A sale worth sampling: Manatawny marks down 2006 Meritage by 30 percent

Like the looks of a Meritage sale that's currently under way at Manatawny Creek Winery in Douglassville, Pa. Owner/winemaker Joanne Levengood makes a line of wines that represent the region and state very well. Always like to mention that it's the only place I've visited where we were offered the entire line to taste (not sure if that has changed) at no charge (I'm very sure THAT hasn't changed), both winery staples that are about as common as a Pennsylvania screwtop. In other words, good luck finding more than a handful of others that provide so much when you walk into the tasting room, in addition to the snacks they place on their bar.

Levengood reported in her December e-letter early Friday that she has around five cases left of the Meritage, something you can drink now or store for a few years down in your cellar. This 2006 vintage is a blend of Cabernet Sauvignon, Cabernet Franc, Merlot and Petit Verdot and normally sells for $21.95, on the lower end of the price scale when you compare it to other Meritages in the region. She's pushing it out the door by taking 30 percent off, knocking the price down to 16 dollars and change. Once those cases are sold, she'll roll out the 2007 vintage at the regular price.

Their Pinot Noir also is on sale, marked down 10 percent off the $14.95 price. As Levengood noted in her e-letter, this wine is aged in French oak and should be bound for your lips rather than your cellar. "This is not a wine for aging," she wrote. "It is wonderful with Christmas turkey -- we had some with our Thanksgiving turkey this year and it was a fabulous match."

More and more winemakers are using their e-letters or blogs or Facebook to chime in with answers to basic wine and wine pairing questions. This is Levengood's take on how to match up with holiday foods: "Which wine should you serve with your holiday dinner? Anyone who has ever been in our tasting room knows the answer to that question – serve what you like! The subjectivity of wine applies to wine pairing as well. Having said that, however, there are a few simple things to keep in mind. Don’t overpower the food with the wine and vice versa. If you are serving a turkey breast with a light glazing, serve it with a lighter wine like Pinot Grigio. If you are serving turkey with a full-flavored, hearty gravy, you may want to try an oaked Chardonnay. The addition of a sweet cranberry sauce may call for a wine with some sweetness to it, like a Riesling. Everyone thinks about white wine pairing well with turkey or ham, but a lighter-bodied red like Pinot Noir can work really well too. I very much like the idea of setting the table with two wine glasses at each place so everyone can try two different wines with each course. Different wines really make the food taste different!"

Fall fete on Saturday at Manatawny Creek

There's a Fall Equinox festival this Saturday, Sept. 19, at Manatawny Creek Winery in Douglassville, Pa. It will run from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. It's a chance to hear some music, chomp down on some food (including the famous Manatawny Mac and Cheese). Artisans will sell their crafts and tours of the winery will be given at noon and 3 p.m.

Owner Joanne Levengood said in an e-blast that they will have a second tasting/purchasing area set up on the crush pad to try and alleviate some of the crowding in the tasting room.

Kreutz Creek, Manatawny Creek both looking for volunteers to assist with the harvest

It's getting to that time of the year to pick grapes. If yo haven't done it, you have your choice of a handful of wineries looking for help across Pennsylvania and Maryland. I wouldn't call it backbreaking work; depending on how warm a morning it is you likely will break a sweat. And you might have to brush away a bee or two, but even those aren't as disruptive as they once were. But generally what awaits -- usually a lunch or dinner that includes the uncorking of more than several bottles of wine -- makes you forget about any hardships in the vineyard.

Two wineries looking for help include Kreutz Creek Winery in West Grove and Manatawny Creek Winery in Douglassville. Carole Kirkpatrick in her e-mail said that Kreutz Creek will harvest sometimes on weekends and sometimes during the week, depending upon the ripeness of the grapes. If you want to help, let them know when you're available by calling Carole at 610.869.4412.
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In fact, they enlist help several times during the year, including coming up on Labor Day when they'll do some bottling. If you missed that deadline, they'll give you another shot next Memorial Day.
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Joanne Levengood of Manatawny Creek said in her e-mail that they'll pick grapes from the last week in August until the end of October and ask for volunteers on five or six days during that time period. Since they do not know when the grapes will be ready, they'll call people on their picking list only a few days before the picking day. If interested in being on the volunteer picking list, email (manatawny@aol.com) or phone (610.689.9804) in your:
1. Name,
2. Phone number,
3. Whether you can pick on weekdays or weekends only, and
4. Any lunch preferences (i.e. vegetarian).
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"We will make every attempt to contact everyone on the list at least once," Joanne said.

Manatawny has Concord back on its shelves

Speaking of Manatawny Creek, owner and winemaker Joanne Levengood sent out an e-blast late Friday night that the Concord has passed muster and is ready for purchase. The winery will be open from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. today, but closed tomorrow for Easter.

Levengood noted that 20 cases of Winter Warmth remain and the winery will keep its 20 percent off sale running until this wine is gone.

Manatawny is a member of the Berks County Wine Trail, which at this point still doesn't charge for tastings. So a trip to any of those wineries will get you a sample of most if not all their wines for free, something that's rare in this region nowadays.

Jeffries' next pairing partner: Manatawny Creek

My apologies for skipping a day. I think most blogger will tell you, most serious ones anyway, that once you start these you'd like to post something daily. Occasionally maters at home, vacations, illness and, oh yeah, the job that brings home the bacon, gets in the way. So let me catch up today.

John J Jeffries Restaurant is one of those rare gems that throws its support behind local business and sustainability. It's located inside the Lancaster Arts Hotel only a few minutes off Route 30 and not far from the Park City Mall.

As chefs Sean Cavanaugh (a Pittsburgh native and Marriott chef whose last stop was the Vail, Colo., Mountain Resort and Spa) and Michael F. Carson (a York Suburban grad at the Charleston Restaurant in Baltimore before coming home) descrive on their Web site:

"We believe you will find our passion for supporting local businesses and preserving the land we live on, to be contagiously obvious in how we run our restaurant. All of our meats are raised locally, confinement-free on fresh green grass pastures. No hormones, antibiotics, steroids or forced-fertilization occurs. Our produce is local organic or chemical free. We use local grass fed cream, butter and eggs. We also provide sustainable seafood and support sustainable fisheries and their communities. By doing so, we are encouraging a shift in consumer demand away from overexploited fisheries and unhealthy fish farming practices. Our water for drinking and cooking is filtered through an in-house carbon and reverse osmosis system. Our coffee is organic fair trade and locally roasted in small batches. At John J. Jeffries we also believe in sustainability for all the good folks that work with us. Medical insurance is provided to all of our full-time staff, and a family meal is prepared for all staff daily."

They've found a way on to my radar thanks to the food pairing seies they have started with regional wineries and brewries. The next one is schedule for Sunday evening, April 26, when for the first time they will pair with Manatawny Creek Winery in Douglassville. Winemaker Joanne Levengood will have her fine wines matched up with another first: the Jeffries chefs have never before made an all-vegetarian meal for one of these pairings. Haven't seen a price for this one, but generally the bottom line is a steal considering it encompasses a multi-course meal, the wines along with an appearance by the winemaker, and tax and gratuity. These pairings already have included Pinnacle Ridge and Chaddsford wineries, and as more open in the region surrounding the restaurant, the potential for the wine base expanding increases.

And I'll think of my buddy Joe Sixpack in Philly as I add this to the events list: a Sunday, May 3 fund-raiser for the Susquehanna Sustainable Business Network. It will include blues (DJ Mike Chandler), brews (from Stoudt's Brewing Company in Adamtown, Pa.) and BBQ, and take place at the restaurant's terace from noon to 4 p.m. The cost is $25 for SSBN members and $35 for nonmembers. For anything regarding the restaurant, call 717.431.3307.

Out in the vineyard, it's time to prune

So what is happening in your favorite vineyard long about now? More perhaps than you realized. Write sowner and winemaker Joanne Levengood in the latest e-blast from Manatawny Creek Winery in Douglassville, Pa.:

"What is happening in the vineyard during the winter? The grapevines go dormant in November and will remain in their dormant state until budbreak sometime in late April or early May. While the vines are dormant, pruning takes place. Pruning is a huge job where each of the approximately 25 shoots per vine are cut back to 2 buds. These 2 buds contain the 2 shoots for the next growing season and there are typically 2 grape clusters per shoot. Pruning is necessary in order to maintain the size and shape of the vine and to ensure consistent productivity. If a vine is left unpruned, it will become unruly and out of control, fruit production will decrease, and the quality of the fruit will severely decline due to too much vegetation. The best quality grapes are from a balanced grapevine and pruning is essential to achieve this balance."

Blue Bear Ease blends blueberries, white grapes

Blue Bear Ease?

Could be the name of the horse running in the second race today at Penn National. Maybe something you'd find in the gadget section of Bass Pro Shop. It certainly could be the name of one of those zillion colors that Sherwin Williams includes in its line of paints.

In this case it's the name of a popular blend that winemaker and owner Joanne Levengood nurtures at her Manatawny Creek Winery in Douglassville, Pa., unique. The winery recently sent an e-mail out that bottles of Blue Bear East are back on the shelves. That prompted a note from me to Levengood asking about the wine and its following.

Her reply: "We've been making the Blue Bear Ease for 4 years and we typically make about 500 gallons per year. It is pretty popular. We used to make a straight blueberry sweet dessert wine which I loved but didn't sell all that well. We started blending white grapes with blueberries to make a lighter style of fruit wine that people could enjoy by itself - not just for dessert. The addition of the grapes lowers the acidity of the overall blend and resulted in less sugar needing to be added to bring the wine into balance."

And there you have it.

E-letters, Web sites, vary in style, substance

Perhaps nothing shows the wide disparity in how serious regional wineries take communication than their Web sites and e-letters.

It could take hours just reading through all the info contained on the Chaddsford and BlackAnkle Web site, and few organize their events page as well as CrossingVineyards. Several, such as Terrapin Station, have an altruistic endeavor as part of their mission statement and include a link to that. Perhaps none are more fun than Va La, as distinctive for its humor as it is for the information it carries. Some recently have freshened up their sites, such as Paradocx and the Lehigh Valley Wine Trail's Big Creek Vineyards in Kresgeville.

On the other end of the scale, a few wineries don't have active Web sites right now. Some haven't updated the news or events on their site in months or, in a couple case, more than a year. This difference also extends to the vigor they put into their communication, and it runs the gamut from returning calls or e-mails within 24 hours to some that have never responded. Ever. Even to questions about their wines or winery, and they exist on every trail in every part of eastern and central Pennsylvania and Maryland. It just seems that the way it is. Head-scratching, to say the least, for businesses that are in the public eye.

All of this prefaces the bevy of e-letters that landed in my mailbox in the past 24 hours, each one unique and carrying bits of news. Sand Castle Winery in Erwinna, Pa., puts out a one-page sheet that lists upcoming events (see Thursday's Event Grapevine for what's on their schedule), a little news from the vineyard ("Pruning continues in the Riesling. Pinot Noir and Cabernet Sauvignon are the last ones to be done. If anyone would like to have the cuttings for their private vineyard, please contact the winery.") and a few impressions of the latest vintage ("2008 young wines are performing beyond our expectations. Last bottling of Pinot Noir 2005 has been done and any lovers of this vintage should know there are only 200 cases in stock.")

Joanne Levengood at Manatawny Creek includes news on their February sale ("our 2006 Cabernet Franc Port at 10% off."), their holiday hours ("We will be open on Monday, 2/16 from 10-6 for the President’s Day holiday.") and a wine update ("The Blue Bear Ease will hopefully be back on the list in a few weeks. I will send out another email to announce its release.") After filling in readers on next weekend's Berks County Wine Trail's wine and chocolate festival, she finishes with a segment that answers a question. And it's far from a one-sentence answer. The question? What exactly is Port?

"Port is a sweet, fortified wine that is typically served after a meal. The process to make port differs from the typical winemaking process for table wines in that the fermentation is stopped about halfway by the addition of grape neutral spirits. This results in a wine with an alcohol content between 18% and 20% with a lot of the natural sweetness from the grape remaining. Port originated in Portugal’s Douro Valley and the name comes from the fact that historically, these wines were shipped out of the city of Oporto.

"There are three basic categories of port made with red grapes – vintage, ruby and tawny (white port is made with white grapes but is much less common). Vintage ports, the expensive type, are made from grapes of a single vintage and are typically bottled with only a little more than a year of aging in barrel. They are only made in declared years in Portugal and the consumer is expected to do most of the aging since Vintage port gets better with age and often needs many years to become drinkable. Ruby port can be made from grapes of different vintages and is aged for about 2 years before release. It is typically ready to drink when released and is simpler and less expensive than Vintage port. Tawny ports are made from grapes of different vintages and aged in barrels to purposely undergo slow oxidation; this turns the color of the red wine to a tawny color and gives it a unique character. The label of a Tawny port will often show the average number of years of aging - typically 10, 20, 30 or over 40 years.

"The grape varieties used in port in Portugal are numerous and varied and do not include anything that we grow in Pennsylvania. At Manatawny Creek, we make our port from Cabernet Franc, one of the red varieties that grows very well in our area. We produce it in the vintage port style, using grapes from a single vintage and bottling the wine after 1 year of aging in neutral oak. Our port definitely benefits from several years of aging and, just like true Portuguese Port, is the ideal beverage to pair with chocolate!"

Carol and Jim Kirkpatrick at the Brandywine Valley trail's Kreutz Creek Winery adds some folksiness to their e-letter with several photos of their 7-year-old dog, Fetzer, plus a schedule of their entertainment schedule at their West Chester tasting room, and their own winermarker's notes.

"Winter is the time for pruning, yes even during these frigid temperatures we're outside prunning. We're about 60% completed so we're right on schedule. If you're feeling crafty and want some of the prunnings, let me know soon and I'll save some. They make beautiful wreaths and the price is right...free! Last week I pumped over the 2007 Kordeaux and WOW!!!!, it was fabulous. Needless to say, I'm very excited about it and hope to bottle it in 2 weeks. It should be ready for Barrels on the Brandywine in March where we'll be doing the popular vertical Kordeaux tasting. This year it's 2005, 2006, 2007 and 2008 Kordeaux. I think this is the best yet and I hope you agree!!! The 2008's are coming along nicely. We really had a great season and I can't wait to get some of these wines in the bottle. Stay tuned for more information next month! See you in the tasting room!"

Afternoon spent tasting Manatawny's best

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Saturday afternoon with Mary and Wayne at Manatawny Creek.
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We headed northeast to Boyertown, Pa., on Saturday to see our friends Mary and Wayne, figuring after lunch we'd depart and -- since we wanted to head to Lancaster -- then make a stop at Tamanend Winery off rotues 72 and 741 en route to the Park City Center. Only we never quite got to that winery in time, all because we noticed on the map that Manatawny Creek Winery was only about 5 miles away.

I don't think I had even heard of the winery until a couple of weeks ago, when I found the list of excellence winners from the Pennsylvania Wine Society and it included Manatawny Creek's Meritage, a blend of 2006 Cabernet Sauvignon, Cabernet Franc, Merlot and Petit Verdot grapes. Manatawny, a little more than 10 years old, is one of eight members of the Berks County Wine Trail, all of which have something in common besides the fact that they're located on either side of I-78: They don't charge for tastings.

From my experience, that's the exception rather than the rule among wineries in the eastern half of the state. Generally, wineries charge from a couple bucks up to $7 per person to taste around six to eight wines. Some send you home with a glass; some don't. In Maryland, wineries are permitted to serve six, one-ounce samples of wine free of charge. Any other iteration requires a charge.

Anyway, Manatawny goes a step further than most. Not only aren't you charged for the tastings, but you can try everything in the winery's line; that's almost 25 wines that span that wide bridge from dry to sweet to fruit and white to red. Crackers also are out on the 30-some foot Corian bar, along with sharp cheese from Redner's Markets and chocolates from Reppert's that accompany the port. Talk about spoiling our friends, who hadn't been to a winery to taste before. This is all they know. It was an afternoon of fun, amid a crowd of people that kept the family behind the bar hopping our entire time there. We were lucky enough to draw the wit and hospitality (and full attention) of Mary, the mom of winermaker and owner Joanne Levengood. She was part educational and part comedienne and part historian, answering all questions about the wines and anything related to them. We all gave a thumbs up to the Blanc de Blancs, essentially their champagne, the "naked" Chardonnay (thy call it C.O.W. Chardonnay Off Wood), the Chambourcin and port, made with Cabernet Franc grapes. A dry red fan, I couldn't get enough of the Pinor Noir, Cab Franc, Merlot and Meritage. And did you know you have to pay to call your wine Meritage (pronounced like heritage)? It's a registered trademark that requires joining The Meritage Association.

By the time we and our friends had purchased four bottles apiece and headed out the door, more than an hour and a half had passed. By the time we hit Lancaster, it was after 5. No Tamanend this week. Hey, one to try another weekend en route to Philly or to the Lancaster outlets.