Panache Chocolate & Wine Trail Set May 20-21 and 27-28; Eight Northwest Ohio Wineries Featured



Hermes Vineyard

  The Lake Erie Shores and Islands Wine Trail will host the Panache Chocolate & Wine Trail event for two weekends in May. This is a self-driving tour of 8 wineries in Northwest Ohio, sponsored by Baker Candies, and will be held May 20-21 and 27-28.

The hours are Noon to 6pm. You may take all four days to visit all of the wineries. At each winery you will sample wines, enjoy appetizers and gather luscious chocolates from Baker Candies. You will also receive a crystal Schott Zwiesel wine glass and a candy dish for your chocolates. The cost is $40 per couple or $30 per single. Reservations are required.These events fill up quickly, so don't wait.

Participating wineries are:

• D&D Smith, Norwalk
• Firelands Winery, Sandusky
• Hermes Vineyards, Sandusky
• John Christ Winery, Avon Lake
• Klingshirn Winery, Avon Lake
• Matus Winery, Wakeman
• Mon Ami Restuarant & Winery, Port Clinton
• Paper Moon Vineyards, Vermilion

To make reservations please call 800-227-6972 or follow this link: Panache Wine Trail featuring Baker Candies Fine Chocolates

Chateau Aeronautique Slates Mother’s Day Weekend Release of Vignoles

Image via Wikipedia

Chateau Aeronautique Winery, 1849 Rives-Eaton Rd., Jackson, Michigan, (517) 569-2132, will celebrate Mother’s Day with the release of a new wine. The winery will release its just-bottled Vignoles, during a special event Saturday and Sunday, May 7 and 8 from Noon to 6:00 PM.

The Vignoles is a semi-sweet white wine with floral notes and characteristics. It’s a perfect pairing with something sweet and Chateau Aeronautique will be serving up frosted cupcakes from the Sugar Shack in Lansing. The release Gala, cupcakes and Vignoles tasting are all free.

Technorati Tags: wine

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Italian Wines To Be Featured At TREO Tasting Scheduled May 10

Guests enjoy a wine tasting at TREO restaurant.

On Tuesday, May 10, from 6:00 to 8:00 PM, TREO restaurant, 5703 Main St., Sylvania, (419) 882-2266, will host Andrew Burch of Enotec Wine Importers for a casual wine tasting featuring the Italian wines of Fattoria Rodano and other great wineries. Five to seven wines will be paired with special appetizers created by the TREO culinary team to offer a range of tastes.

The cost of $20 per person includes tasting and appetizers. RSVP to info@treosylvania.com or call 419-882-2266 to make your reservation.

Technorati Tags: wine

Photo by Phil Kaplan

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Wine Tastings & Events: May 4-7, 2011

Image by ci_polla via Flickr

Wednesday, May 4

The Andersons, Sylvania, Wine Tasting. 6-8 PM. Outstanding Bargains!: 1. Giocato Pinot Grigio, 2. Green Valley Merlot Blanc, 3. Kitchen Sink Red, 4. Senda 66 Tempranillo. $6 per flight or nominal fee per sample.

  
Beer and Wine Cave, 4400 Heatherdowns, (419) 382-6221. 6-9 PM. Pinots, Gris, Grigio, & Noir Wines. $15.

Thursday, May 5

The Andersons, Maumee, Wine Tasting. 5-7 PM. Mom’s wines: 1.Angeline – Pinot Noir – California, 2. Cline – Cashmere red blend – California, 3. J. Moreau & Fils – Vouvray {demi-sec} – France, 4. Tre Donne – Moscato D’ Asti – Italy. $6 per flight or nominal fee per sample.    

The Andersons, Talmadge Road. Wine Tasting. 6-8 PM. Italian Wine Month - Wines Of Northwestern Italy: 1. Picollo Gavi, 2. Ca’ Rossa Arneis, 3. Langhe Rosso, 4. Renato Corino Barbera D’Asti, 5. Dominico Clerico Arte, 6. Pira 2001 Marenca Barolo, 7. Orlando Abrigo Barbaresco, 8. Gancia Moscato D’Asti. Nominal fee per sample.

Beer and Wine Cave, 4400 Heatherdowns, (419) 382-6221. 6-9 PM. Pinots, Gris, Grigio, & Noir Wines. $15.

Corks Wine and Liquor, Promenade Plaza, 27250 Crossroads Pkwy., Rossford – (419) 872-6800. 6-9 PM. Nominal fee per sample.

Friday, May 6

Aficionado Wine and Cigars, The Shoppes at RiverPlace, 26567 N. Dixie Highway, Suite 135, Perrysburg, (419-873-4444). 5:00 – 8:30 p.m.  Mother's Day Wines: 1. Santa Margherita Pinot Grigio, 2. Mer Soleil Unoaked Chardonnay, 3. Bianchi Pinot Noir, 4. Niner "Twisted Spur" Red Blend. $15 tasting.

Corks Wine and Liquor, Promenade Plaza, 27250 Crossroads Pkwy., Rossford – (419) 872-6800. 6-9 PM. Nominal fee per sample.

Saturday, May 7

Aficionado Wine and Cigars, The Shoppes at RiverPlace, 26567 N. Dixie Highway, Suite 135, Perrysburg, (419-873-4444). 5:00 – 8:30 p.m.  Mother's Day Wines: 1. Santa Margherita Pinot Grigio, 2. Mer Soleil Unoaked Chardonnay, 3. Bianchi Pinot Noir, 4. Niner "Twisted Spur" Red Blend. $15 tasting.

The Andersons, Woodville Mall. 1-3 PM. Saturday wine tasting: 1. Senda 66 Tempranillo, 2008,Spain; 2. Starry Night Zinfandel, Sonoma, 2007; 3. Moselland Ars Vitis Riesling, Germany; 4. Mommy’s Time Out Pinot Grigio, Italy. $2 per flight or nominal fee per sample.

Walt Churchill’s Market, 3320 Briarfield. Maumee, (419) 794-4000. Noon to 5:00 PM. New Discoveries: The most exciting, brand-new wines, to enter our wine collection. Nominal fee per sample.

Walt Churchill's Market, 26625 Dixie Hwy, Perrysburg, (419) 872-6900. 1:00 PM to 5:00 PM. Nominal fee per sample or by the flight.

Technorati Tags: wine

[Information on tastings can be sent to TWAV@ATT.NET.] 

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Satek Winery Schedules Traminette Release, Introduces Dry Traminette

Satek Winery, (260) 495-9463, 6208 N. Van Guilder Road, Fremont, Indiana, will celebrate "Tram-MAY-nette" with release of their Traminette wine. 

Last year's Traminette sold out in 33 days, so fans of this locally-grown, semi-dry white wine have been waiting 11 months for the new release. To keep up with demand, the winery increased production to 109 cases in total but even that is expected to go quickly.

In addition, the Satek winemakers have created new a Dry Traminette wine, which will be released in tandem with the semi-dry Traminette.   Although Traminette is often made as a sweeter wine, the dry version brings out the best of the floral and spice notes for which the grape is known.

Traminette is Indiana’s “signature” wine and more than half of the states 53 wineries serve a version of it.Traminette is suitable for growing in cooler climates and yields a crisp white wine with pear and apple flavors. With aging honey and apricot flavors come forth. This is a tasty white wine which traces its heritage to Gewurztraminer.

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Stags’ Leap Wines Highlighted At Tea Tree Asian Bistro Wine Dinner

Stags’ Leap is one of the earliest wine estates in Napa Valley. The winery takes its name from an American Indian tale about a stag leaping from one pinnacle to another to avoid a pursuing hunter.

Wine lovers today would do well to pursue the outstanding wines of Stags’ Leap. The winery is located is the Stags Leap district, a “valley within a valley” inside Napa Valley in California. The wine growing area is known for its breathtaking beauty and world-class Cabernet Sauvignon.

Tea Tree Asian Bistro in Levis Commons hosted a wine dinner featuring Stags’ Leap wines with dishes with an Asian flair. Jarrod Demski, of Heidelberg Distributing provided insights about the wine while guests enjoyed delicious meal prepared by Chef Kevin and Simon Yu. Owner Lynn Wang was also on hand to greet the guests. Four Stags’ Leap wines were served and the meal finished with a German Riesling.

Although most wine fans may think of Cabernet when hearing “Stags’ Leap” their finesse with whites was very evident with the 2009 Viognier. This is a Rhone grape with beautiful floral aromas that paired nicely with the Snow Seafood Soup. The wine is delicate with a flowery aroma and flavor notes of pear and apricot. This is a complex wine with a long finish.

The second course was a Mahi Mahi tuna that featured a creamy caper sauce. This was a spot-on pairing with the ‘09 Stags’ Leap Chardonnay. The chardonnay is a golden straw color and the moderate oak finish is perfectly under control – supporting, but not overwhelming. This has a clean taste with minerality and bright fruit flavors of apple. The malolactic fermentation gives the wine a wonderful creamy mouth-feel.

The tomato salad course, served with popcorn shrimp and a mustard vinaigrette dressing, was paired with the 2007 Stags’ Leap Petite Syrah. The wine is created from 30-year-old vineyards growing in deep, rocky soil. This wine was sensational, with a lush aroma of dark berries and a pop of pepper with the first sip. The wine exhibits firm tannins and an inky deep color that stains the glass. The predominate flavor note for me was juicy blackberry. This is an explosive wine that was beautiful to savor.

The entrée course was short ribs that had cooked more than five hours with sweet Asian spices. The Stags’ Leap 2007 Cabernet Sauvignon was paired with this plate. Cab is king in Napa, where the volcanic soil retains the solar heat to help provide perfect growing conditions. This wine is 90% Cabernet Sauvignon with Cabernet Franc and Merlot added to dial in just the right flavor profile.

This is an outstanding Cabernet that retails for about $40. It exudes balance and complexity, with tasty red and black fruit flavors up front and a leather and coffee finish.

To wrap up the dinner, we enjoyed an ‘05 Schloss Vollrads German Riesling. This has the expected sweetness, but this is counterbalanced by a nice acidity. The sweetness of the Ginger Strawberry Ice Cream dessert further softened the sweetness of the wine. The opinion of the table was divided on the Riesling, this is not unexpected as a semi-sweet wine like this can hit or miss depending on the palates of the various drinkers.

I polled the cluster at our end of the table for their favorites. The Viognier and Petite Syrah were head and shoulders among the rest of the pack. To make sure of our vote, we retasted the wines while enjoying a view through the window of clouds rolling in on the horizon. Sauntering down to the other side of the table, I determined their two favorites were the Petite Syrah and the Riesling.

Interestingly enough, there is a Stags’ Leap Winery and a Stag’s Leap Wine Cellars. The apostrophe is everything. Stag’s Leap Wine Cellars is well know for it’s flagship Cask 23 wine and is one of the premier wineries in the world. Stags’ Leap has two stags on its bottles and Stag’s Leap has one.
To rekindle memories of this special dinner, I purchased a bottle of the Viognier and Petite Syrah.

This was a relaxed and fun evening. Lynn says she has some other special events being planned at Tea Tree, including a sake tasting.

Technorati Tags: wine,Stags' Leap

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