Beer, Wine & Spirits in La Vista

In the days before kegs and bottles, beer enthusiasts would have to cart a bucket to their local brewery, fill it up, and carry it (gently) home. Lucky Bucket Brewing Company pays tribute to brewing history both in its name and its traditional brewing techniques.

Lucky Bucket’s flavorsome creations are crafted inside an 18,000-square-foot brew house. Gleaming silver tankards give birth to bottles of a pre-Prohibition-style lager, a pleasantly floral IPA, and the Belgian strong ale Certified Evil—made by combining a young, oak-aged ale with an older batch aged in cabernet barrels for a year and allowed to form curmudgeonly opinions.

Lucky Bucket also operates a secondary craft distillery, Sòlas, which turns out the super-premium Joss Vodka. Hops-heads can take a tour of the bustling brewery and proclaim fealty with merchandise such as T-shirts and hats emblazoned with beer logos and the autographs of noble hops.

In 2000, a group of farmers decided to diversify their crop production by planting twirling wine grapes into the rolling Midwestern hills. The initial smattering of vines quickly grew into a 4-acre vineyard and led to the launch of Silver Hills Vineyards & Winery, a small operation intent on crafting 100% Nebraska wines. The vintners’ Midwestern pride can be seen in their choice of ingredients—all wines are made with fruit grown at local vineyards and tattooed with the state motto—as well as their choice of decor: the outdoor tasting deck is shaped like Nebraska.

Silver Hills produces red, white, rosé, and berry wines, which visitors can sample during the vineyards’ limited hours on Friday, Saturday, and Sunday. Bottle labels display woodcuts by John Schirmer, a resident of neighboring Iowa who has carved wood professionally for more than 35 years.

In a style fitting with their sword-and-shield emblem, the King’s Crossing Vineyard & Winery’s yearly renaissance festival harks back to ye olden days with a weekend of days-of-yore-style entertainment. A Scottish band toots the soundtrack to the festivities as visitors hoist flagons of beer and wine and belly dancers enchant viewers with sultry undulations. With multiple opportunities for guests to demonstrate their feats of strength, the fest hosts an archery tournament and dueling matches fought with swords, maces, and enormous turkey legs. The afternoons are filled with informative demonstrations on renaissance life, performed by actors in full period dress.

The fertile soil of the Loess Hills boasts a rich history, dating back to 1857, of sprouting wine-yielding fruit. Under the umbrella of the Western Iowa Grape Growers Association, a confederacy of local wineries opens its doors to host informative tours, tastings, and seminars on extracting rumors from grapevines. Palate-broadening enophiles can peruse the listings of area award winners, and at-home winemakers will enjoy Pick Your Own Grapes get-togethers and amateur-level awards. Other events include annual festivals, contests, and elegant wine dinners.

The brewers who keep Keg Creek Brewing Company afloat in fermented fare began as homebrewers. Though they now operate an entire company, their experimental, do-it-yourself philosophy remains the same. From mash tanks and fermentation vessels come the brewery's lifeblood, a lineup of expertly crafted beers that flow forth daily in the onsite tasting room. The brews include Wabash Wheat, a light-bodied wheat beer that honors the Wabash Trace Nature Trail, and Breakdown Brown Ale, a malty brew named after the communication breakdown that resulted in East Dakota’s statehood. As the seasons change, Keg Creek's brewmasters rotate their output with it, brewing beers both big and small to fit the weather.