Pomona Winery — Attraction in Illinois

We were really looking forward to visiting this winery with our family, we had a group that came by bus, excited to enjoy a day traveling to wineries together. Unfortunately, from the moment we arrived, we were met with an unwelcoming attitude. The staff, particularly the woman behind the bar, was incredibly rude and unaccommodating.

Rather than treating us like valued guests, we were made to feel like an inconvenience. Her tone was sharp, her demeanor was cold, and she seemed irritated by our presence from the start. We understand that large groups (13 people) can be a lot to handle, but the lack of professionalism and basic courtesy was disappointing.

We’ve visited many wineries as a family and have always had warm, welcoming experiences. Sadly, that was not the case here. I would not recommend this winery if you’re coming with a group or expecting friendly...

We had the most educational wine tasting experience of our lives from the wonderful owner George. He provided notes on the wide range of flavors that our pallets would be experiencing with each wine, as well as, in depth ways to pair a full meal around each wine. Complete recipes are found on their website and facebook page and will be heavily utilized in our near future. The setting was nothing short of tranquility with their private and secluded setting in the woods of the Shawnee National Forest. The completely wooden structure of the wine tasting room was hand built by George from reclaimed lumber and also serves as their home. It shows the great care to detail they take that is also seen in each of their wines. We will definitely be back for more wine and great experiences. Be sure to make this a stop on your Southern Illinois Wine...

DO NOT GO HERE. My friends and I tried to go here as part of the Shawnee Wine Trail and were turned away. The owner told us we weren’t welcome because we were “intoxicated” despite no one in the group being sloppy, stumbling, sick, or other signs of excess alcohol intoxication. We were really excited to see this place and were enjoying our day on the trail (having been to only 3 wineries so far) and were disappointed not to be able to go here. Before we left one of the female workers gave our group the middle finger. Extremely unprofessional. While businesses reserve the right not to serve customers (despite me not agreeing with their reasoning whatsoever, especially as a bachelorette party we’d seen at our first winery sat inside), how the owners handled it was not okay. My money will be going elsewhere...