Madrid, IA

Miles to the Co-op: 17.8

In 1999  John and Diane Larson planted the first acre of Frontenac and Marechal Foch grapes on a hillside their Swedish ancestors had purchased four centuries prior. Each year since, they have planted an additional acre of a new variety of grape. John’s sister, Linda Larson Melin, moved back to Iowa in 2004 and they started selling the wines in 2005.

The Snus Hill Winery name is reflective of the family’s Swedish heritage and their love of cats. Snus is the name of the Larson family’s affectionate and beguiling tobacco brown Burmese cat. The cat got his name from an old Swedish chewing tobacco (Snus). The white cat on the labels was chosen to represent the family’s platinum Burmese cats.

Visit their website or Facebook profile. We featured Snus Hill Winery in our August 2011 Field Journal.