Hit the Trail and Taste Iowa Wine!

Grab your favorite wine-loving friends and head to Northeast Iowa this weekend to The Iowa Wine Trail’s 3rd annual Wine & Holiday Foods Weekend.

Enjoy good wine and delicious food, you’ll have a great time on the trail! Seven interesting wineries host the event from 10:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m. on Saturday November 4th and Sunday 5th.

Sample Iowa wine paired with festive food at each stop. Tour the wineries and talk to the winemakers. Visit all seven wineries over the two days and you’ll be entered into a drawing to win a free bottle of wine from each winery.

Plan your route and pick your starting point from the full list of wineries at iowawinetrail.com. You can purchase your ticket at the first winery you visit. The tickets are $25 each, and are just the ticket to a great weekend of wine tasting, decadent food sampling and a tour of the Mississippi Valley Wine Country.

The Iowa Wine Trail is featured in the fall issue of Make Mine Wine magazine. Writer Lori Erickson let’s us travel with her on her recent trip. I enjoyed her insights and visits with the winemakers, and I can tell she enjoyed the wine!

Pick up a copy of the fall issue of Make Mine Wine at one of the wineries on the trail this weekend. It will be a nice supplement to your tour and I am positive you’ll love the gorgeous photography by Perry Struse and Andy Lyons. Take a look and share your thoughts.

Come back on Monday and let me know which wines you enjoyed at the Wine & Holiday Foods Weekend. I’ll be glad to hear about the fun you had on The Iowa Wine Trail, too!

Cheers!

Barbara
MakeMineWineMagazine.com

Tailgating Tips!

The upcoming issue of Make Mine Wine magazine features food and fun – Tailgating with Wine. You’ll find some delicious tailgating recipes (whether you are at the game or watching from your living room). We interviewed some experienced tailgaters and share some of their tips with you here.

 

One of the biggest tailgating challenges is getting everybody in the same place at the same time. If you can’t spend the extra money for special parking spots, designate a meeting area such as a shopping-center parking lot and caravan to the stadium so everyone parks in one area. You also can use cell phones, of course, to stay in touch.
A few more pointers from LuAnn and Tim Reinders’ tailgating buddy, Robin Brekke:

• Keep it simple at first. When you’re starting out, serve no-cook items such as sandwiches and food from a local deli. Then, gradually expand you menu and invest in more equipment, if you like.
• Get organized. Make lists and diagrams to help you pack and remember everything.
• Cook ahead. Prepare as much of the food as possible at home, so the cooks can enjoy the tailgate, too.
• Plan simple food for the kids (burgers, hot dogs, even peanut butter- and-jelly sandwiches).
• Think non-breakable. Pack food in plastic or disposable containers with lids.
• Bring extra. From utensils to paper towels and trash bags, you’ll need more than you think. Bring extra tables, too. There always seems to be more food than table space.
• Take plenty of water, especially for early-season games. Frozen bottled water can substitute for commercial ice packs and provides cool drinking as the ice melts. Also bring a jug of extra water for cleanup.
• Use two coolers – one for food and one for beverages, so food doesn’t heat up every time someone reaches in for a drink.
• Pack food in the order of use. Put items you’ll need last at the bottom of your cooler and those you’ll use first at the top.
• Keep clean. Because soap and running water probably won’t be handy, take hand-sanitizing liquids and sanitizing wipes.

Good Ideas!

Another good idea is to subscribe to Make Mine Wine today … and order some gift subscriptions for holiday gifting!

 

Cheers!

Barb