When people find out I grew up in Southern Illinois and that I like wine it is always shocking for them to learn that I had never been to a single winery on the Shawnee Wine Trail. To be honest, I was scared. After some of my experiences with Missouri wineries I suspected the wine probably wouldn't be very good. I finally decided to give Southern Illinois wine a try this past weekend so I packed up my car and away I went with one of my favorite drinking buddies. About a two and a half hour drive from St. Louis, Blue Sky is quite a bit off the highway but my GPS got me most of the way and then the signage was pretty good as well. The structure is quite impressive with a beautiful Tuscan architecture. When I walked inside I was a little taken aback by the tasting room. It was quite nice, rivaling some I have seen in California. The thing that shocked me the most about Blue Sky is that they actually grow most of the grapes that make their wines on property, & the wines are really pretty good. My friend & I tasted 5 wines each and I liked all of them. We had a Rose (nice-not too sweet, slightly dry), the Villard Blanc (citrusy and refreshing), a Montage (a drinkable red blend), a dry Norton (a classic American grape that makes a beautiful red wine), and our favorite the Cabernet Franc, a delicious, dry red wine bursting with flavors of berry and coffee. Since we stopped by on a beautiful early May Saturday afternoon they had live music so we sat outside where they have plenty of seating both on the patio and down the hillside. They also had this wonderful proprietary olive oil you could buy with a loaf of bread that was perfect for pairing with some cheddar cheese and a good bottle of wine. They have a menu containing sandwiches and pizzas and they also sell cheeses & sausages, waters, soda and some beer. The service was pretty decent and everyone seemed very friendly despite how busy everyone was. Blue Sky is a beautiful winery that I highly recommend you check out. read more

Blue Sky Vineyard - A good bottle of Cab Franc on a gorgeous day under a blue sky - Wineries Near Me - Makanda, Illinois

This is always our first stop on our BAG reunion/bff's Jasmine's pre-birthday celebration. The staff is great, the wine is delicious and the ambiance is magnificent. We did not order any food because we were full from breakfast. Wine tasting is so inexpensive. read more

My boyfriend and I took advantage of a deal at Blue Sky for "over night stay in Tuscany Romance Suite, Breakfast, Bottle of Wine, VIP tour of Wine Cellar, tasting given by wine maker and 10% off coupon to use for purchases during your stay. " We were extremely disappointed with our visit. We booked the trip in early December and stayed over MLK weekend. When we arrived there was one young man at the bar and another young lady working in the back of the house. There were about ten patrons attempting to have tastings at the bar. (I say attempting because the young man couldn't seem to keep track of who was drinking what and often would forget about other people at the bar.) My boyfriend and I decided instead of waiting twenty minutes between 1 oz pours of wine, we would just order a glass and some food and wait until he was less busy. The menu was limited and disappointing. After settling on the chicken pot pie and chicken salad, we were surprised when the food came out on paper plates after clearly being microwaved (side note - It also gave me food poisoning later that night). When we were finally able to check in (an hour after arriving), we realized they hadn't placed us in the Tuscany Suite as stated in the deal, but the smaller Blue Sky Suite. Other general complaints: We never received our tour of the Wine Cellar. We overheard staff mentioning on several occasions that they were hungover. A sign in the room says that breakfast will be delivered at 9am. We called down at 9:15 and a man told us the woman responsible for breakfast had just pulled into the parking lot and would bring us something once she got settled. After purchasing a bottle of wine, the bartender treated himself to a pour FROM MY BOTTLE ("We can't get this by the glass, so I have to wait for someone to buy a bottle.") Hopefully this is not representative of their service year round, but our experience was so disappointing, I won't be giving them another try. It's a shame, too, since several of my colleagues were waiting on my report from the trip so they could possibly book their own. . . needless to say, they won't be visiting Blue Sky either. read more

Best Winery in Southern Illinois. We enjoyed a bottle of their Cabernet Franc while sitting under an umbrella on a sunny afternoon! Did I mention that Blue Sky features live music every weekend? This is a great location for a reunion, family gathering, or just a nice relaxing afternoon. read more

Alto Vineyard gets my highest Shawnee Trail rating of 3. Blue Sky has such potential yet falls (far) below expectations. Such promise with the visual pleasure of the structure as you prepare for a wine tasting. Sadly, what invites you in ends up to be an empty shell. That gorgeous facade brings you into a cultural wasteland with amateurishly painted tables and harsh diner-style chairs and scatterbrained sommelier to add insult to injury. This establishment seems to have something other then wine on their mind $$$$$$$$ read more

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If I had only knew earlier this place was so beautiful I would've made a few or several trips out here during the summer! My younger sister who went to SIU always raved about this place. Typically, wine isn't my choice of booze, but like any good person when offered booze I do not decline. I finally made a visit here and it did not disappoint! The vineyard is just beautiful and so peaceful! We did a wine flight tasting ( a taste of 5 wines for 5 dollars) so we can experience a variety of wines. Quick FYI- if you return back the souvenir glass then your tastings are only 2 bucks! They've a wide variety of wines that would appeal to just about anybody. In addition, they also have a restaurant where you can order food while sipping on wine. I didn't get to try the food, but from what I saw it looked mighty delicious! The Sunday we came they had a musician outside and tables set up. This is definitely a place to come back to! read more

This is a fun place. A must stop on the Shawnee Trail. I don't konw that the wines are any better than anywhere else, but they have some really good sangria. The staff was really friendly, even though we didn't arrive until about 6:30 (they close at 7:30 on Saturday). The building and grounds are easily the nicest on the trail - they've put a lot of money into this place. It attracts a big young crowd on Saturdays. I would say this is a great place to meet women, as they outnumber men probably 2 to 1. So stop by, taste a couple of their wines. Be sure and taste the sangria, then have a glass or two and join the party! The only reason it's not 5 stars is because we don't like the wines. They are representative of the area, though, so it might be an acquired taste. We also don't care much for sweet wines. read more

My sister and I frequent Blue Sky Winery. Such a beautiful setting and well kept grounds. The time they take to answer your questions and the assistance in understanding what my tastes are :) We also stayed the night overnight and what lovely rooms with great character! Thank you for the "Wine Experience" and we will return!! Almost forgot.. love the hummus on your new menu! read more

Whenever I find myself in Southern Illinois I stop at one of the local wineries. My most recent visit was to the Blue Sky Vineyard. This place is fantastic. The girls working the counter were friendly and cute. They had a strong knowledge of their wines and were quick to recommend different varieties. Blue Sky is located on a sprawling estate. The wine is made on site and there are banquet facilities available. A small lake abuts the property as well. You could spend several hours there and have a wonderful time. When hitting the Shawnee Wine Trail, make sure to stop in. The quality is top notch. read more

It's my favorite stop along the Shawnee Wine Trail. Great place to visit in the summer or fall, where you can enjoy a glass of wine on their expansive lawn. Live music on weekends. Lots of varieties of wines to choose from. Great place to host a party, or a wedding. The service is friendly and the prices are reasonable. We tried two of the wines and ended up buying two bottles of them. read more

I recently visited the Shawnee Hills wine trail and this was our first stop. I was immediately impressed by the gorgeous grounds and main building. I could just have easily been in Napa. Except for the prices! A tasting only cost $1 plus a $2 deposit for your glass, which you get back once you turn it in. That includes 5 tastings, but the bartender was very lenient and said he didn't mind if we tried a few others. The traminette was delicious and about $13 a bottle. They have a beautiful patio plus tables scattered around the yard. There's also a waterfall with a ceremony spot for weddings. When we were outside they had live music. In addition to the wine, they have bread and oil, and a small selection of sandwiches. I didn't try any, but they looked pretty good. read more

Out of the 5 wineries that I visited in the area, this was my least favorite. The only wine I liked was their dessert Chambourcin wine, that was it. Nothing else was good, and I tried several others across the board. Surprisingly, it was the most happenin' winery of all of them. The building is cool and looks like it should be in Italy, and the grounds are very nice. If you're in the area, certainly stop here if you'd like, but I was far from impressed. read more

I had a wonderful experience at Blue Sky Vineyards for my bachelorette party. The grounds are beautiful. The sangria we had was delicious. There are plenty of seating areas around. The music played outdoors is great, too. The only reason for a dock in star is that it can be very busy. Obviously due to all of the positives listed above, that is not a shock. The bar can just become crowded and hard to order drinks at time. The deposits on some of the glassware can be a little steep, though. I will be back to Blue Sky! Can't wait for that day! read more

All you need to know...is that if you're ever in the Southern IL area...that u need to go! that's it lol...beautiful scenery, great wine, decent pricing and good snacks... just go you won't be disappointed.... read more

I really like this place. The vineyard has a charming personality. It has a small chateau situated on open, grassy grounds overlooking a lake. In the distance is a small rock fountain formation. Intricate bold art work is displayed throughout. A friend recommended this place for the Total Eclipse of the Sun 2017 and we weren't disappointed. The grounds were full of people, food, live music and just a great atmosphere. It's was NASA's point of longest duration of totality. I recently returned with my two girlfriends for a girl's night out at the vineyard. We stayed in the Blue Sky suite. It was quaint and cozy and although small, it is actually larger than it appears in their photos. Next time I would like to stay in the Tuscany Suite as it has a balcony that overlooks the lake. They provided a free wine tasting and a complimentary bottle of wine as part of our stay. My only complaint is that the food was not very good. They only had pizza and sandwiches on their menu. The sandwiches were very dry, plain and just not flavorful. It's a shame cuz this place could benefit from a good restaurant. The bread and dipping olive oil were decent though. Also, the whole place closes down at 6pm so if you are a guest here, that's that. No food, no wine, nada after 6ish. A fire pit by the lake would have been awesome, but no such luck. It would be nice to have a late night restaurant and wine bar. Just a few suggestions because we plan on coming back. All in all it's a cool place in the heart of Shawnee Forest. read more

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Girls behind the counter were great! Good sample menu and very clean! It was gloomy today but want to go back and enjoy the patio!

Had a great experience in Blue sky vineyard. The atmosphere was very good. Great wine, music and beautiful scenary ... read more

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My wife liked the dry red wine but we also ordered some food and it was not that great...$8 turkey sandwich with a piece of lunch meat and a few plain chips....Very slow service even though there were hardly any people in the place...Not very friendly service.... read more

Beautiful scenery and atmosphere. Great place to go on a Sunday afternoon or holiday. My friend and I went on Labor Day, 2013, and it was great. I am not a wine snob, and actually know/care very little about wine. Jamie is very nice and always makes us feel welcome. Is she single? :) This would be a great place to take a date. Seems it might be a requirement for men to wear a Harley shirt, but I am fresh out of those. Brad Young read more

I got to try 4 wines in my flight, I liked 2 of the 3 the server chose for me when I described what I liked, which I thought was good. I like that the semi-sweets were a little tart and had layers of flavor read more

As others have noted the service is lacking, especially when they get busy. The solution to that is to come at off-peak hours, and call ahead if you're a group. What's not lacking is the wines: I've spent months trying to find a similar Concord Grape Wine, and their bubbly isn't too bad either. The sangria, as has been commented on, is a great recipe and one that works well at home also. If you like wine for wine you'll enjoy your stop here. read more

My group of work people took a 2 hour bus trip to the wineries in this area - the first two treated us very well. The third -Star View not so great -due to having 17 people. So we stayed outside. We then went to Blue Sky where took our very large order for food and drinks (this is where we planned our dinner stop) and then asked how many people do you have? My boss said how many is allowed? She said 9 and he said we have double basically. So he asked if we should cancel our order and they said no. We sat outside in an area away from any other people and only one person went back in forth with our food and drinks and wore a mask. We were spoke to like criminals basically (I personally tried to help the situation with my boss and the workers were just very rude in general) "put your mask up" "we can't hear you" so my boss takes his mask down to repeat himself and all they say is "put your mask back up and above your nose" we were very disappointed because we looked so forward to this visit. A worker went out to our bus and confronted the driver about how many people we have. He is from Effingham area where that is not a rule they have or were made aware of on an websites or phone calls we made in advance to this trip. At this point we didn't feel welcome and decided to leave. They tried to charge us $500 dollars. We only received about half of our items. They tried to lie and say they didn't have enough bottles to pour the wine, seal it and let us take it home. When we asked for a refund instead they went inside and got the bottles and came out to fill them for us. They didn't want to give us an itemized receipt when we asked so instead them refunded us $200 because they could not show us why we were charged $500 originally. What a terrible experience - I will never go back and I know the 16 others I was with won't either. I would suggest sticking with Von Jacob and Alto Wineries if you make a trip!! read more

I want to love this place, but we keep having bad experiences. The service is absolutely awful. The wine tastings are not free. I can understand charging college kids that aren't probably going to buy anything. But, my family buys wine by the case. I've heard that Orlandini makes the wine for Blue Sky...so I'm sure it's delicious! read more

Blue Sky looks nice but there wine and customer service are week at best. My girlfriend and I had spent all day Friday going to the other vineyards so on Saturday we planned to spend our entire day and $$$ at Blue Sky. As we arrived we we planning our next visit with friends for october. After having some sangria and a snack we decided to try some wines. The young girl at the counter was rude and way out of line from the get go. I was so insulted and confused by her poor attitude that we choose to take our $$$$$ and spend it down the road! SKIP BLUE SKY IF YOU ENJOY BEING TREATED WITH RESPECT AND COURTSEY! read more

Very pretty winery along the Shawnee Hills Wine Trail. This is honestly some of the best sangria I have ever had! My biggest complaint here is that it is incredibly crowed! read more

This place was complete chaos. The food was pricey and nothing more than you would get at an average sandwich shop. There are no servers only runners and people manning the bar for tastings. Therefore you need to go to one desk to order and pay for food and to the bar to order a drink. I ordered a carafe of Sangria, $7.50 per the menu and was charged a $10 deposit for the glassware. Ridiculous. I'm so disappointed I spent our last evening in town here. read more

This place has to be the champion of the Shawnee Wine Trail. Make it your last stop. Enjoy dinner or a later afternoon snack. Don't cheap out, buy the tasting flight and marvel at the complexity and variety of wines they produce. None were a loser in my book The staff here was the best at answering my questions as to why certain grapes were grown or not grown in the area. First off soil, the Shawnee Wine Trail is a lot of limestone that adds neutrality to the soil and adds to the flavor of the grapes. The primary grapes grown like chambourcin are chose because they can survive the harsh winters and resist rust and powdery mildew in the hot humid summers better than the traditional cabernet and chards grown here on the West Coast. Bingo...I love learning about this wines and they were full of all sorts of knowledge. Big surprise grape here. Cabernet Franc. Terrific wine, modestly priced. Full fruit flavors with a hint of chocolate/tobacco and mild tannins. It paired beautifully with the fresh cheesecake with fudge sauce. I liked it so well I smuggled home a bottle to enjoy with a nice steak. read more

What a great venue. Much bigger than any of the other wineries/vineyards that we stopped at on this trip. Blue Sky did not disappoint. Good service, good wine, beautiful property. read more

This is a review that I tried to hold back from because Blue Sky has always been my 'GO-TO' vineyard when I visit Carbondale. During, homecoming weekend this year I looked forward to spending my time at Blue Sky because of pleasant experiences. I ordered 3 items of food while the other members in the party of 5 ordered food items such as hummus, artichoke dips, sandwiches and pizzas. A member of my party had ordered a pitcher of white sangria and so I decided to get some wine glasses. So I approached the counter and asked for glasses. I don't remember what the woman 'with the pink hair clip' name was. But, she gave me a perplexed look when I asked for wine glasses as I was asking her in a different language or she was expecting some other comment from me. The delayed reaction was not what I expected when JUST wanting to purchase some wine glasses. So my party of 5+ enjoyed our wine and sangria during the course of 30 minutes, 50 minutes and an hour until we realized that our food had not been received. At this point, we had lost our appetite and were frustrated. I approached the food counter to politely ask, "what was the status of the orders" and the gentleman gave me an excuse of "our kitchen is "arms length wide" and they have 4 ovens". Well, if that is the case, I am sure the hummus and spinach artichoke dip could have been handed out to hold over the customer and not let customers starve!! If they had known the situation why didn't they warn their customers about the lack of resources or split up the ticket! After an hour and a half of waiting I was not in the mood for any food! All in all, customer ALWAYS come first! And it should save you from not only giving a bad review here but I know I was not alone that day as far as service. As a suggestion, if you are not capable of achieving those orders to the customers needs do not leave a customer hanging in hopes of having exceptional service. I would much rather be told the situation in the front line as oppose to having to experience that! I hope this review changes the management styles and organizes the structure within the kitchen! Because as we all know bad news reaches 20 people faster than good news and I was in a party of 6. read more

Great place! Tasty wines and their sangria is amazing! My wife and I had our reception there and absolutely loved it. Beautiful area. We came during their "off season" so we didn't get to see the gapes in full and it was cold out, but it was still beautiful and fun read more

Staff is super friendly here and upbeat. Winery was within walking distance of our cabin so we popped by. Plenty of outdoor seating. Nice food menu also. My husband liked the wine. I had the nonalcoholic sangria and that was good too. read more

Great wine! TERRIBLE STAFF!!! Rude. Waited forever. Got shortchanged. No apology!!! "Jake" needs more training!

If you are looking for a great place to get married....keep looking! The scenery is beautiful but they are anything but helpful. My biggest complaint is about the vineyards "preferred vendors" It would be one thing if they had preferred vendors as a service to their clients and customers, but its another story when the vineyard gets kickbacks from these vendors for being referred. My caterer told me after the wedding that our bill was 20% higher just to cover the kickbacks! They certainly aren't concerned about convenience to their brides! read more

The view is beautiful and I enjoyed my glass of wine, but the place was very crowded. We decided before we got there that we would have lunch there. You have to wait in one line to order and pay for food, then get in line at the bar to order drinks. The staff in both lines were very friendly even though they were very busy. It took awhile to get our pizza, then there was no onion on either of our pizzas even though we had ordered it on both and paid for it on both as you pay for each topping. If they had run out you would think when they brought it to the table they would also bring a refund. I guess they just hoped no one would notice. We did. But I wasn't getting back in line for 15 minutes to get $1 back for each pizza and that's probably what they were counting on. I probably will go there again at some point but not to eat. read more

Three stare because the grounds are so impressive. This is a great spot for a date, and I wish I liked the place better. Though compared to the other wineries on the trail, I am not that impressed. A massive, detailed outdoor area, and a large indoor tasting and dining area. The place is always packed as well, so obviously other people love what they do. The service seem scattered and haphazard like. There is a fairly large menu compared to what is available at the other wineries, but like the wines I have not been that impressed. Some pizzas, sandwiches, plenty of appetizers. They have a full range of styles, but I like StarView's Riesling much better, and there are better ports made in the area as well. Really nothing is bad, but I like other wineries on the trail much better. read more

The most beautiful vineyard I've been to in Illinois. Though they were very busy with eclipse crowds, we still felt taken care of. The Papa Rosa wine, sangria, and bread and oil were delish. We will definitely return! read more

Beautiful winery, great wine, live music, great service, food. Best winery of the day. Great place to go for lunch and spend the day.

So I am writing this review specifically so I don't forget that this is the winery I want to go back to next time. The fact that we visited in over 4 months ago and I still very clearly remember it means I seriously enjoyed our visit. The wine was fantastic, the servers were great, the food was flavorful with a very reasonable portion:cost ratio, the building is beautiful and well maintained, and the scenery is beautiful. LOVED this place. It is now tied with Alto for our favorite Southern IL winery. read more

The Chambourcin was excellent and the atmosphere of the place was great. It was very crowded when we were there, but the service (you order at the bar) was good. Feels a little like Sonoma! read more

First of all this is really just a BAR nestled in a great area of sandstone and trees. The staff is rude and the 3 bucks rental for a glass is almost as insulting as the boring plain wine. Do not waste you time here unless you want to spend your day with college kids. Went during Kentucky Derby Day. Really just a lot of people drinking in the heat and on a hill,then packed into the bar to watch tiny TV's. Big Crowds, lots of noise poor wine. MISS IT! there are several different places to go. read more