Relax with a Glass of Wine While You Find Jeans that Fit!

Jasper Winery has something special planned for the next event in their Re-Wined Series. It’s called, Do these jeans make my butt look small? This fun event will take place on Tuesday, March 3 at 6:30 p.m. at Jasper Winery, 2400 George Flagg Parkway, Des Moines. 

The staff of Blonde Genius of West Des Moines will help the attendees find jeans that fit and feel good and look good!

Jasper Winery is also offering hors d’oeuvres from Proof restaurant, the new highly-rated restaurant on 13^th and Locust in downtown Des Moines. You’ll receive a free glass of wine – if you haven’t sampled Seyval Blanc, I recommend you give it a try. It was the top choice of the Tasting Time with Make Mine Wine in the Holiday issue.

The cost: just $20. Gather your girlfriends and call 515-282-9463 for reservations today. 

Cheers!

Barbara Rasko

Publisher

Make Mine Wine

www.MakeMineWinemagazine.com

 

Wine Tasting, Beads and Masks Can Be Yours at Mardi Gras on the Western Iowa Wine Trail

Seven Western Iowa wineries welcome you to Mardi Gras, this weekend, Saturday, February 28 (10:00 – 6:00)  & Sunday, March 1st 2009 (Noon to 5:00).

Spend the weekend on the trail, visiting the wineries, sampling Iowa wine paired with samples of Mardi-Gras-style food. Collect beads and have fun!

Passports for the event are $18 per person and are available at each winery. The Western Iowa Wine Trail wineries are Breezy Hills Vineyard, Minden; Danish Countryside Vines & Wines, Exira; King’s Crossing Vineyard & Winery, Glenwood; Loess Hills Vineyard & Winery, Crescent; Prairie Crossing Vineyard & Winery, Treynor; Sugar Clay Winery & Vineyard, Thurman and Whispering Hills Vineyard & Winery, Carson.

Visit
www.westerniowawinetrail.com for more information.

Cheers!

Barbara Rasko, Publisher

Make Mine Wine

www.MakeMineWinemagazine.com

Tassel Ridge Winery Offers Tastes from Around the World

The food and wine pairing dinners at Tassel Ridge Winery are exceptional – and unique. Bob Wersen and his team create events that offer wine education as well as first class enjoyment.

 

Two interesting events have been announced for March  and I recommend you make your reservations early. Here are the details:

 

A Taste of at Tassel Ridge Winery – Food & Wine Pairing Dinner
Dine under a Moroccan-style tent beginning at 7:00 p.m., Saturday, March 28^th. Enjoy a special dinner featuring honey lamb kebabs, Couscous Royale made with chicken, a variety of vegetables with seasoned-to-your-taste Harissa Paste. Delicate honey pastries will be served for dessert. Each course will include a fascinating Tassel Ridge wine pairing!  Advanced reservations are required by Wednesday, March 25. Price: $60 per person, plus tax

Wines of the World Class:
The third class in the Wines of the World series will be held  Wednesday, March 11 from 6:30 – 8:30 p.m.  Italy is the only country in the world that produces wine countrywide, from the Alps in the north to Sicily in the south. Enjoy a light meal while discussing the history of wine production in this fascinating part of the world. Steve Richardson, Tassel Ridge Winery’s Vineyard Manager and Certified Wine Educator, will introduce you to a few of the nearly 1,000 varieties of grapes grown in while exploring its many unique wine regions. Learn to identify the many grape growing regions and the grape varieties used in the production of your favorite Italian wines. Sample wines from Tuscany, the Piedmont, and Northeast Italy, and compare them to similar wines made in Iowa at Tassel Ridge Winery. Seating is limited. Advanced reservations are required by Monday, March 9 and the price is $35 per person, plus tax.

The beautiful Tassel Ridge Winery is located at Leighton, Iowa – just past Pella. It’s an easy drive from Des Moines and well worth the trip. For reservations call 641.573.5111. To find upcoming opportunities to sample Tassel Ridge Wine in Central Iowa, check the website at www.tasselridgewinery.com

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Read our review of a Food and Wine Pairing Dinner at Tassel Ridge Winery In the Wining & Dining section of the Spring issue of Make Mine Wine.  The magazine will be out next week with plenty of ideas to help you Explore Midwest Wine Country and Midwest wine. You can order a subscription to Make Mine Wine by calling 515.962.5515 – just $12 for 4 issues plus tax in Iowa.

 

Cheers!

Barbara Rasko

Publisher

Make Mine Wine

www.MakeMineWinemagazine.com

What are You Most Looking Forward to this Spring in Midwest Wine Country?

It was really cold last night, but I know spring is getting closer each day. When it arrives, it will be time to get out and explore Midwest Wine Country again. What are you looking forward to the most?

Won’t we have fun!

Cheers!

Barbara Rasko

Make Mine Wine

www.makeminewinemagazine.com

Experience the Des Moines Metro Opera Wine & Food Showcase

When my husband and I graduated from Simpson College in Indianola, Iowa, Doug Duncan was a fellow student and Dr. Robert Larsen was the respected head of the Music Department. Within two years, Dr. Larsen and the now late Douglas Duncan founded Des Moines Metro Opera. Their mission then was the same as now: To operate a progressive opera company with a national reputation that fosters the excellence, diversity and vitality of the arts in the United States

Let me suggest a great chance to enjoy yourself and support the 37^th season of this Central Iowa jewel. Plan to attend the Des Moines Metro Opera Wine & Food Showcase at the Downtown Des Moines Marriott, Friday, February 20^th from 5:30 – 8:30 p.m.

The Grande Tasting Wine is $50 per person, or $35 per person for groups of eight or more, and offers samples of wines, beers, coffees, teas and cuisines from around the world. You can purchase tickets online and view a complete list of vendors at www.desmoinesmetroopera.org. Iowa wineries in attendance will be Tassel Ridge Winery, Summerset Winery, La Vida Loca Winery, Jasper Winery, John Ernest Vineyard and Winery, and Southern Hills Winery. Olde Main Brewery will also be pouring.

The Maestro’s Tasting will be in the Iowa Ballroom at the Des Moines Marriott and will feature wines donated by private collectors and hor d’oeuvres created by the area’s most acclaimed chefs.

The proceeds of the event support the programs of the company’s Education Division.

Plan to attend Des Moines Metro Opera’s productions this summer: Tosca, Der Freischutz and Barber of Seville. Visitors come from around the nation, and no doubt the world to experience the excellence productions. Check the website for more details.

Let me also recommend a fine local bed and breakfast – The Garden and Galley Bed and Breakfast, operated by Esther Hoffa. Let me just say, make your reservations early … it’s a wonderful and popular place!

Cheers!

Barbara Rasko

Publisher

Make Mine Wine

www.makeminewinemagazine.com

Scrap Booker’s Day at Summerset Winery

What do you do when you have a large pile of photos with no home, an empty scrapbook, a too-small workspace and the desire to spend some time doing what you love?

Sign up to go to Summerset Winery, Saturday, March 7th, and spend the whole day organizing and creating a wonderful, decorative scrapbook full of memories. (I’m guessing some of you have graduating seniors, upcoming weddings, new babies … important reasons to get the photos beautifully displayed before Spring!)

You’re welcome to spend the day, from 9:00 a.m. – 9:00 p.m. For just $40 you will receive breakfast, lunch, dinner, a bottle of Summerset wine and your table with space to spread out. You’re likely to meet some memory-making friends too.

Call the winery to sign up – advanced reservations required. (515) 961-3545.

Cheer!

Barbara Rasko
Make Mine Wine
www.MakeMineWinemagazine.com

Would you like to start a wine club? Here’s how.

Imagine this.

One night a month you go to a meeting to taste good wine, learn more about wine, and enjoy an evening of lively conversation with friends. And, you can’t talk about work! Does this sound like a great idea?

These best practices can help you start a successful wine tasting club.

Wine Partnres — choose 6 – 8 people who are also interested in learning more about wine and having a good time. Invite people who share a similar level of wine know-how. Your club can be all female, all male, or couples.

Organizational Decisions
a. Commit to meet monthly.
b. Set a price limit per bottle – $20.00 – $25.00 is a good place to start – especially since you will taste four to six wines each month. On some occasions you may want to taste wines that are more expensive than you would usually purchase. The meeting host can purchase the wine or you can divide the cost and collect at each meeting.
c. Divide up the responsibilities. Generally the host purchases the wine, one guest researches the wines, while others bring the food and wine glasses. Plan to help with clean-up. Rotate responsibilities.
d. Decide if your group prefers to conceal the wine’s identity in a blind tasting.
e. Make the “food decision”. Will some meetings be formal, others casual? Will you be pairing cheese, appetizers or full courses with the wines? Another option is to enjoying snacks or a light meal after the tasting.

 Meeting Format
a. Allow two hours to relax and taste the wine.
b. Have a separate glass for each taste (approximately 2 ounces). If you have 6 members and 4 wines, you’ll need 24 glasses for tasting. Additional glasses are needed if the wine is going to be finished during a light meal after the tasting. (Club members could each buy a boxed set of wine glasses to bring to each meeting.) You’ll also need a dump bucket, a wine opener, and water for cleansing palates.
c. Fill in a Wine Tasting sheet for each wine. It is important that everyone has a chance to share opinions. Learn about and discuss the wines. Use The Wine Aroma Wheel to help identify the complex flavors. A Wine Tasting Sheet, Whine Aroma Wheels, and other resources about wines, are available at makeminewinemagazine.com.
d. Select a theme and assign responsibilities for the next meeting. Vary the themes. Taste wines from local wineries, from specific regions of the world, or wines of the same type.

 Create or obtain a Wine Tasting Sheet with a number or letter to designate each wine. Provide a space for comments and points awarded.
a. When the wine tasting is completed, each individual can rank the wines from first to last place. Then determine the ranking order and favorite wine for the group.
b. If it was a blind tasting, reveal the wines at this point and have the researcher provide information about each wine.

Follow-up with an email or casual newsletter to club members with the names and important information about each wine. Include the group’s ranking order. You can also share recipes.

Each person can decide how to use the information from the wine tasting club. Some may build a wine reference notebook with the Wine Club Tasting Newsletters and their own Wine Tasting Sheets. Others may record only their favorites.

Name your club! Have fun! Socialize!

Remember, it is a Wine Tasting Club. Don’t get drunk … and always make sure everyone has a safe ride home!

 

This is reprinted from the Spring 2008 issue of Make Mine Wine magazine. Let me know if you have other good tips for starting and/or enjoying a wine club.

Cheers!

Barbara Rasko
Publisher
Make Mine Wine magazine
www.makeminewinemagazine.com