Welcome to Arkansas

No, this hut is not our room at the lodge. I am not sure what it is, but I can tell you it is made of grape vines. It caught my eye as we left the first winery we visited in Arkansas, a place called Aux Arc and pronounced Ozark. There are at least 5 wineries in the state and 4 of them are in the area we visited and they are owned by the same family. In addition to Cabernet and Merlot they make wine with a native (to the U.S.) grape called Cynthiana and a local grape called Muscadine. The muscadine doesn't grow in large clusters like most grapes I have seen, but singly or in clusters of two or three grapes. The wine is exceedingly sweet, almost like a liqueur. The unfermented juice, which we had later with our dinner, tastes faintly of pears. Wild, the grapes climb trees, which making picking them a challenge.