History of Arkansas Wine Country

Grapes were first grown commercially in Arkansas by a colony of German-Swiss immigrants who settled at Altus (Franklin County) in the 1870s. These early settlers soon recognized that this region in the foothills of the Ozark Mountains had the potential for wine grape production. The Boston Mountains to the north provided a barrier to the winter cold, and the elevation of the small, flat-top mountains provided the necessary protection from spring frost. The soil of the region was well-suited to grape production.

Early winemakers found a ready market for their product among the immigrant railroad workers and coal miners who were accustomed to enjoying wine with their meals. Some of the early winemakers in the area were Wiederkehr, Post and  Sax. 

A group of 100 families of Italian immigrants settled in the southeastern corner of the state near Sunnyside (Chicot County) in 1895. The year after their arrival, a malaria epidemic spread through the new colony killing over 100 people. Because the soils and climate of the flat, swampy terrain of southeast Arkansas were very different from their Italian homes in the mountainous climate of the Alps and Apennines, the immigrants were forced to grow crops they knew very little about, and this, coupled with the outbreaks of disease, made life very difficult for these settlers.   

A Catholic priest, Father Bandini of New York, heard of the plight of these Italian immigrants. He traveled to Sunnyside and convinced many of the settlers to move to land he arranged to purchase in northwest Arkansas (Washington County). In 1898, the town of Tontitown was established. Although the Tontitown settlers first planned to grow a variety of fruits and berries, they soon found that Concord grapes as well as hardy wine grapes thrived in this area and produced excellent quality juice. Early wineries were established in the Tontitown area, but none of these are operating today. However, wine grapes are still produced in northwest Arkansas and shipped to wineries in other areas.  

During the Prohibition era, many of the wine grapevines were grafted  to table grape cultivars. With the repeal of Prohibition, wine production resumed and at one time there were over 100 wineries in the state. Today, there are 7 commercial wineries in Arkansas.  Two of these wineries, Wiederkehr Wine Cellars Inc. and Post Familie Vineyard in the Altus area are in the top 100 wineries in the United States in terms of gallons of wine and juice produced annually.