The 9th Annual Clinton Wine Stroll kicks off Saturday, Oct. 14, with local stores around the Clinton Square providing venues to sample vintages from wineries around the state.
New this year is Luna Umbra, a Butler winery that originated when a group of friends were enjoying a bottle of Traminette under a full moon, according to owner Joanne Godfrey. Joanne’s business partner, winemaker John Nelson, will also be at the Clinton Wine Stroll. Joanne said she hasn’t chosen what wines they’ll bring.
“We will have slushies,” she said.
John makes a Norton from Missouri’s native grape, a Chambourcin, also a red wine, plus Luna Umbra’s signature wines, Full Moon Red, Ruby Red and Super Pink Moon. Joanne and John wiill be offering samples at the Clinton Daily News and T-Shirt Factory office, 104 S. Main, on the east side of the Clinton Square.
Joanne describes the Luna Umbra tasting and sales room in Butler as “rustic urban.” It’s located in an historic building on the southeast corner of the Butler Square, at 1 W. Dakota Street, and is open on Fridays, noon to 8 p.m., and the third Thursday of the month from 5 p.m. to 8 p.m.
Returning for the third year to the Clinton Wine Stroll is Headquarters Winery and Mercantile in Harrisonville, which will be serving samples at Cummings Men’s Wear, 111 W. Franklin. The winery is owned by Sonja Griffith-Davis and Dan Davis, a Belton police officer, who met in 2015 at a memorial for two Kansas City firefighters who died in an arson fire.
“After Dan and I met and connected over the Fallen Heroes Motorcycle Ride, we fell in love, and decided we want to create a place that would honor our first responders and military,” Sonja said.
Dan and Sonja started making small batches of wine in 2017 in a wine bar in Lee’s Summit, she said. They married in 2018. In 2021 they lost their lease in Lee’s Summit, and the next year, moved their winery to 100 Pearl St., a 130-year-old building on the town square in Harrisonville.
The current building has 9,000 square feet of space and houses 54 vendors on the first floor, Sonja said, including cheeses from Osceola Cheese and meats from Kurzweil’s. They use the underground climate of the lower level to produce 18 varieties of wine, sourcing grapes from all over the world, she said. They make everything from rieslings and zinfandels to Argentine malbec and merlot. Their current seasonal is Pomegranate Pinot Noir.
They are bringing six wines to the Clinton Wine Stroll to select from.
“We will also be bringing our Salted Caramel Sangria that is a limited release,” Sonja said.
More than a dozen vintners, mostly from smaller craft wineries, are expected to showcase their wares at the Clinton Wine Stroll, which is organized by Clinton Main Street. Returning from last year are St. James and Meramec wineries in St. James, Linwedel in Branson, and Baltimore Bend Vineyards from Waverly, a town on the Missouri River near Higginsville.
Public House Brewing from Rolla and DogMaster Distillery in Columbia will add some variety of spirits to the mix. Also returning are Giggling Grapes and Summit Lake wineries from the Jefferson City area, and DeLaney Vineyards in Nevada.
Locally, AI Bottling in Clinton will be offering samples of their CRAVE ready-to-drink cocktails, and Red Fox will be pouring samples of vintages made at their winery near Urich. Primitive Old Crow and Winery will have their beer bus parked on the Square, Amanda said, and eMorBe Emporium, 102 N. Main, will have wine slushies for sale.
Primitive Olde Crow and Winery is also having an after-stroll party from 5 p.m. to 7 pm. at their property just east of Clinton, off Hwy. 7 S. at 32 SE Hwy. AA. Olde Crow has an event barn, Mercantile and brick-oven pizza house.
One of the last strolls of the season in the area, the Clinton Wine Stroll starts at 2 p.m. and goes until 5 p.m. Registration is on the first floor hall of the Clinton Elks Lodge, 115 W. Franklin. Each participant receives a glass and a map of stores around the square hosting wineries.
All the V.I.P. tickets have been sold, according to Amanda Johnson, Main Street director, which entitle holders to start making the rounds an hour earlier.
Regular tickets are $20 in advance, either online or in person at the Clinton Chamber of Commerce, 200 S. Main. Tickets are $25 at the door on the day of the event.
Sonja Griffith-Davis said her team at Headquarters Winery and Mercantile go to eight to ten offsite events a year, and that Clinton is one of their favorites.
“They know how to put on a very successful event that is widely popular with the community,” she said of Main Street.
For more information, go to the Clinton Wine Stroll Facebook.
