Iowa

The Hawkeye State

Sometimes referred to as the “Food Capital of the World” for it’s abundant farms and location in the heart of the heartland, Iowa has a long and rich history with wine.

Originally part of New France, the land now known as Iowa became “American” with the Louisiana purchase.  Pioneer settlers found native grapes growing throughout the state, particularly in the coastal valleys along the Mississippi River.  The state’s first commercial winery opened in 1857, and wine production continued to flourish with Iowa being the sixth largest wine-producing state in the US in 1919.  Like every other state, that all changed in 1920 with the advent of Prohibition.

And, as in most other states, it took another 50 years after Prohibition’s repeal for the commerical wine industry to take hold again.  Once resurrected, though, the wine culture boomed; in 1999 Iowa could claim only two wineries and five vineyards in the entire state.  10 years later, there are 75 state-licensed wineries (62 are open) and five distinct wine trails.

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