Gervasi Vineyard
In less than a decade, Gervasi Vineyard has gone from one family’s dream to a destination for lovers of fine wine, craft spirits and dining experiences. And now, Ohio’s Tuscan-inspired winery resort gives guests more luxurious reasons to visit with a new distillery and luxury accommodations.
In total, 14 buildings, including four restaurants, comprise the village-like campus of Gervasi Vineyard. The property bears little resemblance to the untended and overgrown tree farm founder Ted Swaldo purchased a decade ago with little more than a dream to spend more time with his family when he retired.
Peeking over the sun-drenched vines in the south vineyard, a 20-foot-high metal spire towers over The Still House, Gervasi’s new distillery housed in a mission-style, whitewashed building with arched colonnades and a bell tower. Inspired by the 17th century St. Gervasio Church in Denno, Italy — the Gervasi family’s ancestral village — the structure is considered the centerpiece of the property, just as churches are the heart and soul of small towns that dot the Tuscan countryside.
By day, The Still House is a coffee shop serving Gervasi’s proprietary blend of coffee along with pastries and savory snacks. By night, it’s a craft cocktail lounge with small plates and bewitching potions made with more than 120 different liquors on hand, including its own wine barrel-finished bourbon, a blood-orange gin called Saint’s Desire and a rosé vodka called Sinner’s Blush. Drink it all in while surrounded by the little details that add to The Still House’s ambiance: exposed wooden beams, iron accents, stained-glass windows, a marble-topped bar and little nooks, such as the Sin Room, an outdoor heated cigar lounge.
Adding the hotel and distillery further exemplifies Gervasi Vineyard as a destination resort and realizes a long-standing goal for its owners to expand the property’s experiences while continuing to exceed the expectations of its guests. “It’s never been our ambition to get bigger and bigger,” says Scott Swaldo, the general manager of Gervasi. “We want to deliver a world-class experience.”
Specific Mechanical is thrilled to have been the supplier of the 1000 Litre Hybrid still from which Gervasi Vineyard has been able to create a variety of artisan craft spirits that add to the allure and splendour of this world-class destination.
