Tassel Ridge Winery
Tassel Ridge Winery is a privately held Iowa winery that grows cold-hardy grape varieties across roughly 39,792 vines and sells award-winning wines, sparkling wines, and specialty beverages to individual consumers via its tasting room, direct shipping, and Wine Harvest Club subscription, plus over 300 Iowa retailers.
- Company typePrivate
- Founded2006
- HeadquartersLeighton, United States
- Headcount11–50
- GTM typeB2C
- OfferingHardware or Manufacturing
What Tassel Ridge Winery does
Tassel Ridge Winery is a privately held Iowa winery and vineyard founded in 2006, headquartered in Leighton, Iowa (with an HR operations address in Oskaloosa). It cultivates cold-climate grape varieties — including Marquette, Edelweiss, Frontenac, La Crescent, St. Croix, Brianna, Sabrevois, Maréchal Foch, St. Pepin, Steuben, and LaCrosse — developed through University of Minnesota and Elmer Swenson breeding programs and rated cold-hardy to -36°F. The company operates approximately 39,792 vines across multiple parcels (Tassel Ridge Vineyard, Meadowcreek Vineyard, Maple Woods Vineyard, Newport Lane Vineyard) and runs on-site production using mechanical harvesting (~97% fruit capture), Italian cross-flow filtration, and pressurized cross-flow carbonation for its Oskyfizzante sparkling line.
The product portfolio spans dry, semi-sweet, sweet, rosé, sparkling, dessert, and fruit-based wines, plus Wine-A-Rita frozen wine mixes and Finalé Bonbons, with numerous trademarked brands (Oskyfizzante®, Star Spangled White®, Iowa Candleglow®, Rockets Glare Rosé®, Sweet Roxie Red®, Finalé®). It serves two primary customer segments: individual wine consumers through on-site tasting room experiences, direct UPS shipping, and a Wine Harvest Club subscription; and Iowa retailers and restaurants (over 300 locations) via wholesale distribution.
Revenue is generated across four streams: on-premise tasting room/gift shop sales, Iowa retail distribution, subscription-based Wine Harvest Club memberships, and direct e-commerce shipping. Marketing relies primarily on a weekly email newsletter, on-site events (wine dinners, mystery nights, pizza nights), website content, and earned media in regional wine publications. The company has accumulated multiple regional awards including the Iowa Governor's Cup Trophy (2021) and a Best of Show medal at the American Fine Wine Rosé Competition (2024).
Tassel Ridge Winery firmographics
Firmographics- Name
- Tassel Ridge Winery
- Legal name
- Tassel Ridge Winery
- Website
- https://tasselridge.com
- Company type
- Private
- Founded year
- 2006
- Operating status
- Operating
- Headcount range
- 11–50 employees
- Short description
- Tassel Ridge Winery is a privately held Iowa winery that grows cold-hardy grape varieties across roughly 39,792 vines and sells award-winning wines, sparkling wines, and specialty beverages to individual consumers via its tasting room, direct shipping, and Wine Harvest Club subscription, plus over 300 Iowa retailers.
- Ownership category
- akta.pro rank
Tassel Ridge Winery industry classification
Industry- Product category
- Winery
- NAICS
- Wineries (31213), Wineries (312130), Beer, Wine, and Liquor Retailers (44532)
- SIC
- Wholesale-Beer, Wine & Distilled Alcoholic Beverages (5180)
- akta.pro primary industry
- Wine & Sparkling Wine Wineries & Brands (CRADAIAB)
- akta.pro secondary industries
- Wine Production & Winemaking (AFAFAAAB), Wineries & Vineyards (Tasting Rooms) (THAFALAE)
Keywords
Where Tassel Ridge Winery is headquartered
LocationHeadquarters
- HQ city
- Leighton
- HQ country
- United States
- HQ region
- North America
Offices2 records
Markets served
Tassel Ridge Winery business model
Business model- GTM type
- B2C
- Offering type
- Hardware or Manufacturing
- Cost components
- Supply Chain, Operations, Personnel, Marketing or Sales, Infrastructure
Revenue model
- Direct Retail Sales: On-site sales through the winery's tasting room and gift shop, including wine flights, bottles, and specialty items.
- Iowa Retail Distribution: Sales through over 300 retailers across Iowa, including grocery stores, wine shops, and restaurants.
- Wine Subscription (Wine Harvest Club): Wine Harvest Club membership offering regular shipments of wines to subscribers.
- Direct Shipping: Wine shipped directly to customers' doors via UPS across applicable states.
Pricing tiers
| Model | Billing | Price |
|---|---|---|
| Unit Pricing | Pay-as-you-go | Wine products sold by bottle or case |
Go-to-market motion1 record
Distribution channels4 records
Marketing channels4 records
Tassel Ridge Winery product offering
Product offeringCore offering
Tassel Ridge Winery is an Iowa-based winery that produces wines from cold-hardy grape varieties grown on its own vineyard. The company operates a tasting room, distributes its wines through more than 300 Iowa retailers and restaurants, runs a wine-of-the-month club, and ships wine directly to consumers via UPS.
Product overview
Tassel Ridge Winery is an Iowa winery and vineyard offering award-winning wines. The product portfolio includes a diverse range of wine products including dry wines (Iowa Marquette, Iowa Frontenac, Iowa Sabrevois), semi-sweet and sweet white wines (Iowa Edelweiss, Star Spangled White®, Iowa Brianna), rosé wines (Rockets Glare Rosé®, Sweethearts Rosé, Iowa St. Croix Rosé), fizzy/sparkling wines (Oskyfizzante® Pink, Oskyfizzante® Red, Oskyfizzante® Cranberry, Oskyfizzante® White), red wines (Iowa Harvest Red, Iowa In the Dark, Iowa Nouveau, Iowa Candleglow® Red), dessert wines (Finalé Iowa Red), and specialty products (Wine-A-Ritas, Finalé Bonbons). The winery also offers fruit wines including Cranberry Wine and Blackberry Wine. The wines are sold at over 300 retailers in Iowa and at the winery's tasting room.
Differentiator
Problem solved
Functional benefit
Brands
- Tassel Ridge: Main winery brand producing Iowa wines including Brianna, Edelweiss, Frontenac, Marquette, St. Croix, and other cold climate varietals
- Meadowcreek Vineyard
- Oskyfizzante
- Star Spangled White
- Red, White, & Blue
- Iowa Candleglow
- Rockets Glare Rosé
- Iowa St. Croix Rosé
- Sweet & Snazzy
- Iowa In the Dark
- Iowa Nouveau
- Iowa Lace
- Prelude
- Iowa Sabrevois
- Iowa Petite Pearl
- Iowa Marquette
- Iowa Brianna
- Iowa Edelweiss
- Iowa LaCrescent
- Iowa Steuben
- Iowa Harvest Red
- Iowa Frontenac
- Finalé
- Cranberry Wine
- Blackberry Wine
- Sweethearts Rosé
- Sweet Roxie Red
- American Pink Catawba
- Pizzeria & Pasta Too!
- Prairie Snow
- Wine-a-Rita
Products and services
- Tassel Ridge Wines (cold-hardy varietals) Bottled wines made by Tassel Ridge from cold-hardy grape varieties grown in its Iowa vineyard, sold to individual consumers through the tasting room, Iowa retail, and direct shipping.
- Wine Harvest Club A subscription program that ships a selection of Tassel Ridge wines on a recurring basis to consumer members.
- Custom Labeled Wine Service that lets customers order bottles of Tassel Ridge wine with custom labels for events, gifts, or personal use.
- Winery Tours and Tastings In-person wine tasting and tours hosted at the Tassel Ridge tasting room for walk-in visitors and groups.
Quantifiable outcome
- Over 300 Iowa retailers selling Tassel Ridge wines
- +1 more outcomes
Companies that use Tassel Ridge Winery
Customer profileNamed customers2 records
Segments2 records
Ideal customer profiles2 records
Tassel Ridge Winery technology and API
TechnologyTechnology focussed No
API detail
- Has API
- No
- API docs
- API detail
Core technology
AI maturity
App detail
Feature4 records
Tassel Ridge Winery partnerships and signals
Strategic signalPartnerships
Six partnerships are on record, tiered core and minor.
- Meadowcreek VineyardcoreMeadowcreek Vineyard is the primary grape supplier for Tassel Ridge Winery, providing cold-hardy grape varieties including La Crescent, Marquette, and Frontenac. The vineyard operates seasonal staff hired through Tassel Ridge Winery and is located in the Leighton and Oskaloosa, IA area.
- Pella.orgminorRegional tourism website partner providing information about the Pella area near the winery.
- Spoke Communications, LLCminorWebsite design and development partner located in Des Moines, Iowa.
- Horns Ferry HideawayminorLocal lodging recommendation for visitors to the winery area.
- Country Inn & Suites PellaminorLocal lodging recommendation for visitors to the winery area.
- The Stone MansionminorLocal lodging recommendation for visitors to the winery area.
Scale indicators3 records
Recent moves5 records
Expansion highlights4 records
Tassel Ridge Winery competitors and assessment
Company assessmentOthers
- Wine.com: Largest U.S. online wine retailer competing for DTC wine dollars. Thematically comparable as a direct-to-consumer wine channel that competes with Tassel Ridge's direct shipping and wine club subscription business.
Direct peers
- Carlos Creek Winery: Minnesota cold-climate winery producing wines from cold-hardy grape varieties, with on-site tasting room, events, and wine club. Direct comparable on cold-climate viticulture expertise and Midwest DTC model.
- Stone Cliff Winery: Iowa-based winery with similar Midwest cold-climate positioning, DTC tasting room, wine club subscription, and retail distribution across Iowa. Operates as the closest in-state direct peer to Tassel Ridge.
- Wollersheim Winery: Wisconsin winery with vineyard, tasting room, and broad retail distribution of estate-grown wines. Comparable Midwest regional winery with similar multi-channel DTC + wholesale structure.
- Door Peninsula Winery: Wisconsin winery with vineyard, tasting room, and wine distribution across the Midwest. Direct peer on regional Midwest winery operations, retail distribution, and DTC strategy.
- Parallel 44 Vineyard & Winery: Wisconsin winery specializing in cold-climate grape varieties grown in the Upper Midwest. Direct comparable on cold-hardy varietal expertise, vineyard operations, and DTC tasting room model.
- Cedar Ridge Winery & Distillery: Iowa's largest winery and distillery, with vineyard, tasting room, wine club, restaurant, and event operations. Highly comparable vertically-integrated Midwest winery business model.
Broad incumbents
- E. & J. Gallo Winery: Largest U.S. wine producer with broad portfolio across price points and retail channels. Represents the competitive benchmark for shelf-share competition and category pricing pressure that Tassel Ridge faces at retail.
- Trinchero Family Estates: Major U.S. wine producer and distributor (Sutter Home, Joel Gott, Ménage à Trois). Provides competitive context for shelf placement and brand-building at the national level versus regional players like Tassel Ridge.
Regional players
- Galena Cellars Vineyard & Winery: Illinois winery with vineyard and tasting room in northwestern Illinois near the Iowa border. Comparable Midwest regional winery model with similar tourism-driven DTC motion.
Market position
Strengths5 records
Weaknesses5 records
Competitive moat5 records
Key risks6 records
Key highlights7 records
Customer concentration
Tassel Ridge Winery social profiles
Digital presenceTassel Ridge Winery financial estimates
Financial estimateRevenue estimate
Valuation estimate
Tassel Ridge Winery leadership team
Management profileNumber of profiles
Profiles1 record
Tassel Ridge Winery funding detail
Funding detailFunding overview
Funding rounds
Investors
Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
Tassel Ridge Winery M&A and investment
M&A and investmentM&A
Investments
M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
Frequently asked questions about Tassel Ridge Winery
What does Tassel Ridge Winery do?
Tassel Ridge Winery is an Iowa-based winery that produces wines from cold-hardy grape varieties grown on its own vineyard. The company operates a tasting room, distributes its wines through more than 300 Iowa retailers and restaurants, runs a wine-of-the-month club, and ships wine directly to consumers via UPS.
Is Tassel Ridge Winery a public or private company?
Tassel Ridge Winery is a private company. It is classified as founder individual operated bootstrapped and is currently operating.
When was Tassel Ridge Winery founded?
Tassel Ridge Winery was founded in 2006. It employs 11 to 50 people.
Where is Tassel Ridge Winery based?
Tassel Ridge Winery is headquartered in Leighton, United States, in the North America region.
How does Tassel Ridge Winery make money?
Four revenue lines are on record. Direct Retail Sales are the primary driver. The others are iowa Retail Distribution, wine Subscription (Wine Harvest Club) and direct Shipping.
Who are Tassel Ridge Winery's main competitors?
Wine.com is listed as an others. Direct peers are Carlos Creek Winery, Stone Cliff Winery, Wollersheim Winery, Door Peninsula Winery, Parallel 44 Vineyard & Winery and Cedar Ridge Winery & Distillery. Broad incumbents are E. & J. Gallo Winery and Trinchero Family Estates. Galena Cellars Vineyard & Winery is listed as a regional player.
Does Tassel Ridge Winery have an API?
No public API is recorded for Tassel Ridge Winery.
What industry is Tassel Ridge Winery in?
Tassel Ridge Winery's product category is Winery. Its primary akta.pro industry code is CRADAIAB, Wine & Sparkling Wine Wineries & Brands, with a secondary code of AFAFAAAB, Wine Production & Winemaking. Its NAICS code is 31213 and its SIC code is 5180.