Lambs And Vines Winery

Hours: Year Round

About

"Wouldn't it be fun to try making our own?", was probably said for the first time while we sipped wine in a tasting room. An intriguing idea, soon forgotten. But it resurfaced, again and again. Talk centered around what type of grapes we'd grow. We puzzled at why a wider variety of grapes were not grown in Missouri. Since we enjoyed European wines, maybe we should try growing European grapes?

In 2005 we planted a small "experimental" vineyard, while learning the basics of wine-making using boxed kits in our basement. Our son started college, with the goal of learning all he could about vineyard management and wine-making.

Since we'd always gardened without herbicides or pesticides, we soon began researching organic weed control for vineyards. Stumbling on an obscure article about Babydoll Southdown sheep, began a whole new dimension to our adventure. At that time, there was only one vineyard using them, and they were quite rare! But learning about the little sheep inspired us to believe they could be the first step toward having a truly organic vineyard in Missouri. After a frustrating search, we finally located some for sale in another state, and brought home our first little flock. It didn't take long for us to fall in love with our woolly little helpers. Although the vines were too immature for them yet, the sheep practiced their mowing and pruning skills everywhere we put them.