Wineries Unlimited Trade Show & Conference opens today to the public. The original trade show and conference was started by Winery and Management Magazine in 1976. We’ll be tweeting about the trade show during the day. If you haven’t already done so, consider becoming a Twitter friend of wineabout and winetrailtravel. We’ll help to keep you updated on wine news, wine events, wines and recipes with wine.

Cheers!

Kathy (wineabout)
Terry (WineTrailTravel)

There is great news for Virginia wine lovers and anyone wanting to explore Virginia wines. In April the DrinkLocalWine organization is sponsoring the 2^nd Drink Local Wine Conference. This year, the conference will be held in Loudoun County, Virginia from April 24-26.

This conference is open to the public so be sure to make plans to attend and discover what all the excitement is about. Events to be included in the conference are panel discussions as well as the Twitter Taste-Off of Virginia wines.

We had the opportunity in 2009 to participate in the 1^st DrinkLocalWine.com Conference held in Texas. It was a delightful experience for any wine enthusiast. So be sure to consider attending this year’s DrinkLocalWine.com conference. For more information, visit the DrinkLocalWine.com website at http://www.drinklocalwine.com.

While visiting Virginia, schedule a few extra days and visit some of the local wineries. For suggestions, you may want to use one of the Itineraries suggested on the Wine Trail Traveler website. If you want to limit the amount of driving, consider http://winetrailtraveler.com/itineraries/i66va.php. This itinerary includes wineries such as Pearmund Cellars and The Winery at La Grange.

Come to the east coast and enjoy springtime in Virginia.

Cheers!

Kathy

Another year and another defeat for direct shipping in Maryland can certainly depress the 20,000 people who make up Marylanders for Better Beer & Wine Laws. However, there are things that can be done next. Build on the success of growing the non-profit group from 1,500 to 20,000. Aim for a six digit membership. Our state elected officials really can’t seem to help themselves fall victim to misinformation provided by lobbiests. Therefore continue to educate them and if possible, vote them out of office.

Voting politicians out of office may not have a desired result, since they will simply be replaced by other politicians. Therefore consider influencing the liquor wholesalers in the state. You might want to consider boycotting wine shops until a direct shipping bill is passed. Of course this can cause hardship but there are ways around not buying wine locally. Most Maryland residents are within an hour’s drive of a winery. Consider making a day trip to local wineries and stocking up on the wines you like.

Another option is to make your own wine. If you start with a wine kit, you will learn the basic process and end up with about 2 ½ cases of wine. By law, you are permitted to make 100 gallons of wine. You and your spouse can make 200 gallons of wine a year that is about 85 cases of wine. That’s a lot of wine. This is tax free so the state or the federal government will not collect tax on this wine. Do keep in mind that you get what you pay for when it comes to wine kits. The more expensive kits will make a product that you may enjoy better.

If you would like to make a premium wine and don’t have the equipment at home, you won’t have to travel far. There are several winemaking facilities in Maryland, where you can go to make a barrel or tank of wine. Residents in Howard, Montgomery and Carroll counties may wish to make wine at Tin Lizzie Wineworks in Clarksville, Maryland. Winemaker Dave Zuchero will guide you through the basic steps using grapes purchased from several locations including Stagecoach Vineyards in Napa. You will end up with 21 to 23 cases of quality wine that you can actually serve to friends.

You can make a difference. Take action, whether it is educating politicians or making your own tax free premium wines, get involved rather than getting depressed. Remember more thn 30 other states allow direct wine shipping – don’t let Maryland be the last to learn about the direct wine shipping benefits, including more money for the state government.

Maryland legislators will once again vote on a direct shipping bill. The bill comes up every year and has trouble making it out of the committee. In Maryland, Maryland wineries as well as wineries throughout the world may not ship wine to Maryland residents. Why do I consider this below average? Because 60 percent of the country does allow wineries to ship wine to consumers in their states. Why doesn’t Maryland?

Perhaps it goes back to Prohibition and our politicians keep an outdated frame of mind. Or perhaps it is the liquor wholesalers who lobby against direct shipping in Maryland. One argument they use to frighten legislators is just as archaic as Prohibition, teens are going to get on the Internet and order wine. This argument falls on deaf ears to learned people who realize that there is no research to indicate this is a fact. It is not a problem in any of the states that allow direct shipping.

It seems to come down to how much business liquor wholesalers will lose to direct shipping. It looks like one percent must be a big cut in profits. What can Maryland residents do? Continue to let their representatives know they want direct shipping. If we do not get it, vote the incumbents out of office in November.

The largest winery and vineyard conference east of the Rockies begins this week on Wednesday, March 9 in King of Prussia, Pennsylvania. The Wineries Unlimited 2010 Conference is being held at the Valley Forge Convention Center outside of Philadelphia. Wineries Unlimited is a combination trade show and conference and lasts four days.

This is the largest conference of its kind east of the Rockies. Numerous companies and exhibitors will have displays on Wednesday and Thursday. Seminars are presented throughout the four days of the conference.

Winery and supplier workers who are unemployed can attend one day of the Trade Show with a complimentary pass when they present a “pink slip” from a known company.

Winery and Vineyard Management Magazine has produced the Wineries Unlimited Conference since 1976. According to the press release from Richard Leahy, “Wineries Unlimited offers grape growers and vintners the opportunity to fulfill their annual operational needs by inspecting new products and meeting supplier representatives.”

Seminars will include viticulture, enology and marketing. The conference includes silent and live auctions.

Anyone who is involved in the wine industry in any aspect should consider attending one or four days of this year’s Wineries Unlimited Conference.

For more information, visit the Wineries Unlimited 2010 website.

Cheers! Kathy

Last night we participated in an early St. Patrick’s Day dinner that will benefit children in Tanzania. Tickets for dinner included Irish stew, salad, ½ corn beef sandwich and dessert. The event began at 6pm with numerous snacks including spicy mixed nibbles, animal crackers and pretzels. All of this for a twenty dollar ticket. Beer and wine were available for a small fee. The wines chosen to be served were boxed wines. I had a light, sweet wine that was okay but not memorable. However this was for a worthy cause and so I didn’t mind. A local band provided live Irish music and there was a performance of Irish music. It was a delightful time for everyone and all for a good cause – The Tanzanian Children’s Project.

The Tanzanian Children’s Project seeks to build a medical clinic that will provide health care to those living in Mahida, Tanzania. More information about the Tanzanian Children’s Project is available at the website: www.TanzaniaKids.org.

If you are looking for a way to help others in need, consider a fundraiser at a winery. Wineries are great places to hold fundraisers. Participants can have a delightful time and also help others in need.

Cheers! Kathy

Yesterday I wrote about the direct shipping bill in Maryland. This week is very important and anyone can submit written testimony on the bill. Written testimony must be received by Thursday at 12pm. No matter what state you live in, if you are experiencing successes with direct shipping please add your support to the proponents of Maryland’s House Bill 716. Shouldn’t residents of Maryland have the same rights that many other US residents have? If you have visited wineries in other states and enjoyed their wines wouldn’t it be nice to be able to have the wine shipped directly to your home?

For details on supplying written or oral testimony, visit this page on the Marylanders for Better Beer and Wine Laws. Maryland consumers can use your help. If you have questions contact Jennifer Levy, Director of Legislative Affairs for MBBWL, at jlevy@mbbwl.org

Cheers! Kathy

This week is very important for Maryland consumers. On Friday, March 5, the Maryland House will be listening to testimony regarding direct shipping of wine. Written testimony and oral testimony are acceptable. To find out the details and how you can help go to Marylanders for Better Beer & Wine Laws or contact their Legislative Affairs Director at jlevy@mbbwl.org.

Visit Annapolis, Maryland and sign up to give testimony on Friday, March 5 in support of direct shipping. Help Maryland consumers succeed in overturning archaic wine legislation. 2010 can be the year of direct shipping for Maryland!

Plan on staying for the weekend and enjoy the beautiful capitol of Maryland with its history, fine restaurants, the Naval Academy, museums and tours.

Cheers! Kathy

After visiting more than 450 winery tasting rooms, we have not seen unruly behavior by visitors. While some tasting rooms are quiet others have more socializing. Each one has its own style and atmosphere. It was with shock that we learned one of the owners of Three Brothers Wineries, in the Seneca Lake wine region of New York State, was attacked and beaten for asking two unruly people to leave.

The idea behind the yellow and red cards is that if a visitor receives a yellow card, it is because their behavior is inappropriate. Receiving a red card means that they are no longer welcome at the winery or any other area winery.

The use of red and yellow cards was conceived of two or three years ago. However, one of the problems at that time was tasting room owners and employees deciding the difference between unruly behavior and a group enjoying themselves. Now that someone has been injured, will the wineries work together?

Obviously, the two people who attacked the winery owner were way out of line. A winery owner has every right to ask someone to leave the premises if they are not behaving in an appropriate manner. Rude and inappropriate behavior would make other visitors uncomfortable. Tasting rooms are meant to showcase wine and provide visitors an enjoyable time.

Three Brothers Wineries is an exciting winery to visit. They feature three separate tasting rooms and a brewery tasting room. They also produce an excellent non-alcoholic root beer! Each tasting room has its own atmosphere. When in the Finger Lakes region of New York, be sure to check Three Brothers Wineries out.

Cheers! Kathy

How do you prefer your wine oaked or unoaked? If you like a wine with oak nuances, are you concerned with where the oak was grown?

For wine aged in oak, do you prefer French oak, Hungarian oak or American oak? As we visit numerous wineries, we ask what type of oak is used and normally the response is French, Hungarian and/or American.

There are many species of oak and oak grows in many areas. Climate and varieties cause a difference in the oak. This affects the oak nuances and winemakers must choose between the many choices of oak available. While some may prefer French oak, French oak barrels are significantly more expensive than Hungarian or American oak.

American oak is quite popular at wineries but it is not an easy choice for winemakers to decide from what area of the US they would like the oak sourced. American oak barrels can be produced from oak growing in areas including Pennsylvania, Kentucky, Minnesota, Missouri, Oregon, Virginia and Arkansas. Variations in the oak occur depending upon where the oak is growing. It’s similar to the same varietal grape growing in a different climate; it will have different characteristics.

For those with limited funds or space, there are alternatives to expensive, space consuming oak barrels. Small oak pieces in the shape of cubes, beads, blocks or spirals can be purchased. These can be added to a carboy or stainless steel tank and provide oak nuances. These oak pieces are available in different toasts just as oak barrels. This is especially ideal for home winemakers and small startup wineries.

Is there a difference between using an oak barrel and oak pieces? I imagine the purist would say there is a difference but I’m not so sure the public would notice. However during a winery tour, the lack of oak barrels would be noticeable. Somehow oak barrels whether French, Hungarian or American add to the delightful experience of visiting wineries.

Cheers! Kathy