Inspire Moore Winery, Vineyard & Venue — Attraction in Town of Naples

A delight. Inspire Moore was the last stop on my cousin chum mini winery tour last weekend, and it was a high note. The exterior of the buildings caught my eye as we drove by a few times a day or two beforehand, and this was a rare instance where judging a book by its cover paid off. This was a very pleasant experience and a rare recommend from the area.

Inspire Moore...looks a little kooky, and it is. It's rare in my experience for a winery to sell anything other than wine, food and maybe some wine-related merch, but there's a significant chunk of the establishment devoted to other products; the first room or two by the entrance is more cluttered/intimate and sold, for instance, leather-bound journals with motivational quotes and honestly items I associate with alternative tourist traps, the kinds with candles, dreamcatchers and zodiac shizzle (if you've ever been to New Hope, Pennsylvania, it reminded me a lot of the stores there, along with the 90s shopping mall institution The Nature Company; RIP). Not an insult by any means, but definitely different from the average bear. Full disclosure - I bought one of the journals. There's a much larger room in the back that I assume houses some legit events and it's got a pretty wild view of the vineyards in the back of the property. I didn't spend a ton of time there other than to access the adjacent bathroom (which also boasts that view), but a marked departure from the other areas of the building.

The wine we sampled here was significantly better than one of its counterparts down the street, with complex flavors and just overall tastiness. I decided to bouge it up a bit with the $15 reserve tasting (there's a $10 tasting for the common man), which was the right call. Far and away, I thought the best wine I sampled was the 2022 Bourbon Blend Red, which I ended up buying a bottle of for the road (it's hanging out proudly on my wine cart now in the other room). I'm MUCH more of a white wine drinker than a red so this one was a surprise for me, but I was legit impressed with the different notes on the palate, notably the charcoal mixed with the plum, which bizarrely worked. And hanging out in some bourbon barrels for months? Sold. Really interesting nip and I'm planning to bring it out for a good time in the future.

I loved the woman assisting us on this visit. Susan was in many ways the perfect host - very self-effacing (was upfront about her lack of wine knowledge after a career in teaching, and in a roundabout way it felt like we were discovering these wines with her) and sweet. She knew enough about the wines to still give us a bit of an education without ever coming close to preaching or condescension. Very pleasant addition to this winery and they should try to keep her around; it's unusual for that kind of personality to be at a winery, but it works. Markedly improved the experience, and I don't think you can really give a higher compliment than that.

The atmosphere here was pretty good too; we didn't have an AMAZING view from our vantagepoint (we were placed on the porch toward the front of the building facing the street, with mostly a view of the restaurant next door), but we did have some pleasing vineyard optics off to the side and understandably lingered a bit at this stop. My youngest cousin chum was getting antsy but the photo opportunities helped in that regard. Her day will come.

This was probably the only place in Naples I'd recommend; unique winery with interesting wine - grapes with a...

Sampled some of their stuff at the Watkins Glen, Finger Lakes wine festival, and enjoyed them. For the last 8 years in November, I have rented a 30+ passenger limo and taken a bunch of friends that all enjoy wine to do a pre-winter stock up. of wines.

We included Inspire Moore, based on last summers experience. The woman that booked our group of 25 didn't realize there hours changed after Nov. 1 and booked us at closing time. They called the morning of the trip and said that they now close at 5, when we were scheduled to arrive, but said as long as we were on time they would stay open to accommodate us. I assured them we were not just on the bus to party, but serious buyers of good wines.

Good choice for both sides, they made several sales, and obviously they had some appealing wines. They tend to be on the sweeter side, for me, bur the group is divided about 50-50. I will say that even though sweeter than I usually like, all their wines have very robust and complex flavor. Some offerings were sweet on the tongue, and dry finish, and even their dessert wines were not the typical cough syrup sweet. They will be very enjoyable winter night selections. A poll that I do each year of the group, they said Inspire Moore was one of the favorites this trip.

Good job and thanks for...

Our favorite things about Inspire Moore are- -The wine (of course) -The knowledge of those who work there and their willingness to share it and to chat -It's really a beautiful place with a beautiful view -It's proximity to Roots, which is one of our favorite restaurants

A major downside (but also an upside for the winery!)- -They get really busy on weekends and staff doesn't always handle it well. We are members and went in for a tasting and were told by one staff they didn't take reservations, but if we came back in 2 hours they'd fit us in. Came back 2 hours later and we were asked by another staff member if we had a reservation. The staff was (understandably) overwhelmed but were also visibly annoyed with us, despite eventually seating us for a tasting. Their demeanors shifted when we were seated and the tasting itself was fine. On 2 other occasions they were so busy we were turned away. Not much they can do about that, but for us it will likely be the reason we discontinue our membership there as it's almost an hour drive for us, so coming out specifically for Inspire Moore and being turned away can kill a...