MIDWAY, Ky. (LEX 18) — As part of our Spotlight on Midway series, we're heading to Equus Run Vineyards in Woodford County to get a tour from the woman who started it all.
It all started with Cynthia Bohn's love of the farm.
"It takes a lot of what I call manual labor and love of labor," said Bohn. "I'm a Kentucky farm girl, and I knew when I was going to retire, I wanted to go back to the farm. So, voila. I bought a farm."
She says she basically took an old tobacco and cattle farm and transformed it into a winery by starting Equus Run Vineyards in 1998.
What's now growing into a spacious vineyard, winery, event space, and more certainly didn't happen overnight.
"When we started this, we had such great community, family, and friends," she said.
Bohn, an electrical engineer by trade, had worked in Europe and California and fell in love with wine. The product and the people.
"The industry is so benevolent," she said. "It's one of camaraderie. Winemakers help each other, and I love that."
It's almost time to shake off winter and start pruning the growth on the vines.
"This vine here will probably generate about 40 to 48 pounds of grapes if we do our job right in pruning," Bohn explains.
Equus Run harvests about 50 tons of grapes each year from their land. They also buy grapes from other growers.
"Everything becomes ripe all at once," according to Bohn. "So, those are really long days in the winery. And processing and crushing, and also filtering and clarification... that whole process just takes time."
They're making wines all year long. Equus Run also makes and bottles a series of wines from different fruits like blueberries, strawberries, and peaches. They also just opened up a brandy distillery on the property.
"We started distilling in 2018, and now the baby's being born," she says.
It all started with a vision, some land, and the growing and making of five wines... which they still produce.
"As long as I enjoy this, I'm good to go a few more years, I'm thinking," said Bohn. "When people come here they're happy, and when they leave, they're more happy."
A rewarding part of the love of the labor and the wine.
Equus Run Vineyards is also an event venue. They have a large outdoor amphitheater on the property and four stages, which is perfect for hosting live performances.
The founder tells us it's a family-friendly place where people can enjoy the space and the outdoors.
