Tabor Home Vineyards and Winery

Open: Year-Round

Our History:

Tabor Home is a family owned estate winery located in Jackson County Iowa near Baldwin. Vineyards and winery are located on our family's 1860's farmstead. Dr. Paul Tabor, winemaker and manager, is the fifth generation Tabor to make his livelihood here. Family members and neighbors refer to our farmstead as the "Home Place", and the name Tabor Home was chosen to highlight this historical perspective. Tabor Home Vineyards and Winery was bonded in 1996 and we are the oldest estate winery (a winery with its own vineyards) in Iowa.

Tabor Home is located 40 miles South of Dubuque, 50 miles North of the Quad cities, 60 miles East of Cedar Rapids, and 170 miles West of Chicago. The winery is 1 mile North and 1 mile West of Baldwin. This area is in the corner of the geological area known as the Driftless area. During the last Ice Age the glaciers missed this region and our landscape that includes deep river valleys surrounded by limestone bluffs and the limestone outcroppings are common features of the Driftless area.

Vineyards and Winery:

Our 6-acre vineyards were planted in 1989. Red varieties in production are Marechal Foch, St. Croix and Catawba and Frontenac. La Crosse is our primary white grape with some Seyval Blanc in production. Newer plantings of La Crescent, Frontenac Gris, and Marquette varieties will begin to produce in 2009. We continually evaluate varieties from around the world for use in Iowa; Tabor Home is the only commercial vineyard in Iowa to participate in a Midwest multi-state long-term viticulture research program to evaluate 32 newly released wine cultivars for use in the upper Midwest. This research program is directed by the Iowa State University Horticulture Department. The harvest from our vineyards produces 3000 gallons of wine or about 25% of our production. Tabor Home has been a leader in helping new wine grape growers in the area. Beginning in 1996 we have held dozens of field seminars for prospective and new wine grape growers.

The winery was built in 1996 and expanded in 2001. The present annual production is about 4800 cases of wine. The present facility has the capacity to produce 12,000 cases. The tasting room and unique wine gift shop overlook vineyards, the Civil War era barn and miles of Iowa's Grant Wood countryside. For 12 years Tabor Home has held annual festivals: our Annual Anniversary Festival, Iowa Nouveau Festival and Holiday Open House. For 4 years Tabor Home has presented the acclaimed "Music in the Vineyards" summer series featuring singer-songwriters. Tabor Home hosts private special events from retreats to weddings to family reunions on the winery's veranda and festival grounds next to the vineyards.

The Wines:

Tabor Home emphasizes production of premium table wines from our vineyards and numerous small vineyards that will establish a distinguished regional identity for Iowa wines. We produce 15 different wines - the majority is produced using Iowa grapes. Our winery production and sales increase annually and each year Tabor Home wines win gold medals and "Best of Class" international wine competition awards. Since 1999 Tabor Home has won more than 200 awards in international wine competitions including more than 40 Gold medals and Best-of-Class awards. Tabor Home markets our wines at retail here at the winery, at wholesale to more than 150 retailers in the State and through our online store.