Dablon Vineyards & Winery — Attraction in Baroda Township

Please know before reading this thatI NEVER leave bad reviews because I think that sometimes everyone has bad days but this was just down right rude.

Unfortuneltly, we did NOT have a good experience at this winery. We rented a bus to tour wineries. Our bus driver dropped us off and he had to wait a few minutes because 3 of the women were looking for a wallet that fell out of a purse on the bus. The OWNER proceeds to come out, tells our driver to move the bus.. then asks if we have a reservation? We give th response of Yes, we do have a reservation. The whole time I’m thinking to myself “what’s with this guy being so rude?”

We make our way inside and the young lady that did our tasting was very sweet. So we are in the middle of doing the tasting and YET AGAIN... here comes this guy behind the counter asking this young women if we have a reservation. I politely ask him if he is the manager, his response is “no, not really” he’s actually the OWNER. I asked him if there was a problem since this was the 2nd time he is asking about our reservation & the way he spoke to us as we were getting dropped off”. He looked shocked that I asked him that. Then said “no, it was fine, he was confused.” Ok... so I left it at that!! Then my Mom & 4 of her friends went to sit outside by the fire pit, and of course here HE comes AGAIN, telling them to move their chairs in because people couldnt walk through behind them. Ok, I get that but they were already sitting within legs length of the fire and pulling in their chairs to get closer was SO HOT that they ended up just getting up and standing. There was a simple solution, HE could have moved the table back that was behind all the fire pit chairs since NO ONE was sitting at it.. it wasn’t busy outside so there were plenty of options for him, instead he aggressively told the ladies to “MOVE”. Not a please or a thank you or anything.. JUST MOVE.

He just didn’t want us there from the minute we walked off the bus. All the other women proceeded down to the bus and I stayed back to ask him for a word. I told him that I was very disappointed and that I would personally never come again. That it wasn’t because of his staff because they were great but because of HIM. I told him that I thought it was rude the way he spoke to the ladies outside and then he proceeded to argue with me ... telling me that it was the LADIES fault because they were blocking people’s way. I “the customer” said to him “I’m not going to argue with you about this”. His final words were “ come back again and give us another chance JUST NOT TO COME BACK ON A SATURDAY.” Seriously? U tell someone don’t come back on a Saturday? He said that all the wineries around there are talking about closing on saturdays because it’s just too much....It’s the middle of fall when all the trees are gorgeous, the winery is beautiful so why wouldn’t we go on a Saturday? We had a reservation...

Needless to say after this VERY LONG eplination, it was our last stop and it wasn’t the ending that I wanted after spending so much $$$ to give my Mom a great 60th Birthday with 15 of her closest friends & family.

So if you plan on going, know that “Saturday” isn’t a good day & that the owner is the most arrogant man I’ve ever met. We each spent $100 or more and there were 15 of us... so it’s not like we didn’t give...

While I appreciated the flexibility with our reservation since we we were about a half hour late, our experience with the outdoor server was cold and odd. She came off very strong about not letting us taste before we bought it because "we can't make it like a tasting outside", which this policy was not explained and makes no sense since we were the only ones there. I would maybe understand if they were extremely busy. A quick educational run through should be able to happen outside or inside. She tried to overcome this by saying "shes working there a very long time" and is good at making recommendations coming off as cocky. That does not replace you personally having a taste before purchasing multiple entire bottles. Made for a very unpleasant experience. On top of that, service could have been better. Instead of having customers going up to the her at the outside bar, she could have walked around and asked if anything is needed or offer us our next bottle. Manager Kymberly was extremely helpful and did ask us how we were doing. Also, carafes of ice water should be brought to tables, for pure safety (hot weather and to avoid overserving alcohol especially since they make you reach a minimum). We had to go in and ask for water and they only had bottle water for purchase that they didn't allow to go towards our minimum. Overall the wine was subpar and overpriced, to the point where we instructed them to charge us the minimum but we did not want to buy any more bottles to take home. Even with the wine being subpar, people come for the experience, and there was minimal service. We also would have liked music outdoors. I get starting the day quiet to hear nature, but once things started to pick up, I don't want to hear everyone's conversations around me and music would help offset that. The only reason I'd come back is because...

Made reservations online for 2 for a tasting on a Friday Night. Tastings are 5 for $15 and with this tasting, we received $7 off our first bottle purchase. The lady helping us was named Samantha I believe, but could be 100% wrong - she was super friendly did a thorough job explaining what we were tasting and provided great recommendations. All staff were friendly and welcoming.

The vineyard and establishment is absolutely beautiful. They have beautiful cement and stone love stairs leading up into the winery. The taste room overlooks the vineyards, and near the bathrooms, they have windows overlooking the production area below. The tasting room has a modern/industrial style. Inside the tasting room they have a mini fridge with snacks, dips, charcuterie and la croix available to purchase. We tried creamy garlic artichoke spread it was so delicious and creamy. We also tried cabaret crackers which were so buttery!

They are doing a great job during the pandemic by promoting social distancing, providing hand-sanitizer, all staff hand on mask, and sanitizing between customers. They have a beautiful outside area with plenty of seating for parties of 2 or more.

On Friday's and Sunday's they have live music outside. The guitarist/singer the night we were there was so good!

Definitely one of my favorite Winery's that is well worth the trip! I highly recommend the 2016 Malbec and 2016 Cabernet Sauvignon Reserve. The owner also owns the historic Music Box Theater in Chicago. They have some movie posters near the bathroom which is cool.

Only negative is that they...