Owl Creek Vineyard

Signage made finding this winery fairly easy. Unfortunately that’s the best thing I can say. When you walk in the door you must climb 2 flights of stairs to get to the tasting room. There were no signs directing patrons to the stairs, we simply followed the sound of voices. Even though this is a winery they were promoting their hard cider over the wine.
We purchased a bottle of wine and had to fight off fruit flies who eventually landed in the glasses.
There was only one bathroom and it was for men & women, so that made for twice as long wait.
We had the Concord wine which was listed as sweet but didn’t taste sweet at all. We also tried a flight of the hard ciders, none of which had any apple flavor.
Don’t think we will be going back.

The first thing you see when you drive up to this winery is the huge solar panels. I love this and the idea of this! There’s a gravel parking lot out front and the building isn’t very polished to look at. Some creative landscaping would be a good idea to improve the esthetics.
The upstairs tasting room is reminiscent of an enchanted treehouse. It’s cool, quaint and cosy but my boyfriend and I were ignored when we first walked in until we moved down to the middle of the bar. They were a little busy but even a nod or a wave to acknowledge us would have been nice.
We did a wine tasting first and the only one we liked was the Bald Knob, which was excellent. It’s literally my boyfriend’s favorite domestic wine now. Next, we tried a flight of the ciders and those were disappointing. We sat outside among the treetops and neat multiple level decks drinking them, but were more impressed with the free pistachios than the drinks. Also, the (unisex, single) bathroom was tiny and there were paper towels all over the floor.
Before we left, we bought a couple of t-​shirts, which were cute and super soft. However, there were limited sizes and options. I would like to give this place more stars but they need to improve the wines, the ciders and the esthetics first.

Great food but the kitchen closes too early! Fantastic wine, great atmosphere, awesome staff. Beautiful sitting area outside. The inside is pretty small, and the bathroom is tiny– but I love this place!

Ooooooooh yeah! Great wines and fantastic ciders! This was my first stop in the area, and I’m glad I stocked up (since a few others were just OK and didn’t buy as much there). Fantastic reds, decent whites, and holy moly their ciders are awesome. They had a pumpkin cider (I bought the last bomber, sorry folks!), as well as a hopped-​up cider (called Hopped Up, not just a clever name…). Plus a few others.
Food is pretty good too! Great people behind the bar also. It wasn’t packed, probably because it’s December and not a busy time of year for them. That made it even better since we got to BS with the server for a while and talk booze.

Owl Creek was one of my favorite vineyards from my tour of the Shawnee Wine Trail over the weekend. They’re in a very nice little location. Some of the other wineries don’t do much with their tasting rooms but Owl Creek proves that even within a very small space you can create a warm and inviting atmosphere that fully takes advantage of the beautiful views. The tasting room is small and comfortable. From the outside you might not think it’s worth a stop but trust me it is. Just go in!
The staff were very helpful. What I mean is the bearded guy who poured our flight – don’t really know the proper term and ‘bartender’ just doesn’t sound right – was very helpful. He made great suggestions and helped us find a great wine to take home. They also have great hard cider and I’m not much for cider.
It’s hard to say if this place is my absolute favorite on the trail but it’s definitely top three. The next time I’m on the wine trail I’ll definitely come back.

Wines are good by S Illinois standards, especially the red Owl Creek Reserve. Food is OK. Atmosphere is very good and entertainment is good. We enjoy coming there.

The sangria is gross. It tasted like welches grape juice. The chardonowl was a little funky. The veggie focaccia and beef sandwich were good. The cider was pretty good too.

My boyfriend and I just loved this place! We were staying at a B&B up the road for a family reunion and decided to sneak away for wine and peach cobbler. It’s fun & unique building. The staff was nice & friendly. Luckily we visited on a day they had peach cobbler as special of the day. We had delicious wine to share which went perfect with the cobbler. I love the open seating on the patio with different levels. There was a blues type player performing which was great. I totally love the vibe at this place. I highly doubt i’ll ever be around this part of the country again, but if I ever do this is a winery I’d be sure to visit again!

Amazing boutique winery along the Shawnee Trail — definitely one of my favorites to visit! We did the tasting (which came with a big red style glass) and we were all about the hard ciders! Not too sweet, which can be a ciders downfall… we bought quite a few bottles to go. Lovely back porch within the trees.
We had eaten at a winery just before (Blue Sky, meh) but I sincerely wished that we had waited for this place and their flat bread. It looked and smelled amazing.
A must hit-​up stop along the winery trail.

Seems like a pretty cool place, but seemed a little pricey. $ 5 for the tasting and you keep the glass, but I don’t need any more glasses and at least at a few of the other local wineries, tasting is free. (The tasting here includes «2 – 3 sips of your choice of five of the wines.»). In addition to the glass of wine we each got (ok, but nothing to inspire purchasing a bottle), we dropped $ 9 on the Brie apricot appetizer, which was really pretty skimpy for the price. Seems they are going for a very posh atmosphere, so I was surprised their sign said they were closing at 6 pm on a Saturday. Service was fine, restrooms were clean, building and setting were pretty.

The chardonel is really good and could stand up to some California wines. Definitely worth a try!
Their food is all made from scratch, so it takes more than two minutes to prepare, but it’s totally worth the wait. I would love to come back and sit out on the back patio while listening to a band perform on the flatbed of that old truck.

This vineyard is small, but the staff was pleasant. We stopped on our trail tour for a tasting. I loved the large heavy glasses they use for tastings as opposed to the usual tiny glasses most places have. I liked it so much I bought the tasting that included the glass. The wine was good, but unfortunately the one I wanted to purchase was just sold out to the couple before us, so we left empty handed. Worth a stop if you’re on the trail.

Love this place. The server was super friendly and the venue gave off a non-​pretentious vibe. You could tell the owners cared more about the wine then the venue, which is always a good sign. Owl Creek is definitely my favorite winery in Carbondale.

While some may think this establishment is lacking because of its small size; I completely disagree. It is quaint and the fact that it does not have walls of commercial crap I peddle is refreshing. The vineyard is supposed to be about the wine.

Owl Creek Vineyard is located on the Shawnee Wine Trail in beautiful Southern Illinois. There are no less than 10 wineries in the area. Given this fact, feel free to take a pass on Owl Creek.
I stopped in for a wine tasting. Their product was good but not great. The premises is small. There is a very small deck in the rear for outdoor seating. The owner, Brad, is pleasant.
However, I prefer the big picture. I want my wineries to offer food, wine, packaged goods, etc. I want to see a sprawling estate. Banquet facilities. Customers having a good time. You won’t find that here.