Fall tour: Kreutz Creek Winery

I tracked down owner Carole Kirkpatrick mid-week at the Kreutz Creek Winery in West Grove, Pa., doing any number of tasks now that harvest has come to a close. Calling it a really good year, Kirkpatrick said the only problem of the next few weeks it trying to do it all: pressing grapes, racking, and then bottling. Oh, and there’s those holidays beating a path for the door that will keep Carol and husband Jim plenty occupied.

Their winery is open 11 a.m. to 6 p.m. on Saturdays and Sundays, plus they have a Bring Your Own Food tasting room at 44 E. Gay St. in West Chester that’s open 11 a.m. to 8 p.m. Tuesdays thought Thursdays and Fridays and Saturdays from 1 a.m. to 9 p.m. They offer music from 6 to 9 p.m. on Friday and Saturday nights.

While they sell a variety of reds and whites, Carole said one of the pleasant surprises has been the sale of the port wine. “I’ll tell you what, we cannot keep that on the shelf,” she said. “It keeps going, going, going, so we’re really happy with that.”

Jim works full time, leaving evenings and weekends to get to the many chores that await at the winery. That’s the primary reason why, as Carole explained, “We don’t bottle 3,000 cases [of something] at a time. We bottle in smaller lots, and that’s why we can’t keep it on the shelf. He’ll get 50 or 60 cases done, and another month or so later he’ll need another 60 cases.”

Called a dessert wine on their Web site, it’s described as a liquid with a cherry flavor complemented by dark chocolate. It sells for $14.99.

“There are some folks who really think of it as a fireplace wine,” she said, but we sold it all summer long. We’ve had it out for about a year and a half, maybe not quite that long. It’s just been very popular.”