Articles in Notes From The Vineyard
Why are oak barrels toasted?
If you’ve been reading my column you know that I am big fan of dry red wines. I especially enjoy a red wine that has been sitting in an oak barrel for a while. The oak gives the wine so much more body than if the wine was sitting in …
Unique
I am always on the lookout for a unique wine, unique label, unique bottle or unique wine accessory. So last week we had the opportunity to pour our wine at WineStyles in Howland. They have a monthly wine tasting where you can sample 5 sweet wines or 5 dry wines …
Notes From The Vineyard
It is an exciting time for us in the vineyard! We are starting to see some swelling in the vines which means that we should be seeing bud break in the next couple of weeks! The next couple of weeks are a perfect time to start planting a vineyard if …
Notes From the Vineyard
How many of you have thought to yourself that owning a winery or a vineyard would be an awesome opportunity? I know I thought that! But when we first started talking about owning a winery or growing grapes we really had no idea where to start. Sure, we loved making …
Notes From The Vineyard
Is anyone else sick and tired of winter yet? Spring officially sprang this week but unfortunately I think the Cleveland area missed that memo, so here we are surviving with cold temperatures and potentially more snow. The cold temperatures and extra moisture has lead to a very popular topic amongst …
Notes from the vineyard
I know many of you are sick and tired of seeing the snow, the gray clouds and having to deal with the colder temperatures. But as I mentioned in last week’s column there are some sure signs that Spring is around the corner.
First, aside from it being pancake breakfast season …
Notes from the vineyard
It’s the season of flowers, fancy dinners and, of course, lots of hearts. Although if your Valentine’s Day is anything like ours the night is filled with homework, a quick dinner and running out the door to the next sports practice or dance lesson. While Valentine’s Day has never been …
Nolan Night is Around the Corner
Even though January brings in our “winter hours” (Friday and Saturdays from 3pm – 9pm) we are quite busy working behind the scenes at the winery. Besides the usual work in the cellar (checking the wine from harvest, monitoring the juice to make sure it stays at a stable temperature, …
Ice Wines
Happy 2013! Tis the season for making new promises and new goals for the new year. Along with my regular New Year’s resolutions (losing weight, winning the lottery, etc) I am also adding a new resolution this year – broaden my horizons on wine. I like this resolution because it …
Wine Gift Ideas
Last week I gave you 5 of my favorite wine gifts for this year. And while I could probably have this list go on until next Christmas, I will just keep it to the final five! Items four and five can be found at Bed, Bath and Beyond or I’ve …
Holiday Leftovers
By now you probably have had your share of turkey, mashed potatoes, gravy, cranberries and desserts! But if your family is like mine you also have enough leftovers from dinner to have a second Thanksgiving dinner. Whether you are serving turkey sandwiches, turkey chili, turkey soup, turkey frittatas or just …
Food & Wine
I’ve mentioned a couple of times how I love the local food trucks… from Hodge Podge (who helped put the Cleveland Food Trucks on the map in Food Network’s “The Great Food Truck Race) to Sweet! The Mobile Cupcakery (yes, they only sell some of the greatest cupcakes) to Cracked …
Blush Wines
Now that we have talked about red wine and white wine, let’s get into the topic of blushes or rosé wines. When someone mentions a blush wine (usually this wine is a lighter red to pink color) you may start to think about the sweeter taste of White Zinfandel. While …
White Wine Grapes vs. Red Wine Grapes
As I have mentioned in previous columns, this summer has been the best – hot temperatures, plenty of sun, lots of parties, and of course, lots of wine! As harvest season is right around the corner, I thought I would take the next couple of weeks to give you a …
Anniversaries
Any anniversary is a milestone. Whether it is an anniversary for a happy occasion or a sad occasion, every year that passes brings so many more memories. So looking back to 8 years ago when the winery opened, I cannot believe the number of memories and milestones we have celebrated. …
Vintage Ohio
Save the date – Vintage Ohio is August 3rd and 4th this year. What is Vintage Ohio you ask? It is Ohio’s largest wine festival held at Lake FarmPark in Kirtland, Ohio. Enjoy the day sampling wines from over 25 Ohio wineries, see over 30 over vendors in the fine …
Wineries vs Wine Bars
A couple of weeks ago we talked about how popular wineries are becoming in the state of Ohio and what a great asset they are to the older wineries. Well, did you know that wine bars are just as important and are growing just as fast in the state of …
The Annual Summer Solstice, Wine, Art and Music Festival
What an interesting Spring we have had – hot temperatures, frost, hot temperatures, cool temperatures, some rain, more hot temperatures – this weather certainly has been impressive this year. But the good news is the official start to summer is right around the corner – and that means one thing …
Notes from the vineyard
Fruity, dry, full bodied, fruit forward… I could go on and on with terms to describe wine. There are so many wine terms but what do they mean? And do they really match the wine? Well that depends on the taster. Many time we will share a bottle of wine …
Notes from the vineyard
This weather has been amazing and to think that summer isn’t even here yet! The next couple of weeks will be filled with parties, graduations and weddings. Many people are looking for something different to serve at their parties. They love wine but after a busy (and extremely hot) summer, …
Wine Tastings
If you’ve been to a local winery recently, you may have noticed posters or advertisements for local wine festivals, wine tasting or trail events. With so many wineries in the area though, how can you, the consumer, learn more about these events and determine where to go? This week we …
Notes from the vineyard
So apparently I jinxed myself in last week’s article. I mentioned how great the weather has been and how lucky we were to get a head start on the growing season. Then unfortunately the weather took a turn for the worse and warnings of frost and hard freezes were running …
Notes from the vineyard
Wow – this weather is fantastic!! I have been enjoying it as much as I could, cleaning up the branches, opening the windows in the house to let the fresh air in, going for a jog… it has been a great feeling. Unfortunately, as much as we have been enjoying …
Gas & Wine
I recently read a column about how the price of gas is increasing the cost of the wine bottle. I understand that it will cost more to ship but unfortunately the wine industry is seeing an increase in equipment and an increase in shipping. I am not alone when I …
Orlando
One of my favorite places to visit is Orlando, Florida. While I am partial to Disney there is so much to offer there! In a recent trip to Orlando a wonderful sommelier sat down with us to review an extensive wine list from his outdoor restaurant. After explaining we love …
Notes from the Vineyard
I recently went out shopping for Christmas dinner and was so excited to see the displays of champagne. So now that I am in the holiday mood the best way to celebrate the season was to go out and find some champagne to recommend for your holiday parties. I selected …
The Five Senses of Wine Tasting
As I started to think about how the five senses impact a wine tasting, I was challenged to find out how touch impacts wine. You can always touch a wine and hopefully you will feel that it is wet and in some cases you may even feel a little sediment …
Social Networking
There are so many social networking sites now that it is amazing how people are changing something so basic and putting it on a networking site. For example, I have found sites where you are on a website attending a cooking class while in your own kitchen. Or another site …
Notes from the Vineyard
What an amazing Summer we had. A good mixture of temperatures, a great mix of sun and rain and a few days just hot enough to perk up the vines. Unfortunately, this Summer has flown by and we are quickly greeted by Fall! While Fall is not my favorite time …
Organic Wines
While this summer has not been the best summer for the vines, we are still getting ready to harvest our grapes next month. Between the wet Spring we had and minimal hot, sunny days this summer our grapes are a little behind schedule. But at least there are grapes on …
Did you know that Ohio ranks in the top 10 of wine-producing states and employs more than 4,000 people in the wine industry?
Did you know that Ohio ranks in the top 10 of wine-producing states and employs more than 4,000 people in the wine industry? Anddid you know that Ashtabula County alone is home to 20 wineries, which are visited by nearly 500,000 people annually? Even more interesting (this fact surprised me!) …
“Mommy Juice” Controversy
Recently the Boston Globe did a story titled “Mommy Juice: Pushing alcohol on stressed parents” that has started a bit of controversy. The US wine markets are starting to see an increase in new wine labels that explicitly call out “mommy” on the label. For example, I recently had the …
Notes from the vineyard
We get a lot of guests that mention they suffer from bad headaches from drinking wine. And, no, I am not talking about the headache you get from drinking too much wine, but some people will get a headache a couple of hours later after drinking just a glass of …
Wine Tasting
Red? White? Dry? Sweet? Sparkling? Fruit? Have you ever been to a wine tasting and faced with all of these choices and not know where to start? Well before you head out to your next wine tasting, let me provide some guidance.
Depending on which wine magazine you read, which web …
Notes From The Vineyard
I am so excited that we have had a few days of sunshine and are finally starting to see the vineyard dry out. And I am even more excited that the official start to summer is right around the corner – and that means one thing to me! The Annual …
Notes from the vineyard
I know I have said this in past articles this Spring, but this rain really needs to stop. While some rain is good for new vines, it is definitely not healthy for mature vines. Unfortunately this much rain is not good for any age vine. As most farmers will tell …
“Rain, rain, go away…”
“Rain, rain, go away…” If only a simple song could get rid of this rain, my job would be so much easier. Unfortunately, the vineyard is starting to see some problems with all of this rain.
As I mentioned in last week’s article we are getting ready to plant more grapevines …
Notes From The Vineyard
The month of March certainly has made statement so far – snow, ice, rain, sun; the weather sure has been difficult to handle. However now that Spring is here, I am hopeful that the worst is behind us. Unfortunately, some of us have already had to deal with some difficult …
Notes From The Vineyard
Valentine’s Day has come and gone and while we celebrated with wine we still have some special bottles to open. Thankfully, there is still one more holiday in February that will force us to open our special bottles.
I am really looking forward to my favorite holiday this month…Open That Bottle …
Notes From The Vineyard
As you may have seen, we host and attend many wine-related dinners throughout the year. And, as you might imagine, plenty of wine is consumed. Many participants attend, and throughout the night, it becomes apparent there is some liability inherent in having people consume wine at a social function in …
Notes From The Vineyard
January is one of my favorite times of the year at the winery. Even though January brings in our “winter hours” (Friday and Saturdays from 3pm – 9pm) we are quite busy working behind the scenes at the winery. We are doing the usual work in the cellar, checking the …
Notes From The Vineyard
2011… wow – I can’t believe it! Where did 2010 go? Oh well… now that 2011 is here, it is time for me to get started on all of my exciting plans for this year and not dwell on last year. I know that 2011 is going to fly by …
Notes From The Vineyard
All of this talk about Champagne last week really put me into the holiday mood and the best way to celebrate the season was to go out and find some champagne to recommend for your holiday parties. I selected two bottles from the label of Domaine Ste Michelle which is …
Notes from the vineyard
Well, 2010 is almost in the history books and 2011 is just around the corner. Between getting together for holiday parties, making holiday treats and, of course, dealing with the snow, I recommend taking this week to pick up your champagne for New Year’s Eve. But how do you know …
Notes From The Vineyard
It’s been a good year, actually, let me rephrase that – it’s been a GREAT year! Sure, this year has definitely put up a good fight for us… we’ve survived some bad economic times, we’ve dealt with a loss of crop from a late freeze last year, we’ve dealt with …
Top 5 gifts for wine lovers
As is my yearly tradition, my husband and I were one of the insane that went shopping on Black Friday. For us, it’s not about getting the hottest deal or the newest electronic gadget; for us, it’s about getting all of our Christmas shopping done. We have a pact with …
Sparkling wines during your get-togethers
By now you probably have had your share of turkey, mashed potatoes, gravy, cranberries and desserts! But if your family is like mine you also have enough leftovers from dinner to have a second Thanksgiving dinner. Whether you are serving turkey sandwiches, turkey chili, turkey soup, turkey frittatas or just …
Notes From The Vineyard: Sake is quiet different than South Korean rice wine…
In last week’s article I mention how I sampled a South Korean black raspberry rice wine. I had a number of people ask me why I called it rice wine and not sake. Many people assume that all sake wines are rice wines but after some research I found out …
EPCOT’s Food and Wine Festival
I recently had the chance to go back to Walt Disney World to check out the Food and Wine Festival at EPCOT. I have read many reviews and blogs discussing the festival but I never expected so much!
If you ever get the chance to attend this festival, I highly recommend …
