Prairie Fire Winery and Candles
Photo by EMMA HIGHFILL
Bob and Julie DesRuisseaux, owners of Prairie Fire Winery, describe their vineyard as hyperlocal—100% locally, Kansas grown.
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Owner Bob DesRuisseaux likes to say that Prairie Fire Winery is only 18 minutes away from 6th and Wanamaker but is really a world away. A visit to Prairie Fire means live music, local meats, hand poured candles and about 30 varieties of wine. And because of its proximity to I-70, Prairie Fire is sending the flavor of Kansas all over America and around the globe. “The only continent our wine hasn’t made it to is Antarctica,” DesRuisseaux said, “and we’re working on that one! We get photos from all over—Australia, Japan, even the demilitarized zone between North and South Korea. You never know where a buyer at the winery might be from.”
TK Business Magazine
Wine is great business for DesRuisseaux, but it is also a tradition. “My family has been in farming for centuries,” DesRuisseaux said, “and wine has always been a part of it. Growing up in my family, there was usually wine on the table with dinner. For us, wine goes with food. It’s a part of the meal.” Wine drinkers might not immediately think of Kansas as a source for their preferred beverage, but DesRuisseaux points out that grapevines are native to Kansas and actually grow wild here. The Flint Hills is the perfect place for growing grapes and other perennial crops because of
