Question of the Day - 21 August 2024

There are two wineries in Las Vegas.

First, or so they claim in terms of chronology, is Vegas Valley Winery, supposedly the longest in business. It offers both wine and hard cider, whether by the glass or the bottle. Wine flights are also on offer, with $10 buying you a taste of five. 

Offering winemaking classes, live music, trivia contests, even yoga, the Winery has something for the tourist and local alike. It gets a 4.8 rating on Google, with comments ranging from “I loved everything about this place” to “a great selection of wines, however the atmosphere was lacking.”

Equally high-rated, Pine Valley Winery is located in Fiesta Square, in the northwest corner of the city. Like Vegas Valley Winery, it offers wines for shipping. We’d be tempted to stop in ourselves, since Pine Valley is promoting something called “wine slushies.” Yum.

Flights of wine come six to the taster (for $12) or eight ($20). Buy the more expensive flight and “a distinctive cork keychain” is yours into the bargain. Food is strictly of the munchies variety (think pretzels and popcorn) but book clubs and live music are also on tap.

To experience Trip Advisor’s highest-rated Nevada winery, however, you have to get behind the wheel and go “over the hump” to Pahrump, which is no doubt where you went a few years ago. Pahrump is the heart of wine country in southern Nevada and nowhere more so than at Sanders Family Winery.

Sanders offers complimentary wine tastings (reservations required), along with “stunning panoramic mountain views” and musical acts in the attached theater, running the gamut from C&W to Motown, with the occasional ventriloquist thrown into the mix. 

Charleston Peak Winery (Google rating: 4.5) isn’t up on the titular mountain, but also in Pahrump. Open five days a week, the winery offers flights of three ($10) and five ($15) per customer, in addition to 10 wines by the bottle or glass. The website is rather spartan, but diner reviews are enthusiastic.

Also in Pahrump is Artesian Wine Cellars & Restaurant (Google rating: 4.8). Prices at Artesian Cellars are reasonable, starting in the high single digits, and there’s a considerable variety of wine in the cellar. Wine tastings are available by reservation only and you can mail away for the house wines, too.

All in all, you'll find well-recommended wineries without leaving the valley. But for the serious wine drinker, a visit to Pahrump (45-60 minutes away, depending on traffic leaving town) seems in order.