Run by four generations and celebrating its 25th anniversary, Talon Winery is a true family affair — and one that gets better as it ages
Down Tates Creek Road, just outside of the city limits of Lexington, Talon Winery sprawls across 300 acres of rolling farmland.
Established in 1999 by Harriet Allen and her late husband, the winery has long been one of the region’s most thriving vineyards, and is celebrating its 25th anniversary this year. Now run by four generations of Allen’s family, the winery is not only a place to grab a good bottle of Kentucky wine but a destination to get away from the city and enjoy the natural Bluegrass landscape.
Originally known as Fair View Farm, the winery boasts an original farmhouse built in 1790, which has since been converted to the Homestead Tasting Room. Though the building has been fully rehabilitated, visitors can still see most of the original floors, windows, walls, brick and more. When Allen and her husband bought the place, they wanted to create not only a home for her family, but an agricultural experience unlike anything else in the area, said Lauren Rutherford, Allen’s granddaughter and Talon’s marketing director.
“We were actually, at one point, all going to move out here,” she said, “but they found out really quick that when you have 300 acres, you’ve got to have something that produces a little bit of income with it. They wanted to do something in the agri-tourism business, and at the time it was coming out that red wine was good for your heart.”
Talon’s marketing director Lauren Rutherford is the granddaughter of the winery’s founder and owner, Harriet Allen. Photo by Emily Giancarlo
After purchasing the property, Allen wanted to make use of her experience in law, real estate development, entertainment and family business to create something special, Rutherford said. The idea came together to grow grapes to turn into wine, but to also create a destination. The business has grown steadily over the past quarter century, expanding into Shelby County in 2009.
Through it all, Allen has run the business with her family close by her side: Her aunt, Lori Baumgardner, handles human resources issues, while Rutherford handles the website, public relations and marketing. Allen’s cousin, Robbie Bissell, handles the tasting room, and just about all of the family has worked on the farm in some respect, Rutherford said.
She added that she always knew that she’d spend her professional career at the winery in some capacity.
“The first thing I did I was in high school, at probably 16, I sold soft drinks outside during one of our events,” she said. “Before I was 20, I did some of the bookkeeping and things that didn’t have to do with the alcohol inventory. Then, as soon as I turned 21, I started working in the tasting room, managing the tasting room, and working weddings.”
Even Rutherford’s young kids have gotten into the business, she said.
“They’re young right now, but all the owner’s great-grandchildren except for one have been in some sort of ad or something like that,” she said.
“We count that,” she added with a laugh.
Like Rutherford, some of the younger family members are getting their start selling drinks during live events. Every Saturday, the venue has live music, and during the summer, extends the live music to Fridays. The winery also hosts live entertainment on some Sundays and during wine club pick-up days.
The tasting room is open daily for wine tastings of Talon’s nearly two dozen wines, which range from dry Chardonnays to full-bodied Cabernet Sauvignons to sweet blackberry Moscatos.
The vineyard is also open for events including weddings, corporate events, private tours and group wine classes. A smaller upstairs space in the tasting room is available for smaller private events such as baby showers, bridal showers and birthday parties.
“We also do the UK wine class and Center College’s wine class. They will come out and do tours as well,” Rutherford said. “And then we do some tastings with the winemaker throughout the year.”
The winery has been celebrating its anniversary throughout the year, and plans to continue.
“We opened in August of 1999, so we had an event in July,” she said. “But there will be things going on throughout the whole year. We want to focus on our wine club members. We have had some members who have been with us since the beginning, so we’re giving them a little something extra. But we’ll be doing freebies and giveaways through the year.”
The family plans to keep on moving forward for the next 25 years, she said.
“We want to keep going and keep plugging along,” she said. “We want to continue to be a place for people to come out to. We’ve been here for so long, but we still run into people who don’t know where we are or what we do.
“We want people to know it’s not a snooty place,” she added. “We’re more of a casual nice place to come to and hang out. We want [folks] to know you don’t have to be scared to come to a winery.”