Tuesdays are known as traveltuesday for a group interested in travel on Twitter. Just use the hashtag #traveltuesday after your tweet about travel.

Today (Tuesday) is the perfect day to suggest that those who enjoy tasting wine at wineries check out the itineraries on the Wine Trail Traveler website. If you will be traveling for Labor Day weekend, you may want to consider one of the itineraries. Keep in mind that these itineraries are suggestions only but they do give wine enthusiasts a starting point. These itineraries are based on two to three day trips and provide a tool in helping you with planning travel to wine regions.

States covered in the itineraries include California, Colorado, Maryland, Michigan, New York, North Carolina, Ohio, Oregon, Pennsylvania, Texas, Virginia and Washington. There are also three itineraries for Ontario, Canada. Altogether there are more than 50 itineraries available on the website.

Enjoy planning a visit to wine regions across the country.

Cheers! Kathy

When I was in college I enjoyed learning about politics. In fact I majored in Political Science and was a summer intern on Capitol Hill. All those years ago, I was impressed with the Congressman I worked for and what I was doing in his office. Frequently there were messages from constituents who asked for help and the staff would work on solving the issue or providing information to help. Yes, I was young and idealistic. I knew what politics historically had been like and believed it had changed for the better.

As years have passed and I see politicians on both sides of the aisle distort their records and mislead voters, I have become dissatisfied and wonder why I ever thought politicians would work for the constituents. I even believed that “common sense” was applicable to all issues and that’s what politicians should focus on concerning legislation. Today I’ve turned 180 degrees and am convinced that politicians are only concerned with voting for legislation that will keep them in office. Of course staying in office also requires money and it appears that politicians are more than willing to accept donations from lobbyists for their election campaigns.

In Maryland direct  wine shipping foes are providing money to help politicians win elections. How will the majority of these politicians vote? Just look at their past records. For more information about politics and wine in Maryland visit Maryland Wine and Maryland for Better Beer & Wine Laws.

As far as the fall elections go, yes I’ll definitely vote but I will study what the candidates say now in comparison with their past actions. Learn about your politicians so you can Vote Smart!

Cheers! Kathy

New and unique wine packaging has been introduced into the United States. Will it take a while to catch on? Already the AstraPouch is being used in the UK, South Africa and Australia. The AstraPouch was developed by AstraPouch North America and is being used by Glenora Wine Cellars to package their Trestle Creek Riesling. Glenora is using the 1.5L pouch.

AstraPouch packaging offers a number of advantages for wineries and for consumers. These pouches are very light. If you have ever moved a case of empty glass wine bottles you’ll notice how heavy glass can be. This all adds up to an increased carbon footprint. By using AstraPouch packaging the carbon footprint should dramatically decrease.

The lighter weight of carrying wine is also great for the consumer who wants to carry the wine while camping or hiking.

The nozzle on the pouch allows wine to pour out but keeps oxygen from entering into the pouch and oxidizing the wine. According to the AstraPouch North America website, after opening the pouch, the wine will stay fresh for up to one month.

Kudos to Glenora Wine Cellars for beginning the use of a new environmentally friendly option to glass bottles.

Note: A review of Glenora Wine Cellars is available on the Wine Trail Traveler website at

http://winetrailtraveler.com/newyork/glenora.php.

Cheers! Kathy

Celebrate the 1^st day of September, drink Maryland wine and support the Maryland Winegrowing PAC. On Wednesday, September 1 guests will be able to join WYPR’s Cellar Notes host Al Spoler at Clementine, Baltimore MD.

Guests will enjoy wines that scored high during the Maryland Governor’s Cup Competition as well as wines that are not yet publicly available.  Hors d’eourves will be paired with the wines.

Tickets are available at http://www.missiontix.com/events/product/9476/an-evening-of-top-maryland-wine. All proceeds will benefit Supporters of Maryland Winegrowing PAC. This is a beginning of a number of events to be hosted by the Maryland Winegrowing PAC.

Enjoy wine, hors d’eourves and help support Maryland’s wine industry.

Cheers! Kathy

I enjoyed reading a long post about wine competitions by New York Cork Report. The staff of the New York Cork Report has decided that for the foreseeable future they will not judge wine competitions. Titled We Won’t Participate as Judges in Wine Competitions: Here’s Why the lengthy post describes many of the issues involved with judging wines. Among the reasons why include the number of wine competitions and medals awarded means that many consumers do not know what the medals mean. As stated in the post, “There are so many medal-awarding competitions that the events have lost any sense of meaning to the average consumer, and even wine-loving consumers can’t possibly know the significance of a single bronze or silver or gold medal awarded at the many, many events.” This post is lengthy and well worth reading by winery owners, winemakers and wine enthusiasts.

This article reminds me of what a winemaker said one day while I was attempting to get a sense of what all the different medals and wine competitions meant. The winemaker said, “It’s like entering a third grade science fair, everyone gets a ribbon just for participating.” Since hearing that I have always looked at the medals draped around a wine boggle necks or decorating wall space, with a jaundiced eye. I know of one winery that entered the same wine two different years into the same competition. The first year the wine won gold and the second year it did not even place.

When you visit the  New York Cork Report site to read the complete article, be sure to read the comments posted. There are many opinions about the value of wine competitions. How do you feel about wine competitions? Do you buy wines based on whether they have won medals?

Cheers! Kathy

Soon a wine and culinary center will be built in Washington. The supporters of the Walter Clore Wine and Culinary Center in Prosser, Washington are striving to start with an outdoor event facility with an area that is also capable of holding meetings and small events. The building is expected to be opened in the fall of 2010. The Walter Clore Wine and Culinary Center is planning to offer events in this facility.

The Wine and Culinary Center is named after Dr.Walter Clore, a renowned viticulturist. Dr. Clore began experimenting with vinifera grapes in the 1930’s. Today he is considered the Father of Washington Wine.

The Center is supported by numerous groups including: Washington Wine Commission, Washington State University, Prosser Economic Development Association and the City of Prosser.

Eventually the Wine and Culinary Center will add more space and include interactive exhibition galleries, a flexible orientation theater for lectures and demonstrations, a demonstration kitchen, vineyards and gardens, a wine bar/tasting area, a retail shop for local products and classroom space.

To keep up with the development of the Walter Clore Wine and Culinary Center, be sure to visit their website.

The site of the center in Washington wine country seems to be ideal. While visiting wineries in Washington, this will become an ideal way to spend a day in Washington Wine Country.

Wine lovers who are interested in wine and culinary centers may want to visit the New York State Wine and Culinary Center in Canandaigua, New York. You can find a review of NYWCC at http://winetrailtraveler.com/learning/nywcc1.php.

Cheers! Kathy

Why are vineyards romantic? I can certainly understand that wine is probably the most romantic beverage/food. But why are vineyards chosen as a sight for proposals, wedding pictures and anniversaries?

In this photo, Kevin Sullivan and Brittany Powers pose a few weeks prior to their August wedding. The backdrop is Niagara grapes that were transplanted from Kevin’s grandmother house in upstate New York. Vineyards have a connection to the past. Their potential to produce wine grapes gives them a connection to the future. The aroma of the Niagara was evident even weeks prior to harvest. As a wine, Niagara elicits comments such as, “Grandma’s house.” The grape creates wines that not only offer aroma and taste, but also a sense of time and place.

Perhaps vineyards are chosen as a romantic site because they are deep rooted and enduring. What are your thoughts?

Cheers,
Terry

Heading to any destination, you wonder if there are wineries in the area to visit. How do you research to find wineries or vineyards in the area? There are some simple quick ways to find wineries/vineyards.

Use Google maps and type the city and state or country your travels will take you to. For example, type “Auckland, New Zealand” in the search maps box. A map of Auckland will appear in the map box. Next delete the city and type “wineries.” You should probably scroll out a few times to cover a larger geographical area. Several balloons and dots appear on the map. You can hover the cursor over a balloon or dot and click on it for more details. Often there is a link to the winery/vineyard website in the more information box. Notice that you will have balloons and dots that give you false positives. Rather then a location for a winery or vineyard it may give a location for a business such as a wine tour company or church, some churches use the word vineyard in their name.

Another method is to search for a wine growers association website in the region you are visiting. For example if you were to type “Temecula wine growers association” into the Google search box, the Temecula Valley Winegrowers Association will be the first listed item. There is a direct link to the wineries and vineyards in the area. Note that not all destinations have a winegrowers association.

If you are really pressed for time, you can view the trip itineraries on the Wine Trail Traveler site. More than fifty itineraries can be used to help you plan wineries and vineyards to visit. Lodging facilities are also suggested on the trip itineraries.

As part of you research, discover the list of wineries/vineyards you’d like to visit. Note the times they are open to the public and if you need to make an appointment. With thousands of wineries in the United States and tens of thousands of wineries and vineyards in other countries, hopefully you will find some to visit close to your destination.

Happy Travels
Terry

Humanitas is a winery that is dedicated to producing wines and using the profits to donate to charity. The donations focus on ways to solve hunger, housing and illiteracy in local communities throughout the US.

Wine enthusiasts can choose between different wine clubs. These include  ‘CHARITY CASE’! Wine club, ‘PHILANTRHOPIC 6-PACK’ Wine club and ‘CARE PACKAGE’! Wine Club.

Unique to the concept of donating to national organizations, the donations are regionally distributed and wine buyers have a choice of what local charity they can direct the donation.

For detailed information, visit the Humanitas website.

Cheers,

Kathy

I’m often amused by rationale that people develop to drink wine. Bruning’s Clock and Home Accent Store in Beavercreek, Ohio offer one of the best reasons for wine drinking. In addition to clocks, the store also sells wine racks and wine cabinets. Twice a week they hold wine tastings. Bruning’s offers the following rationale for drinking wine and other spirits:

“In a number of carefully controlled trials, ?scientists have demonstrated that if we drink ?1 liter of water each day, at the end of the year we would have absorbed more than 1 kilo of Escherichia coli, (E. Coli) – bacteria found in feces. In other words, we are consuming 1 kilo of poop.

However, we do NOT run that risk when drinking wine & beer (not to mention tequila, rum, whiskey or other liquor) because alcohol has to go through a purification process of boiling, filtering and /or fermenting.

Remember:
Water = Poop,
Wine/beer = Health
Therefore, it’s better to drink wine or beer and talk stupid, than to drink water and be full of crap.”

Do you have a rationale for drinking wine?

Cheers,
Terry