LISBON, Ohio - In many ways, The Tipsy Farmer is the quintessential Ohio winery.
Tucked away in bucolic farm country in the rolling hills west of Lisbon, it is rural and relaxed. Before the crowds show up, the only sounds you'll hear are birds and the occasional bleating of a goat.
Like most Buckeye State wineries, The Tipsy Farmer's offerings tend toward the sweet side. It is heavy on fruit wines and semisweet traditional wines made with grapes grown in the Lake Erie vintner belt in Ohio, Pennsylvania and New York.
Don and Jen Paynter opened The Tipsy Farmer at 32849 Speidel Road, Hanoverton, five years ago, during the height of the Covid pandemic. Since then, it has become a gathering spot for folks who live within 10 miles, including Guilford Lake, and a side destination for travelers from Cleveland and Pittsburgh who are in the area for other purposes.
The Paynters, who live on the sprawling property, got the idea to open a winery on their land after visiting a similar country winery.
Don, an engineer at Ventra in Salem, had been making wine for years and remains the chief wine maker. As part of his preparations to open The Tipsy Farmer, he planted about 300 grape plants in 2018 and has since begun to use the fruit for some of his wines.
Jen, who is a teacher in United Local schools, says opening during the pandemic - when social distancing was in effect - was no drawback.
"Before Covid, the local place to go was Pinky's in New Garden," she says. "Everyone would go there and hang out. But then they sold it and it didn't reopen at first. When we opened, a lot of people [who used to go to Pinky's] were getting tired of sitting in their homes and came to check out what the Paynters had opened."
Don recalls those days of socially distanced socializing.
"We just pushed the picnic tables all over the yard, and [guests] would just send someone inside to buy a couple of bottles and then go back to the tables," he says.
Distance is not an obstacle for folks who like to explore new wineries, and guests who visit The Tipsy Farmer from outside the area find that it checks all the boxes: a unique setting, a wide variety of wine and beer made on-site and a fun atmosphere.
The winery is open year-round, with live music on the outdoor stage on weekends during the warm months.
"We also do paint and sip nights, candle parties, music bingo and other stuff like that in the winter," Jen says. "We keep it lively on the weekends."
The Tipsy Farmer is open Wednesday from 5-9 p.m., Friday from 5-10 p.m., and Saturday from 2-10 p.m.
The winery has a license to sell alcohol on Sunday, but uses that day for rentals for parties and showers.
There are few landmarks on the rural road The Tipsy Farmer sits on - just endless fields. But when you come upon an old rusty tractor resting incongruently under a large tree, you've found the Tipsy Farmer.
The tasting room, pavilion and porch sit at the end of a short gravel drive lined with rows of grape vines.
The Tipsy Farmer has 17 wines available, plus a few beers that Don brews on-site, including a hefeweizen, an IPA, a porter, a sour and a light lager.
The beer appeals to the non-wine drinkers in any group. "We sell more wine when we have beer," Don explains.
The top seller, however, is the elderberry wine, with the blackberry a close second.
The winery also has a small kitchen that sells smashburgers made from local beef, fresh-cut fries and other specialties, including pizza in the winter.
The seating capacity is 24 in the tasting room, 50 on the porch and 50 in the pavilion.
A century-old barn once stood where the pavilion and wine making area are now, and wooden beams from it were restored and used in the tasting room decor.
Now that The Tipsy Farmer has begun to bear fruit as an ongoing business, the Paynters are expanding.
Later this summer, they will open a second location - an urban winery - in downtown Minerva.
The couple has purchased a former bank building owned by the village that is on the main drag, a block away from the well-known Sandy Springs brewery and Que Pasa Mexican restaurant. "Those are the two biggest draws in the town," Don says.
The new location will be in the middle of downtown Minerva's designated outdoor refreshment area (Dora), in which patrons can go outside and walk around with their drinks. It's part of the village's effort to increase foot traffic and visitors, Don says.
Announcement of the second location comes after months of speculation. "The rumors had been going around and we put them off when we were asked," Jen says. "But now we are ready to announce it."
Don will make wine and beer at the Minerva site. "I will not brew as many beers there," he notes. "Maybe just one. They have a brewery there already."