Road Tripping: Lynfred Winery (Part 2)

By Chuck Sudo in Food on Oct 28, 2009 6:00PM

$A barrel of Lodi shiraz, aging in Lynfred\'s cellar.$ $Fresh-baked breads from Lynfred\'s wood-fired oven cooling before the tasting room opens.$ $A shot of wood burning down inside Lynfred\'s oven.$ $A shot of Lynfred\'s trophy walk, the hall that leads to the bed and breakfast rooms.$ $Glass flooring in the middle of Lynfred\'s trophy walk allows guest to view the winemaking facilities underneat.$ $The wine in this picture was made by Fred Koehler\'s grandfather in 1920 for his wedding$ $This trophy case contains some of Lynfred\'s earliest awards, including a magnum of their first award-winning chardonnay.$ $The German room inside Lynfred\'s bed and breakfast.$

A shot of the Lynfred Winery B&B Italian Room.

$Hanging above the Italian Room\'s fireplace mantle is this ivory on tortoise shell artwork depicting the plot of Milton\'s \"Paradise Lost.\"$ $Lynfred\'s \"American Room.\"$ $A look inside Lynfred\'s French room, inspired by an apartment the Koehler\'s stayed in during a trip to Paris.$ $Lynfred\'s Harvest Room for B&B guests or special tastings.$

A closeup of some cheddar bread from Lynfred sous chef Joe Hetman.

Lynfred founder/owner Fred Koehler and Winemaker/GM Andres Basso sit down to a selection of Neapolitan pizzas from chef Joe Hetman.

$A look inside Lynfred\'s VIP tasting room.$ $A wide shot of Lynfred\'s retail shop.$ $Basso sidles up to the bar of Lynfred\'s tasting room.$

One of the products Lynfred sells is wine with bottles dipped in five different chocolates.

$Basso shows off the Governor\'s Cup-winning seyval blanc.$

One of the two identical spiral staircases inside the winery

There's more to Lynfred Winery than being the state's largest and oldest continuous operating winery. Its expansion eight years ago involved expanding their tasting room and retail operations to include a bed and breakfast that makes for a beautiful daytrip. Marketing Director Christina Anderson-Heller took me for a tour of the operation while we waited for Winemaker/GM Andres Basso to show me the winemaking plant.

The first thing you notice is all the beautiful wood. Anderson-Heller said that Lynfred employs a full-time carpenter to keep the winery looking tip top. The seating and tables in the winery's VIP tasting room is made from reconditioned wine barrels. Each of Lynfred's four B&B rooms is themed and comes with wood burning fireplaces and water jet bathtubs.

Lynfred's kitchen was the surprise of the visit. Executive chef Chris Smith has had a professional relationship with Fred Koehler dating back to their days at Itasca Country Club. Sous chef Joe Hetman previously worked with Michael Maddox at Le Titi de Paris in Arlington Heights. In addition to baking fresh breads and preparing food for the B&B guests, the two chefs host cooking classes, dinners and an "epicurean experience" pairing six of Hetman's hors d'oeuvres with different wines for $25 ($20 for Lynfred Wine Club members).

Be sure to check out yesterday's installment of our visit to Lynfred Winery, listen to Karl's chat with Christina Anderson-Heller from September regarding the liquor tax increase, or go into the wayback machine and check out Chicagoist's previous coverage of Lynfred.

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