CM and I visited Stone Villa this past Sat. when we were in the area to visit another nearby winery specializing in fruit wines. Having read the reviews, I wasn't quite sure what to expect, but I decided to take a chance, since it was so close to our other stop. I'm glad I did, since CM and I had a pleasant time here.
Unlike some of the other reviewers, I didn't feel that the security was overbearing. The only encounter we had with it was a brief stop at a table outside the front door of the tasting room, where I opened my picnic basket to show an older gentleman what was inside (he just took a brief look and didn't even poke around in it). Frankly, the bag check at Kennywood is more intrusive than what I experienced here. Once we left the tasting room for the porch, nobody bothered us at all, and we didn't feel as if we were being watched closely. Then again, we were just a couple, so things may be different if you're in a large group.
The tasting room, while not quite as attractive as the one at the other winery we visited, was nevertheless still pleasant. At the tasting bar, you indicate which wines you want to try by checking them off on a list, and the assistant gives you your samples in order from dryest to sweetest. Because we were the youngest customers, we were carded before we were served our samples (the assistant remarked that she thought I was younger than I am, which I took as a compliment). I tried six wines, including semi-dry Riesling, semi-sweet Riesling, Niagara, Stonegria, and two more that I can't recall. As others have noted, the wines here are on the sweet side; the semi-dry Riesling was typical of other Rieslings I've had, and the semi-sweet Riesling was sweeter than them. Knowing that CM enjoys his wine on the sweeter side, I opted for the Stonegria ($11.95), which was a bit sweet for my taste, but was nevertheless quite mellow and sippable, and paired well with our snacks of cheese, crackers, prosciutto, and chocolate. Despite the setting, it's important to note that only 5% of the grapes used in the wines produced at Stone Villa are grown on the property--most are imported from the Erie area.
After purchasing the Stonegria, we went outside to the porch and were seated by the porch supervisor. The porch is a really nice setting, and contains picnic tables that look out on a pond and some vineyards. If you visit during the weekend, there is live entertainment--the day of our visit, there was an oldies cover band playing. I'm not sure if this is typical, but most of the other customers we saw were in their 40s-60s--so if you're looking for a hipster setting, this definitely isn't your scene (try Pittsburgh Winery in the city). Several of the other customers were dancing, but despite being somewhat inebriated, we decided not to join in the revelry. We spent a little over an hour on the porch, and enjoyed some great people watching.
Overall, we had a good time at Stone Villa. If you're in the area or enjoy sweeter wine, it's worth checking out, and the setting is quite idyllic. Having said that, if our visit was representative, it was very busy, so you may want to come during the week if you don't enjoy large crowds. It's definitely a nice stop if you happen to be in the area!