Published: December 21, 2008 11:42 pm         

Indian Creek Winery destroyed by fire

“It’s just like losing my husband again,” said Jenny Lewis, owner of Indian Creek Village Winery.

The well-known winery was destroyed by fire early Sunday. No injuries were reported.

Lewis said Sunday afternoon she is still in shock and did not know if she would rebuild. Only the winery was damaged. A bed and breakfast, wedding chapel and other parts of the grounds were undamaged.

“I don’t have a clue, I’m still in utter shock,” she said.

Lewis, who lives near the winery, found out about the fire when someone called her Sunday morning. There was no wedding or Christmas party at the winery Saturday and everyone left at 6 p.m., she said.

“We had everything closed down just fine, we thought. It’s not real at this point,” Lewis said.

Lewis and her husband, the late Dr. Terry Lewis, opened the winery in 1999 and moved the house where the bed and breakfast is located in 2000. The church was moved in three years ago. He died two years ago.

This past week Lewis finished a new wine, “Docs Riesling,”named for her husband.

“We were just finishing the tanks we had when he was still alive, and it was pretty hard to take. We didn’t even get it out on the shelves; it’s just one of those weird things,” she said.

Lewis said she is lucky there was no wind and the fire did not spread because the area is so dry.

Major County Deputy Sheriff Jeff Starkey said the alarm was received about 6:45 a.m.

“It was a total loss. It was just the winery part. Nothing else was involved,” he said.

Ringwood Fire Chief John Regier said the fire still is being investigated. State Fire Marshal Investigator Sam Shaffnit investigated the fire later on Sunday and said the cause was undetermined.

“We haven’t had time yet to put it together. It was a sizable loss,” Regier said.

Ringwood was the responding fire department and Regier said units from Fairview, Meno and Cleo Springs also responded. The building was totally engulfed when units arrived.

“It was confined to just the winery. The bed and breakfast and the rest of the grounds are just fine,” he said.

Lewis said her neighbors and the firefighters who came to fight the blaze are wonderful people and everyone has been very kind to her.

“It was going to be our retirement,” Lewis said.