22nd Annual Grand River Valley Ice Wine Festival
Featuring Daily Ice Wine Tastings and Festival Events on Saturdays
Madison, Ohio (March, 2025) It’s Ice Wine Festival time in the Grand River Valley Wine Region. The participating wineries are excited to start the celebration that runs the entire month of March. True ice wine can only be made when the grapes are left on the vines at the end of the traditional harvest season awaiting Mother Nature’s shift of seasons from fall to winter. Once the grapes are truly frozen, with temperatures below 17 degrees, the grapes are picked and pressed immediately, before they have a chance to thaw.
The festival includes six wineries that will be sampling their ice wines and 1 distillery that will feature an ice wine cocktail. Many of the participating wineries have expanded their drink lists to include specialty cocktails for the festival as well. “It’s important to keep evolving as a festival,” states Cindy Lindberg, owner of Grand River Cellars Winery & Restaurant and festival coordinator. “Bringing in new vendors and activities is important to keep the festival fresh. Grand River Cellars will be hosting a Polar Bear Scavenger Hunt on their property this year which will be a fun activity for festival attendees.”
In addition to new activities, wine makers have been working hard over the years to expand their ice wine making skills to include a broad range of ice wine options. “Twenty-two years ago, festival attendees could only taste Vidal Blanc Ice Wine,” states Nick Ferrante, wine maker of Ferrante Winery & Ristorante. “Now you can try habanero ice wine at Laurello’s, maple ice wine at Grand River Cellars, cherry bourbon ice wine at Debonne Vineyards, expresso ice wine at Cask 307 and our bourbon barrel aged ice wine that is now available at Ferrante Winery.”
The festival runs every day during the month of March. Ice Wine lovers can relax and slow down along the trail, knowing it does not have to be finished within 5 hours. Participating businesses include Debonné Vineyards, Grand River Cellars Winery & Restaurant, Laurello Vineyards, Cask 307 Winery, South River Vineyards, and Red Eagle Distillery. While the tasting is available daily from Noon-5, not all wineries are open 7 days a week so please check the websites for hours of operation. Several wineries also open at 11 am on Saturdays so be sure to check the www.wggrv.com website for details.
This year’s theme is Stay & Play! Many of the wineries host magnificent events throughout the month to encourage people to stay and play. Events include opera night, music bingo, cocktail class, Sunday brunches, and so much more. Many hotels offer overnight packages for the festival with reduced rates for the mid-week travelers.
The participating wineries and distillery are within a 10-minute drive of each other. Patrons begin at the business of their choice for this fun, progressive Ice Wine tasting throughout the Grand River Valley wine region. Each winery will provide a sample of their wines, a commemorative ice wine glass, and a complimentary appetizer. The cost is $10 per person at each winery. The coordinators encourage everyone to drink responsibly and have a designated driver ticket, for $5, which includes a non-alcoholic drink and an appetizer. For more information about the Ice Wine Trail go to www.wggrv.com.