are only available at Charleville. Only their beers seemed to be available. This is an absolutely piece of property that also offers a bed and breakfast. They are primarily a winery and grow their own grapes. Interestingly, they are also growing some of their hops. Cascade and Magnum are being grown onsite. A musician was playing on their outdoor patio area. A wonderful hilltop location and a barley wine that made this trip more than worth it.

Visited Saturday, October 3, 2009 Small winery/brewery off the beaten path in amongst the beautiful rolling hills of Ste. Genevieve County, Missouri. There are at least five other wineries within a 15-minute drive of this place, but only one other brewery (Crown Valley Brewery). These folks are mannerly and welcoming, you may bring your own food and such. Wine and beer tastings are complimentary, with a limit. And in small glasses, not plastic. For pint servings all I saw were pint/shaker glasses, which was okay. Did not drink wine, only the beers. All are average to above average for the style. Food selection relegated to mostly snack offerings. Would definitely recommend this place over Crown Valley. Crown Valley brewery wanted to charge for tastings out of PLASTIC cups. Charleville is the small guy around, off the main road, but beautiful setting without the limos and tour buses. Definitely recommend. About 1 1/2 hours from St. Louis.