PARIS -- A winery equipped with a museum, a chapel and a belfry would be a novelty almost anywhere. That's more so the case in Arkansas, where the making of wine is something of a peripheral enterprise.
In the rolling landscape of Northwest Arkansas a little west of Paris, one of Logan County's two county seats, Cowie Wine Cellars & Vineyards offers more than merely tasting and/or buying its vintages after viewing the production process. (There is tasting, to be sure, free of charge for sampling up to four wines.)
Cowie's Arkansas Historic Wine Museum is a labor of love by owner Robert G. Cowie, who first made wine as a teenager a half-century ago. Dedicated in 1995, it is promoted as "the only wine museum in the United States dedicated to preserving the wine history of a complete state."
California or any number of other states might seem a more likely venue than Arkansas for a museum devoted to the glories of the grape. There are only a half-dozen Natural State wineries today, several of them around Altus, 15 miles north of Paris.
But, as is pointed out at Cowie's museum, Arkansas had 137 federally bonded wineries in the 1930s after Prohibition ended. Bottles from some of those vanished brands are among the wide-ranging exhibits dating back to the arrival of German-Swiss and Italian immigrants in the late 19th century. Earlier than that, wild grapes were pressed into liquid service by pioneer settlers.
Impressive for their bulk are several fermentation tanks, the largest one with a capacity of 1,920 gallons. Among the barrels is an antique specimen handmade in France and exhibited at the 1904 World's Fair in St. Louis (aka the Louisiana Purchase Exposition).
The museum's jolliest items are three stacked rows of barrels with their ends painted in scenes and slogans praising wine. A biblical verse from the New Testament book of Timothy conveys a snippet of advice from St. Paul: "Use a little wine for thy stomach's sake."
Renowned 19th-century chemist Louis Pasteur is quoted touting wine as "the most healthful and hygienic of beverages." A sharp-tongued rhyme, posted without attribution, asserts: "He who does not love wine, women and song, Remains a fool his whole life long."
The Cowie family's Roman Catholic heritage is reflected in the Chapel of St. Ann of the Bells, built in 2008 near the museum. Its interior is graced by handsome wooden choir stalls, along with a bell molded in the 17th century. In the belfry above the entrance hang a dozen more bells.
It seems that Robert Cowie has developed a yen for bells, particularly those that hung in churches. Behind the museum stands a century-old bell taken from a church in St. Louis. Guests are invited to ring this monster bell, which takes enough muscle power that it's best tackled before too much wine has been tasted.
There'll be a lot of bell ringing at Cowie from 1-4 p.m. Saturday as the winery hosts its annual Wine Fest and Arkansas Championship Grape Stomp. Featured will be the barefoot crushing of grapes, the blessing of the new wine and presentation of the Cowie International Amateur Wine Competition winners. Lubricating the fun will be tastings from the winery, whose most favored varieties tend to the sweet side.
Cowie Wine Cellars & Vineyards, 101 N. Carbon City Road, west of Paris off Arkansas 22, is open 10 a.m.-6 p.m. Wednesday-Friday and 10 a.m.-5 p.m. Saturday. Museum admission is $3. Admission to the chapel and tasting the wines is free. Call (479) 963-3990 or visit cowiewinecellars.com.
A best bet for lunch in Paris is the Grapevine Restaurant, 105 E. Walnut St., with a wide-ranging menu and high marks from contributors to TripAdvisor.com. Call (479) 963-2413 or visit thegrapevinerestaurant.com.
Weekend on 09/11/2014