



Brimstone Hill Vineyard & Winery is
celebrating 29 years of operation. In the summer of 1980, Richard and
Valerie Eldridge started by selling two wines -- a 1979 Vin Rouge and a
1979 Vin Blanc -- next to the barrels in the newly constructed winery.
Now the Brimstone Hill label is
attached to more than 8 wines, which
include a sparkling wine made in the traditional "Methode Champenoise",
a Chardonnay, a Cabernet Franc, and a Riesling.
The vineyard, started in the spring of 1969, consisted of four acres
with only half in production. Today the vineyard has expanded to over 13
acres and the small winery building now houses a cozy tasting room
overlooking the vines, an office and a lab. An extra large pole barn was
built to accommodate much of the storage and the increased wine
production. In 2001 an extension was added to the barn. It nearly
doubled the storage capacity and gave us enough room for parties and
for groups up to 150 persons.
The Eldridges continue to be excited with the quality of the wines they
can produce in the area. "We are fundamentally interested in
producing quality wines with a French character at a reasonable price -
similar to the better products of the Loire Valley, Burgundy and
Champagne. In order to do this, our operation will remain small
and experimental in character.".