Sip and Savor Fine Iowa Wines at the 4th Annual Iowa Wine Festival!

The Iowa State Fair is over, but the wine tasting continues this Saturday, August 23rd at the Iowa Wine Festival. The Square in Indianola is the place to be from 1:00 – 9:00 p.m.

 

You can enjoy unlimited wine sampling, purchase wines and visit with Iowa winemakers; sample the best from Chef Jon Wiler of Flemings Prime Steakhouse and Wine Bar; cast a vote for your favorite Iowa Wine in the People’s Choice Award and browse the offerings of various local artists, food vendors and exhibitors.

 

The fun will be set to the music of Big Daddy Blues (2:00 – 5:00) and Tony Valdez and The Large Band (6:00 – 9:00).

 

Check out the schedule of events and be prepared to participate in the contests, games, bocco ball and grape stomping, the crowning of the Iowa Wine Festival King and Queen, and the silent auction with plenty of cool stuff. I can imagine the bragging rights – and noise – from the winner of the Whining Contest!

 

Best of all you can enjoy some of the best Iowa Wines from these fine wineries:

Eagle City Winery, Iowa Falls

Fireside Winery, Marengo

Grape Escape Vineyard & Winery, Pleasantville

Jasper Winery, Newton

John Ernest Vineyard and Winery, Tama

La Vida Loca Winery, Indianola

Little Swan Lake Winery, Estherville

Madison County Winery, St. Charles

Penoach Vineyard, Winery and Nursery, Adel

Rosey Acres Winery, Runnels

Southern Hills Winery, Osceola

Summerset Winery, Indianola

Tabor Home Winery, Bankston

Tassel Ridge Winery, Leighton

Two Saints Winery, St. Charles

Wide River Winery, Clinton

 

Bring your camera! This will be a great time to take some photos for the Make Mine Wine Midwest Wine Country Competition. Also, remember to bring a designated driver!

 

 

 

 

Full information for the event is online at http://www.iowawinefestival.org/. Tickets for this event are $25 in advance.

 

Cheers!

Barbara Rasko

Publisher

Make Mine Wine

www.makeminewinemagazine.com

To subscribe, send an email to makeminewine@mchsi.com

Make Your Choice from 67 Wines When You Sample at the Iowa Wine Garden

This year 67 Iowa wines from twelve Iowa wineries are available for you to choose from at the Iowa Wine Garden … sample, choose your favorite, and purchase a bottle to open and enjoy – or take with you. Tonight my husband and I are attending Wine & Prime — which is receiving rave reviews — so we’ll be sampling and selecting a wine to enjoy with our prime rib, potato, salad and chocolate mousse! I’ll let you know what we select.

 

 

Participating wineries at the Iowa Wine Garden are: Jasper Winery, La Vida Loca Winery, Madison Country Winery, Park Farm Winery, Penoach Vineyard, Winery and Nursey, Prairie Moon Winery and Vineyards, Santa Maria Vineyard & Winery, Southern Hills Winery, Summerset Winery, Tabor Home Vineyards and Winery, Tassel Ridge Winery and White Oak Vineyards. Winemakers and staff from the wineries are pouring, and it is always interesting to visit with them.

 

There are tables in the Iowa Wine Garden and folks are sitting down in the fan-cooled tent and spending some time off their feet, relaxing, laughing and having fun.  Many are taking a free copy of Make Mine Wine to the table, and browsing through the Summer issue. After reading Stomp! Stomp! Stomp! Squeeze? I hear some planning to participate in grape stomping this season. One of the most surprising things for many is the list of all Iowa Wineries – the wine trails and the wineries that are not associated with a trail. It fills a page – small print – and will serve for many as a check list as they spend weekends visiting Iowa wineries.

 

I love the stories that I hear. Yesterday a guy who grew up in Ames and lives in Arizona said he was back for a family reunion. The event was held at Fireside Winery near Marengo. He was amazed to discover the winery in the middle of the cornfields and very pleased with the high-quality of the Fireside Wine. I asked which ones he tried. He shook his head, assured me that he was with a group of twenty people, and said, “All of them!”

 

One couple told me that they had always prided themselves on stocking and drinking high-priced wine, since they felt the price assured them they were drinking the best. One night they stopped into White Oak Winery at Cambridge and found a wine that is now their favorite, and more reasonably-priced to boot. Since then they are traveling to other Iowa wineries and have add a new more local wines to their “must have on hand” list.

 

A young couple was entertaining friends from Oregon, who brought wine to share with them, so they brought out their favorite Park Farm wine, and the friends ended up taking a few bottles back to Oregon with them, along with a new appreciation of Iowa wine.

 

Many folks have asked if I’ve had Prairie Moon Winery’s ice wine. They all feel like they are giving me a tip on a new great wine and of course I have to tell them I already love that Winter Moon.

 

Come on out to the Iowa Wine Garden – I look forward to meeting you and hearing your stories from Midwest Wine Country!

 

Cheers!

Barbara Rasko

Publisher

Make Mine Wine

www.MakeMineWinemagazine.com

 

 

 

 

Festive Holiday Drinks and More with Iowa Wine

At our holiday party last weekend, Tickled Pink, the delicious semi-sweet wine from Tassel Ridge Winery, was a hit with the ladies. We were talking about Iowa Wines – and our favorites for sipping and pairing with meals. Of course, the Iowa wines are good for cooking also, and I mentioned the gravy with Kiss Me You’ll find the recipe below.  

Last night I stopped at Hy-Vee for the Wine Tasting. Madison County Winery and Tassel Ridge Winery were there – and I tried the Sweet Mulled Wine from Tassel Ridge Winery. Stock up and try some of these recipes with your family and friends during the holidays! 

Sweet Mulled Wine from Tassel Ridge Winery

1 bottleTassel Ridge Red, White, and Blue wine

1 tsp. whole cloves

1 tsp. whole allspice

¾ cup brown sugar

1-2 cinnamon sticks

1-2 orange slices

Stir sugar into wine until dissolved, add all ingredients into a crock pot on low, float the orange slices on top.  Serve warm.  

Traditional Mulled Wine from Tassel Ridge Winery

4 cups cranberry juice

1 ½ cups apple cider

1 ½ cups Tassel Ridge Twilight wine

¼ cup brown sugar

2-4 ounces Bisschopswijn mulling spices* (add to taste) .Combine liquids in a pot and stir in brown sugar to dissolve.  Add mulling spices in muslin bag (provided in Bisschopswijn package) and heat over medium heat until hot.  Reduce temperature and simmer 30-60 minutes.  Serve warm with cinnamon stick for stirring. *Bisschopswijn is available at Tassel Ridge Winery.  It contains a mix of cinnamon pieces, whole cloves, whole allspice, orange oil and cinnamon oil. 

 White Sangria from John Ernest Vineyard & Winery

1 lemon, thinly sliced

1 lime, thinly sliced

1/2 of a Red Delicious apple, thinly sliced

¼ cup of sugar

1 (750 milliliter) bottle of John Ernest Dusty Road Wine

2 cans of 7-Up, Sprite or Sierra Mist

1 cup green grapes, frozen

Mix, pour and enjoy

American Concord Sangria from Whispering Hills Winery ½ sliced lemon½ sliced lime

½ sliced orange

6 or so Bing Cherries

¾ of a 2 Liter Bottle of Sierra Mist

1 Bottle of Whispering Hills Concord Wine

Mix, pour and enjoy

Fireside from Jasper Winery1 bottle Lucy Lane1 cinnamon stick

10 whole allspice

10 whole cloves

1 cup brown sugar

1 orange

Combine ingredients in a crock pot and heat on low, but do not boil. The orange can float on top.

American Concord Sangria from Whispering Hills Wineryhalf sliced lemon
half sliced lime
half sliced orange
6 or so Bing Cherries three-quarters of a 2 Liter Bottle of Sierra Mist1 Bottle of Whispering Hills Winery Concord Wine  

Maple Turkey with Summerset Kiss Me Gravy

INGREDIENTS
1 14lb fresh turkey, neck and giblets removed
Salt and freshly ground black pepper
6 tablespoons unsalted butter
1 tablespoon fresh grated ginger
1/4 cup pure maple syrup
1 1/2 tablespoon all purpose flour
1 cup Summerset Kiss Me wine
2 cups of low-sodium canned chicken stock
2/3 cup seedless red and green grapes, each cut in halfDIRECTIONS
Preheat the oven to 425 degrees F.
Generously season neck, body, cavities, and underside with salt and pepper. Place bird on a rack in a roasting pan. Baste with 4 tablespoons of melted butter. Place turkey in the oven and roast for 30 minutes. Baste with butter that has accumulated in the pan. Reduce heat to 350 degrees, and loosely cover with foil. Roast for additional 30 minutes more. Baste again. Continue roasting, basting once an hour, until a meat thermometer registers 170 degrees, in the breast. About 3 hours.During the last half hour, grate ginger and put in a small saucepan. Add maple syrup and 1 tablespoon of butter. Heat the mixture until the butter has melted and is bubbling. Remove from heat and brush glaze over turkey several times over the last half hour. Remove turkey from the oven and let rest for 30 minutes.Combine the remaining tablespoon of butter and the flour, mix until smooth. Mix pan drippings and wine together in the roasting pan. Add chicken stock and cook for 7-8 minutes until reduced by half. Add reserved butter and flour mixture and let gravy simmer until slightly thickened, about 8 minutes. Add grapes to gravy and serve with turkey

Here’s another great sugestion to help you turn off the television and have some fun. Treat your holiday guests to a trip into Midwest Wine Country. Check the Web site for hours and then visit your local winery this week.

 Cheers!

Barbara Rasko

Publisher, Make Mine Wine  

Crowds are Enjoying Iowa Wines at the State Fair

You have five days left to sample Iowa wines and talk to winemakers at the Iowa State Fair – it runs through Sunday, August 19^th.  Not only that, you can buy a bottle of wine – any bottle for the State Fair Special Price of $12.00 – and sit in the shade and enjoy it, take it up to the campground, or pour it into a wine glass and stroll! The Iowa Wine and Cheese Garden is open and inviting … and fair-goers love it!

Two of the most popular wines on these hot August days is Rosey Acre’s Paradise Mist (I love the name!) and Red, White and Blue from Tassel Ridge. If you like Rieslings, Paradise Mist is for you. The traditional sweet white, Red, White and Blue is Concord-based and delicious.

The wines being sampled at the fair are certainly some of Iowa’s best. The wines were juried and you’ll find selected wines from twelve of Iowa wineries: Deja Vine, Eagle City Winery, Jasper Winery, Kaiser Home Winery, Madison County Winery, Park Farm Winery, Penoach Vineyards and Winery, Prairie Moon Winery, Rosey Acres Winery, Summerset Winery, Tabor Home Vineyards and Winery and Tassel Ridge Winery.

I’ve been in the booth each day showing off Make Mine Wine and have thoroughly enjoyed meeting each of you that have stopped by. Some have seen the magazine previously – others have not. It’s a hit since the wine-drinkers at the fair are curious about and interested in Midwest Wine Country.

I hear rave reviews about the Caba Moch and weekly music events at Summerset Winery in Indianola. The wines from Tassel Ridge, as well as the pairing dinners, are popular – and people rave about that beautiful green granite winery. Folks from the Eastern part of the state are thrilled to be close to the gorgeous wineries and great wines of Park Farm and Tabor Home. Lots of fans of Eagle City stop by, and the Central Iowa regulars love seeing their familiar winemakers … especially Jean Grebe and Al Meeks.

The fine people from TTC, Inc. created the inviting Iowa Wine and Cheese Garden. Kevin and Jayne Smith are true professionals and long-time concessionaires with endless energy and a friendly, competent staff. The booth is west of the Giant Slide—and you’ll see the stand under a big white canopy, ringed by a grape-stained bar set on French oak barrels (they are for sale and can be made into tables, chairs and a wine-chilling cooler).

Stop by, taste some great Iowa wine, and say hi. It’s the best new experience at the Iowa State Fair!

Cheers!

Barbara Rasko

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