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25th Annual Grapefest Festival in Texas

August 19, 2011 – 1:01 am

Plan to travel to Texas in September so you can enjoy the 25th Annual Grapefest in Historic Downtown Grapevine, Texas. The dates are September 15, 16, 17, and 18, 2011.

According to the online information, this is “the largest wine festival in the Southwest.”

Events include entertainment, wine tasting, a culinary pavilion, GrapeFest Golf Classic, a Vintner’s Auction, Carnival, Arts & Crafts and food booths. Anyone who enjoys Champagne will want to check out the Champagne Terrace, Champagne Brunch and Champagne Cork Shoot-Off. In addition the Baylor Region Medical Center will have a KidZone. The KidZone will include interactive games, petting zoo and live entertainment.

Admission on Thursday is free and early Friday from 10am til 5pm admission is also free. Otherwise daily admission for adults is $8. For other admission fees, check the website. There is also a fee for tasting wines. Check the Grapefest Festival website for more details.

The 25th Grapefest in Texas has so much to offer that one should be sure to attend if possible.

Grapevine, Texas is a quaint town with numerous wineries. Enjoy shopping in some of the small shops for unique items.

Cheers! Kathy

By Kathy | Posted in Winery Events | Tagged , , , , , , | Comments (0)

Pinot Noir Smack Down, Part 2

August 18, 2011 – 6:37 pm

Dinner time on the East coast so I checked on my supply of Pinot Noirs. I selected a 2006 Husch Anderson Valley Pinot Noir from the Knoll Vineyard. The grapes came from the estate from 40 plus year old vines. To get the real Pinot experience I poured the wine in Riedel Pinot Noir glasses. The color was a dark ruby with a light purple rim. I was not able to read text through the wine so that was a step in the right direction for me. The aroma was predominately cherry and cherries were on the taste. I was picking up the faintest hint of strawberries also on the taste. There were mild tannins, darn, on the fruity and crisp finish. I wondered if tartaric acid was added to the wine. In all, I liked the wine, however was disappointed in the mild tannins. I prefer the bold tannins that some Oregon Pinots can offer.

Through dinner prep I had a glass of the Pinot and was ready for a hot summer’s day meal. We had crab salad, fried zucchini and pasta with a simple butter, basel and a sprinkling of grated Parmesan cheese. Well … a white wine or wimpy Pinot Noir would have been a better match for the dinner. So I did the next best thing. Finished the Pinot for dessert.

Cheers,
Terry

By Terry | Posted in Wine Notes | Tagged , , | Comments (0)

Pinot Noir Smack Down

August 18, 2011 – 8:09 am

The Pinot Noir Smackdown is an interesting challenge for me. Although I can enjoy a Pinot Noir, it’s not my usual red wine choice. I like a red wine that has a color from dark ruby to black and you can’t read text through the wine. This eliminates many Pinot Noirs. I also like a wine with bold to outrageous tannins. This also eliminates many Pinot Noirs.

Imagine my happiness when I visited Archery Summit in Dayton, Oregon. Their portfolio of Pinot Noirs fealt like they were made for me. They had three Pinots that I would love to buy and have with a meal. The 2007 Looney Vineyard Pinot Noir was a dark ruby with notes of cherry and spice. The finish had bold tannins and was fruity. The 2007 Arcus Estate Pinot Noir was also dark ruby with an aroma of cherries and violets. The taste had cherry and spice notes. The finish was very fruity with tannins. Finally the 2007 Red Hills Estate Pinot Noir was a dark ruby and had cherry and spice notes on the aroma and taste. There were bold tannins on the finish.

While visiting Oregon wineries in the Willamette Valley, you’ll discover that many wineries have several Pinot Noirs in their portfolio. The grape is very versitle as are the crafted wines. You can find the light bodied strawberry-like Pinot rosé wines as well as the full-bodied bold tannin Pinots. My Pinot Noir smackdown choice for a wine growing area is Oregon.

Cheers,
Terry

Archery Summit wine cave aging Pinot Noir

By Terry | Posted in Wine Notes | Tagged , , , | Comments (0)

Several Winery Events Beginning Today!

August 18, 2011 – 1:01 am

Spend time at a winery this weekend! Below are several winery events between Thursday, August 18 and Monday, August 22. If you prefer a quieter time at a winery visit during the week if possible or early in the day.

Cheers! Kathy

Thursday, August 18

Cava Winery & Vineyard, New Jersey
Event: Thirsty Thursday
Web Info

Chateau Chantal, Michigan
Event: Tapas Tour
Event: Jazz at Sunset
Web Info

Chateau Chantal, Michigan suggests
Harding’s Cup Wine Challenge
Web Info

Laurello Vineyards, Ohio
Event: Pizza for the Cure
Web Info

Friday, August 19

Chateau Chantal, Michigan
Event: Tapas Tour
Web Info

Chateau Chantal, Michigan
Suggests: 3rd Annual Traverse City Wine & Art Festival
Web Info

Ferrante Winery & Ristorante, Ohio
Entertainment: Tom Todd
Web Info

By Kathy | Posted in Winery Events | Tagged , , , , , , | Comments (0)

2011 Hong Kong Wine and Dine Festival

August 17, 2011 – 1:01 am

The 3rd Hong Kong Wine and Dine Festival takes place October 27-30, 2011 at the West Kowloon Waterfront Promenade. This event is organized by the Hong Kong Tourism Board.  In the past Forbestravel.com has named this event one of the top 10 wine and food festivals.

The Hong Kong Wine and Dine Festival includes highly desirable wines, restaurant dishes, and live music.

To taste wines, adults (18 plus) can purchase tokens. To enjoy food and other beverages, participants can purchase items at individual booths. Over 200 wine and wine tasting booths will be available. Professional wine experts will be available. Music on the main stage includes dance and jazz.

Exhibitors include wines, cuisines (Asian, Chinese and Western), wine accessories and wine education.

For more information visit the Hong Kong Wine and Dine Festival website.

If you have the opportunity to visit this wine and food festival, take the time to do so.

Cheers! Kathy

By Kathy | Posted in Winery Events | Tagged , , , , , | Comments (0)

Mormoraia, More than a Tasting Room Experience

August 16, 2011 – 9:56 am

Mormoraia is just a few kilometers outside the medieval walled city of San Gimignano in Italy. Tastings are expensive and are for groups of six. There are also tours and tastings combined including food. The tour of the property and different buildings is worth it however. For those who want to spend evenings there is a selection of rooms, suites and apartments. We stayed for two weeks in a two-bedroom apartment that also had a living room area, large dining area and very small fully equipped kitchen. The advantage of staying for an evening to a week or more is the serenity of the area. One can spend hours walking the grounds and walking along the vineyards. We were fortunate to observe migrant workers harvesting the olives for olive oil. It’s quite a process. Views of the walled city, San Gimignano are in the distance and can provide spectacular photos early morning when fog covers the walls and only the towers appear above the fog level. Check out our articles on Mormoraia on the WineTrailTraveler site.

Mormoraia

Apartment at Mormoraia

Cheers,
Terry

Vineyards near the bottom of the photograph. The building is where the apartments are located. San Gimignano is in the distance.

Harvesting olives for the olive oil.

Towers of San Gimignano rise above the fog level from Mormoraia.

By Terry | Posted in Wine Notes | Tagged , , | Comments (0)

September 1: A Special Day for Wine Enthusiasts

August 16, 2011 – 1:02 am

September 1, 2011 is a special day for wine enthusiasts. Two twitter tastings are taking place, International Tempranillo Day and Cabernet Sauvignon Day. Participants interested in participating with the International Tempranillo Day can register on Eventbrite.

Tempranillo events are being scheduled. Currently on the TAPAS (Tempranillo Advocates, Producers and Amigos Society) website events listed for Tempranillo Day include Septempranillo in Paso Robles, Tapa and Wine Tasting at La Boca, Santa Fe, New Mexico, and Celebration at Olympia Wine Tasting Bar in Washington. For more information visit Tapas website. If you prefer gather some friends together for a wine tasting. Whatever you choose to do, tweet about the wines and use the hashtag #TempranilloDay.

Keep watch of the Tapas website. According to the website, this is a nonprofit trade association “whose mission is to promote Tempranillo and other varietal wine grapes native to the Iberian Peninsula, and wines produced from them in North America.”

Some of the varieties continually supported by the Tapas organization include Albariño, Alvarelhão/Brancellao, Bastardo (Trousseau), Bobal, Caiño Blanco, Cariñena/Mazuelo (Carignane), Garnacha (Grenache), Garnacha Blanca, Garnacha Peluda, Garrò, Graciano, Juan Garcia, Loureira, Macabeo (Viura), Malvasia, Mandò, Manto Negra, Mataro/Monastrell (Mourvedre), Mencia, Mission Criolla, Palomino, Prieto Picudo, Rufete, Sousão/Souzão, Tempranillo/Tinta Roriz, Tinta Amarela/Trincadiera Prieto, Tinta Barroca, Tinta Cão, Torrontes, Touriga Franco (Francesca), Touriga Naçional, Treixadura, Verdejo, Verdelho, and Xarello. How many of these wine varieties have you tried?

Enjoy tasting and tweeting about Tempranillo wines on September 1.

Cheers, Kathy

By Kathy | Posted in Wine Notes | Tagged , , , , , , , | Comments (1)

Are you sure, sure?

August 15, 2011 – 3:36 pm

For those Americans interested in watching summer television game shows the phrases “It’s worth WHAT!” and “Are you sure, sure?” resonate with the infographic highlighting Bordeaux wines. The infographic published on Snooth.com shows the auction prices of several leading producers for a bottle of acclaimed wine. For instance, a 1945 bottle of Mouton-Rothschild has current auction price of $12,551.36. “It’s worth WHAT?” Someone that splurges on a $20 bottle of wine could buy 627 bottles for the same price.

Compare the price of the 1945 Mouton-Rothschild to the 1985 Mouton-Rothschild results in a savings of $12,266.70. At $284.66 per bottle for the 1985, it ranked as the least expensive wine on the infographic. Other producers included on the image are Latour, Lafite-Rothschild, Haut-Brion and Margaux. Although 1945 and 1985 vintage years were shown on the graphic also vintages from 1961, 1990, 1995 and 2000 appear. What was the second most expensive wine? A 1945 Haut-Brion had an auction price of $3,300. “It’s worth WHAT?”

I just bottled a barrel of 2009 Cabernet Sauvignon. After 20 plus months in French oak it is drinking nicely right now. This creates quite a dilemma. If I drink it now, it will be gone. If I don’t drink it, I might be gone. How many of the winemakers from 1945 are still alive today? Decision – I’ll drink the 09 Cab over the next few years and yes, “I’m sure, sure!”

Cheers,
Terry

By Terry | Posted in Wine News/Commentary | Tagged , , | Comments (0)

Messina Hof Offers more than a Tasting Room Experience

August 15, 2011 – 10:36 am

Messina Hof Winery and Resort in Bryan, Texas could easily be the “poster child” for the agri-tourism movement. Visitors can certain take advantage of what Messina Hof has to offer beyond the tasting room. A bistro is adjacent to the tasting area and a restaurant is located in the building to the right of the tasting room facility. Elegant meals are prepared in the restaurant. Stroll the vineyards or take one of the tours offered. If you like pampered elegance, spend the night in the villa located to the left of the tasting room facility.

You can read about Messina Hof Winery and Resort on the Wine Trail Traveler site.

The companion lodging site has a review of the Villa at Messina Hof.

Cheers,
Terry

Tasting room and retail facility with a bistro to the left at Messina Hof

Restaurant at Messina Hof Winery and Resort

Villa at Messina Hof Winery and Resort

By Terry | Posted in Wine Notes | Tagged , | Comments (0)

Southern Maryland Wineries

August 15, 2011 – 7:32 am

Last week we visited two wineries in southern Maryland. Both wineries are on the Patuxent Wine Trail. Running Hare Vineyard in Prince Frederick offers an unusual site for wine tasting. Using an outdoor pavilion, all wine tastings are held outside during the warmer months of the year. The location is delightful with vineyards, a ceremony site and an event building in view. The large Tuscan-style facility is for special events and wine tastings during the cold winter months.

A short drive away is Perigeaux Vineyards and Winery in St. Leonard. This small boutique winery is located in a renovated house. Visitors walk from the parking area along a vineyard to reach the tasting room. The wines at Perigeaux are primarily dry.

In addition to Perigeaux Vineyards and Running Hare Vineyard, the Patuxent Wine Trail includes Cove Point Winery, Fridays Creek Winery, Port of Leonardtown Winery, Slack Winery and Solomons Island Winery. More information about these wineries is located on the Wine Trail Traveler website.

Cheers! Kathy

By Kathy | Posted in Winery Tasting Rooms and Cellar Doors | Tagged , , , , , , | Comments (0)

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