Kansas may be better known for wheat than wine, but grape growing has deep roots here.
Before Prohibition, Kansas was one of the Midwest’s leading wine-producing states, with hundreds of acres under vine. When statewide prohibition arrived in 1881—decades before the rest of the country—it destroyed the industry for nearly a century. Modern winemaking didn’t return until the 1980s, spurred by changes in alcohol laws and university-backed agricultural research.
Wine education followed this resurgence. The Kansas State University Research and Extension program began offering workshops and publications on viticulture and enology in the late 1990s, helping small growers establish vineyards suited to the Great Plains climate. Today, K-State continues to provide technical training, pest-management guidance, and soil-analysis support through its Midwest Grape and Wine Industry Institute, a collaboration with neighboring states.
For those on the hospitality and certification side, Kansas residents often pursue WSET and sommelier courses through regional providers or online programs affiliated with the National Wine School and the American Wine School.
Together, these options give Kansas winemakers and enthusiasts alike a pathway to build expertise—reviving a long-dormant craft that once flourished on the prairie.
