Messina Hof Winery & Resort is providing several ways to celebrate Father’s Day. Messina Hof is a winery destination site in Bryan, Texas.
Included over the weekend of June 16 and 17, visitors will discover wine samplings, a special dinner and a choice of gift baskets. Samplings are available June 11 to June 17. Begin with sampling Papa’s Day Paulo and Port samplings at the wine bar. Perhaps this is a good time to find out what wine your father enjoys and purchase a bottle for him.
The restaurant at Messina Hof will feature Surf ‘n’ Turf and will be available Saturday and Sunday. If planning to take your Father to dinner at Messina Hof be sure to make reservations so you won’t be disappointed. Phone number: 979-778-9463 ext. 234.
Three gift baskets suitable for Dads include: “Texas Dad,” “Presidential Dad,” and “Good Ole Daddy Basket.” The “Texas Dad” basket includes a Texas Hold ‘Em Red or White wine plus a stemless wine glass. The “Presidential Dad” basket includes George Bush Presidential Library wines – a bottle of each, Gewurztraminer Raspberry Chipotle Sauce and wine crackers. The ultimate basket “Good Ole Daddy Basket” includes a Port, Cabernet Sauvignon, Roasted Garlic BBQ Sauce, Papa Paulo Spiced Jam and two “Redneck” wine glasses.
For details about Father’s Day at Messina Hof visit their online events page. An article about Messina Hof Winery is available online. Since that article was written, they have opened a second facility in Fredericksburg, Texas.
Cheers, Kathy
Today marks the seventh anniversary of the Wine Century Club. To celebrate, the members, over 1,000 worldwide, are challenged to taste as many different varietal grapes as they can. A previous anniversary challenge netted over 300 different grape varieties. We have two wines we will add to the list, a 2009 Kerner by Lemon Creek Winery in Michigan and a 2009 Chardonel by Founders Wine Cellars also in Michigan. Our June travels took us to wineries in the Lake Michigan Shore AVA.
The 2009 Kerner resembled Riesling. The grape is a cross between Riesling and Trollinger. The wine was a light straw color and had a floral and yellow stone fruit aroma. There was yellow stone fruit on the taste and the crisp finish saw fruit yielding to roses.
The 2009 Lake Michigan Shore Mary Anna Chardonel, Oaked (Non-Filtered), was made from the Chardonel grape, the hybrid grape is a result of a cross of the hybrid Seyval and Chardonnay. This wine was also a light straw color. It had apple on the aroma and the taste was apple and a hint of caramel. The finish was crisp and fruity.
Not to totally disregard the nobel grapes, we plan on having the Illuminatus 2009 Cabernet Sauvignon that we made at Vint Hill Craft Winery in Virginia for dinner. This wine is nearing the moment that it should be released, that is if we were selling it. This is one of the wines we are planning to take to our daughter’s wedding in August. Meghan helped with the bottling last August and it will be interesting to see what she thinks of the wine ten months later.
Cheers,
Terry
Enjoy some time at a winery this weekend. Many wineries have patios or lawns on which to relax with a glass of wine. What better way to spend a day!
Cheers! Kathy
Friday, June 8
Ferrante Winery & Ristorante, Ohio
Music: 4-Kings
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Serpent Ridge Winery, Maryland
Event: First Friday
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The Winery at LaGrange, VA
Event: Wine Down
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The Winery at Perennial Vineyards, OH
Music: REN
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Saturday, June 9
Cava Winery, NJ
Event: Flag Day Celebration Weekend
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Chateau Chantal, Michigan
Event: Leland Food & Wine Festival
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Ferrante Winery & Ristorante, Ohio
Music: Mac & Leah
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McKinley Springs, Washington
Event: BBQ Showdown & Benefit
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The Winery at Perennial Vineyards, OH
Music: Triple Play
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Sunday, June 10
Cava Winery, NJ
Event: Flag Day Celebration Weekend
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Ferrante Winery & Ristorante, Ohio
Music: Trifecta Rocking Blues
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Make plans to attend the 7th Annual Lake Michigan Shore Wine Festival on June 16.
Lake Michigan Shore region is about 1.5 hours from Chicago and 4 hours from Detroit. At many of the wineries we heard that this area is a tourist attraction for visitors from Chicago who enjoy vacationing in the region. The Lake Michigan Shore Wine Trail includes many of the local wineries but not all. When planning to visit this region consider visiting the wineries. Also plan to attend events.
On June 16, visit Michigan’s Weko Beach on Lake Michigan Shore to take part in the 7th Annual Lake Michigan Shore Wine Festival. Enjoy the beautiful beaches and Michigan wines. The event takes place on Weko Beach. Live music will be provided by P.S. Dump Your Boyfriend, Cathy Richardson Band, JC Brooks & the Uptown Sound, Duke Tumatoe and Everyday People.
Enjoy a day at the beach in the sun with music, wine tastings and local restaurant foods.
Tickets are available online or at Harding’s Friendly Market ahead of time. Tickets will also be available at the festival.
Cheers, Kathy
On Friday, June 9th, the Wine Century Club celebrates its 7th anniversary by holding a worldwide all day event. Members throughout the world are challenged to taste unusual wine varieties. The goal is for the little over one thousand members to taste wines produced from over 314 different varieties of grapes. The 314 mark is the number of different grape varieties the previous membership tasted on an anniversary date. These wine enthusiasts won’t be drinking Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot or Chardonnay. Instead they’ll search out varieties such as Aglianico, Piedirosso, Falanghina, Greco and Sagrantino.
Kathy and Terry joined the Wine Century Club in 2009. All one has to do is taste wines made with 100 different grape varieties. The task is easier said than done. It took us two years and travel to over 300 wineries to hit the 100 varieties level. What’s even a greater challenge is the Doppel Level, 200 different varietal grapes. Since 2009 we are just a couple grapes short of that level.
The task is not arduous, it just takes awhile. The task of tasting 100 different grape varieties is also for those that have a more open mind when it comes to wine. When our children were growing up, we gave each of them a National Park’s Passport book. Whenever we visited a National Park they would get the park’s stamp in their book. It was a very short fun activity that chronicles their journey. The Wine Century Club is similar, however you can use their application to record the different grape varieties.
The vast majority of club members are from the United States with over 1000. I find this odd since the Europeans have it much easier. There are several countries in Europe that have well over 100 different grape varieties in their country. It is more of a challenge in the United States. If you haven’t started to record the wines you have tasted on your wine journey, consider downloading the Wine Century Club application. Membership is free. It may help to motivate you to open the door to wines made from new grape varieties.
Cheers,
Terry
BBQ competitors from the Northwest and Canada will gather at McKinley Springs Winery in Washington to compete on June 9-10. As many as 29 teams will come to this delightful spot in Prosser, Washington to test their skills against each other.
The BBQ Showdown benefits the welcoming of our troops home through “Operation BBQ.” In addition to tasting an array of BBQ dishes, entertainment will be provided by Cale Moon who is a country singer/songwriter.
Tickets for this fun event/benefit are available online. “With your ticket you will receive a logo glass filled with a special McKinley Springs wine (for those over 21), the opportunity to sample the best BBQ in the Northwest and thank our troops through “Operation BBQ” which welcomes our troops home with a family BBQ. Water will be provided.” Find out more about Operation BBQ Northwest by visiting the website.
Suggested items to bring to the BBQ include: lawn chairs, umbrellas, and side dishes to complement the BBQ.
McKinley Springs Winery is a large vineyard property with a winery. Together with its friendliness and scenic views of hundreds of acres of vineyards, you are sure to enjoy your visit. An article with photos about McKinley Springs Winery is available online.
Cheers, Kathy
On June 8, 9, and 10, 2012 a major festival takes place in West Virginia close to Harpers Ferry National Historic Park.
The Mountain Heritage Arts & Crafts Festival is large and the focus is on quality arts, crafts and bluegrass. What makes this particular festival so great is a combination of things:
- Six West Virginia wineries will be participating
- The arts and crafts are judged before selection
- Live bluegrass music groups will be playing on Saturday and Sunday
- Numerous arts and crafts demonstrations take place
- Ticket prices are great! Ticket prices at the gate are Adults – $7.00 Children 6-17 – $4.00 Children under 6 are free. Parking is included in the ticket price. Ticket prices are even better in advance.
- Plus a $1. coupon is available at: http://www.jeffersoncountywvchamber.org/festival/coupon.html
Arts & Crafts Categories
- Art Glass
- Bands
- Baskets
- Clothing & Accessories
- Decorative Painting / Folk Art
- Dolls & Stuffed Animals
- Dried Flowers / Herbal Products
- Food
- Furniture
- Graphic / Fine Arts
- Jewelry
- Leather / Sheepskin
- Metals (Other than Jewelry)
- Musical Instruments
- Other Media
- Photography
- Pottery
- Quilts
- Rugs
- Toys
- Winery
- Wood Accessories
West Virginia wineries to be included are
- Fork of Cheat Winery
- Kenco Farms
- Kirkwood Winery
- Potomac Highland Winery
- Watts Roost Vineyard
- West-Whitehill Winery
A year ago in June we attended the Mountain Heritage Arts & Crafts Festival in West Virginia, close to Harpers Ferry National Park. We discovered it to be a wonderful experience with so much to see and experience. This is a family friendly event.
Cheers, Kathy
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The Chianti Classico Rules and the Black Rooster Image Are Changing
Considered to be historic changes, the board of directors with many meetings has worked on the changes for two years prior to the recent approval.
Changes to be made:
The outgoing president, Marco Pallanti, noted: “I’ve been working with the board for a long time to find the biggest consensus from members about these changes. Endeavors aimed at having the consumer perceive the higher quality that our wines have achieved in recent years, enabling us to face future challenges with a set of regulations able to make Chianti Classico stronger with regard to growing international competition.”
For further information about the Chianti Classico changes, visit the Consortium website.
It will be interesting to try wines from the new pyramid to discover the differences. Will the changes make a difference to wine consumers? It will be interesting to find out.
Want to know about the Black Rooster? Check out the Wine Trail Traveler Black Rooster article.
Cheers! Kathy