Cowbell group cuts ribbon on Stirling Sands Winery near Grand Bend

BY SCOTT STEPHENSON

While every day is grand in Grand Bend, it’s not every day that Grand Bend sees a grand opening as grand as the one it saw last week. On July 14, Stirling Sands Vineyards invited a few hundred of its closest friends to its multi-faceted facility for an afternoon introduction to the latest venture from Blyth’s Cowbell Brewing Company.

 

The former Dark Horse Estate has a little bit of everything - a winery, a restaurant, an event space and a store featuring vineyard merchandise and local products. To keep things running smoothly at their new venture, Cowbell tapped longtime team member Ashley Stevenson to take the helm as Stirling Sands’ new general manager. 

 

On the day of the grand opening, Stevenson took a moment from overseeing affairs to greet The Citizen on arrival with a little information about the event. “We have invited over 400 guests to come out and enjoy some of our wine with us. There’s our red blend, our white blend, some charcuterie, live entertainment and some lovely lawn games,” she explained. 

 

Upon entering, guests were invited to ring a bell to summon a gloved-hand proffering a sample of the vineyard’s inaugural red blend. This was accompanied by a hearty charcuterie offering featuring cheeses sourced from near and far, salami roses and chunks of honeycomb. 

 

Visitors were encouraged to explore the expansive property at their own pace. “We have officially been ‘open’ for three weeks, but we just wanted to have some time to get the lay of the land and begin working like a well-oiled machine for our grand opening,” Stevenson told The Citizen. “For us, Stirling Sands means fantastic hospitality, great culinary programs and local involvement. We’re so excited to be really utilizing this facility to its full potential.”

 

Cowbell has long been a big name in the Blyth beer scene, and Stevenson believes Stirling Sands will be another smash hit for Huron County. “Wine was that thing that we were missing,” she pointed out. “We have our Cowbell beer, we have our cider, we have our Twelve Apostles spirit line-up, our ready-to-drink Hi-Jinx cocktails - wine really was the missing component to our portfolio.”

 

Despite the summer heat, Stevenson said the excitement of welcoming so many guests outweighed the warm temperatures. “It’s a warm day today, but we’re super excited for everyone to be joining us. The surrounding communities and our local partners have been just fantastic,” she said. “We really appreciate everyone coming out and supporting us in this new adventure!”