Drink wine, live longer

Heard this interview on the BBC while driving into work on the health benefits of wine, particularly red wine. In that I'm a glass a day drinker, and this health expert felt that amount could lead to a longer, healthier life, I decided to share it with you.

As with a lot of things, the key word that accompanied the one-glass-a-day regimen was moderation, that too much will produce an altogether different effect.

The event grapevine: June 6-8

FEATURED EVENT

A Day in the Vineyard, Saturday and Sunday
Pinnacle Ridge Winery, 407 Old Route 22, Kutztown, Greenwich Township
www.pinridge.com, 610.756.4481

OK, it’s a full day in the vineyard for the hosts, which includes representatives from Pinnacle Ridge, Clover Hill and Vynecrest wineries. For you, it’s part of the day, with each of the four sessions lasting 90 minutes.
As of tonight, there was one ticket left for the noon Saturday session, about a dozen left for the one at 3 p.m. Saturday and noon Sunday. Around 30 remained for the 3 p.m. Sunday session. Each session will accommodate 120 people.
They are planning to pack plenty into those 90 minutes, according to the host and Pinnacle Ridge owner Brad Knapp.
“It’s the most educational event we do,” Knapp said earlier today. It’s a sit-down hour and a half. People hear from three different winemakers. What we are going to do this year is that each winery is going to present a Riesling, a Vidal and a Chambourcin. They’re going to see dry Rieslings, sweeter Rieslings; they’re going to see different interpretations of Vidal and Chambourcin. So they’re going to get a sense of what the varieties are like and the different ways that winemaking can be used to interpret these varieties.”
This is the sixth time for the event, which rotates among the three wineries. Knapp said the primary difference in the format has been the partnerships with regional food producers. “That has been great actually,” he said. “Premise maid, for instance, which is a chocolatier in our area; we’re working with Mr. Bill’s Poultry, which is an Allentown institution, and we’re doing cheeses from Klein Farms, which is up in Northampton. So that’s been a nice addition in the last few years.”

FESTIVALS
Shippensburg Art & Wine Festival, Saturday only, 10 a.m. to 5 p.m., East Street Triangle of the university campus, 717.532.5509.

PENNSYLVANIA WINERIES
Moon Dancer Vineyards & Winery, Wrightsville: music Friday night and Saturday afternoon; Summer Concert series Saturday night ($$), http://www.moondancerwinery.com
Naylor Wine Cellars, Stewartstown: Grape Blossom Wine Festival ($$), Sunday, noon to 6 p.m., http://www.naylorwine.com/
Twin Brook Winery, Gap: Art in the Vineyard, Sunday, noon to 5 p.m., http://www.twinbrookwinery.com/
Chaddsford Winery, Chaddsford: Summer Night Under the Stars ($$), Friday, 6:30 to 9:30 p.m., reservations requested, 610-388-6221; Reserve Tasting ($$), Saturday, sittings at 1, 2:30 and 4 p.m., http://www.chaddsford.com
Crossing Vineyards & Winery, Washington Crossing: Wine Tasting for Dummies ($$), Sunday, 2 p.m., http://www.crossingvineyards.com/
Kreutz Creek Vineyards, West Grove: Summer Outdoor Concert ($$), Saturday, 6 to 9 p.m., http://www.kreutzcreekvineyards.com/
Paradocz Vineyards, Kenneth Square: concert ($$), Saturday, 5 to 9 p.m., http://www.paradocx.com/
Pinnacle Ridge Winery, Kutztown: A Day in the Vineyard ($$), Saturday and Sunday, sessions at noon and 3 p.m. both days, http://www.pinridge.com/

MARYLAND WINERIES
Berrywine Plantations / Linganore Winecellars, Mt. Airy: Fathers Day Weekend, Saturday (10 a.m. to 6 p.m.) and Sunday (noon to 6 p.m.), www.linganorewines.com
Cygnus Wine Cellars, Manchester: Solstice at the Cellar, Saturday and Sunday, noon to 5 p.m. both days. www.cygnuswinecellars.com
Woodhall Wine Cellars, Parkton: Rockin’ Summer Concert, Saturday, 6:30 to 8:30 p.m.; Case Club Blending Party ($$), Saturday and Sunday, noon to 4 p.m., members only

($$) – Admission charge

Too much rain: Not yet anyway

With another bout of heavy showers moving through today, I sent out e-mails to several wineries asking how they're hanigng in there this spring. Jason Price, of Twin Brook Winery in Gap, Pa., mentioned in Monday's interview that the rain has been excessive this spring. Not destructive, mind you, but a bit more than growers would like to see. Anyway, here's what I heard back.

From Eric Miller, Chaddsford Winery, Chaddsford, Pa.:

"I've just surveyed several vineyards I buy from and feel like the season is in order. There are signs of the late spring frost but only on a few leaves and zero crop damage. Mind you, all the vineyards are on hillsides.

"Things got an early start with some varieties pushing a week or so early but that has all evened out with the cool, dark, wet weather interdispersed with cool low humidity and sun. Typically unpredictable weather for this area (we do a lot of planning before the season begins but that's why we are also soooo reactive) . To make sure we are free of pests and mildew most of us have put at least one more spray on than typical for this time of year.

"With Memorial weekend's wonderful weather, things suddenly began to jump. Thus we are all busy removing suckers, thinning shoots from the crop zone, opening the canopy and managing growth under the trellis and in the alleys. I expect the projected heat next week to promote rapid growth and set us up for leaf pulling and maybe our first hedging of the season in some varieties (Merlot, Chard and Pinot Noir being likely candidates)

"For those who read your blog and are Chaddsford's "frequent buyers" (don't ask me how this occurs in a person's life; ask Lee; I'm just the winegrower) we are having a vineyard picnic on Saturday, June 14, where I'm going to take those interested on a walk thru our Pinot, Cab, Chard, Syrah and Barbera. My plan is to review a bit of last vintage, how we got to where we are this Spring and explain a bit about how things might go this 2008 vintage."

From George Kline, West Hanover Winery, Harrisburg, Pa.:

"Everything is very clean in the vineyard this spring. The only problem I am having this spring is a large amount of winter kill , because of the past three winters. up and down tempatures."

From Brad Knapp, Pinnacle Ridge Winery, Kutztown, Pa.:

The vineyard is exploding, which is normal behavior for this time of year. We started a ahead of schedule due to warm weather in early April but then slowed way down with cooler/wetter weather in May but are now catching back up as things warm up. This time of year is when the crop size is determined by the number of flower clusters that are on the vines coupled with the effectivness of bloom (usually early to mid June). The quality of the crop is largely determined later in the year (late August/September/October).

Inaugural 'Taste of Pa.' is in the books

This e-mail came in this morning from Brian Dudley, the spokesman for The Taste of Pennsylvania Wine and Music Festival that was held at the York Fairgrounds this past weekend:

"As a whole the event was fun and great. The Sons of the American Legion lost about $4,000 but everyone wants to do it again, so we plan to do it again next year. On Saturday it was basically a wash; we only got the last band on stage when the sun came out at 3 p.m. We did still get over 200 people to come out.

"Sunday was a much better day. The sun was shining and we had a breeze that at times was too much but kept it from getting too hot. On the whole, the wineries did well and most if not all of them have said they plan to come back next year. As people were leaving we of course we asking them how they enjoyed the event and everyone said they hope we do it again and they think it has great potential. So I am happy. Everything ran smooth on our end on Sunday and we look forward to another event next year."

A textBrook career change for Price

Shots from around the winery,
including winemaker Jason Price in one of the spots
you're likely to find him if you pay a visit.


Jason Price looks much more at home in a winery than at a nuclear power plant in Wilmington, Del., where he spent six years of his career. Clad in a T-shirt, buzzing around the cellar at Twin Brook Winery in Gap, Pa., he’s relaxed, smiling. Maybe pinching himself a bit; he’s a long way from punching a clock in a place where the only wine was the whine from the monitors.

“I enjoyed wines as a consumer,” Twin B rook's assistant winemaker says late Monday morning, the distinctive echo of the cellar evident throughout the 11-minute conversation that touches on different aspects of a job he’s now held full time for a year. “It’s the ultimate food science. It’s microbiology, it’s chemistry, it’s engineering when you r pump breaks. It’s so romantic. You know it just brings people together. I’ve always loved wines socially, and having the science background, I was just attracted to it.”

He talks about having had the opportunity to go into agricultural chemistry when he was in college 13 years ago. Now, “I have a chance to live that desire. It just took me a little while to get there. It was an easy transition for me. I had to wrap my head around it a little bit. There was a big difference in lifestyle. I worked shift work for a nuclear power plant for six years living in Wilmington to now living in a barn in Amish country, to where there really are no set hours. You work when the work needs to be done, and when it’s finished, you’re done.”

His tastes in wine seem to run similar to the winemakers I’ve had the chance to meet so far. Similar to mine: thumbs-up on red and thumbs-up on dry. As is his sense of humor. “This is on tape?” he asks, peering at the recorder and breaking into laughter. “I love those big bold fruity California reds, the zinfandels, the stuff we really can’t grow here yet . . .but we’re learning.” As for those fruit wines that are part of the regimen at any winery that’s anywhere near the Route 30 corridor? “I’ve gotten used to them,” he says, “but I still don’t prefer them.”

The day to day could send Price in a number of different directions. The size of the full-time staff at Twin Brook – three – dictates an all-hands-on-deck mindset. “We’re assisting a lot with inventory in the warehouse and getting the wine here and taxes, that’s the drudgery, that’s not the fun stuff,” he says in response to a question about the non-glamorous part of his routine. The best part? You can guess the answer. “It’s the winemaking, being down here and making the wine, absolutely, and even the vineyard. The vineyard is fun, picking grapes is fun for about 45 minutes,” he says, and then there's that grin again. "And then it gets a little old.”

Allegro's Chef series takes a break

From Allegro's Carl Helrich on the reason the ultrapopular Chef series, where dinner was prepared by a local chef and paired up with wines, was dropped from the schedule this year:

"We dropped the Chef series initially because of space constraints [too much wine taking up space where the chefs used to work] and the fact that my wife would be gone the month we usually have them [July]. This is only the second year out of the last 18 or so that we haven't done it. The demand for the series has always been great, sometimes bordering on crazy. Where else can you get amazing food cooked by the best local chefs and four large glasses of wine to match for $45 [tax and gratuity included]? Hanging out on our deck from 6-11 PM with friends was a way to bring a little bit of Europe to Brogue.

"Dropping the series has allowed me to free my mind a but and focus more on the growth in quality and quantity of our winery. We'll have to see if we bring it back next year."

Journal review lands on Barefoot's Grigio

As a journalist, I was salivating reading this review in last Friday's Wall Street Journal on Pinot Grigio/Gris. Not only because of the way that they described some of the wines they tasted, but moreso because of the number. Sixty. Oh, to have a budget that allows for the purchase of 60 bottles of anything!!!

What's the difference between Grigio and Gris? In many cases, according to Journal writers Dorothy J. Gaiter and John Becher, it's strictly nuance. Many American winemarkers use Pinot Gris to describe a wine that's more full-bodied than Pinot Grigio, which they describe as wine that's "sunny and light." Both are finding their way more often onto tables, either as something to sip or pairing with a meal.

Being the poor journalist, I had my eye on what low-prices grigio's delighted their palates. Turned out to be Barefoot Cellars, based in Modesto, Calif. Here's what they wrote:

Our biggest surprise on the upside came on the lower-priced wines. Hogue has been one of our favorite value wineries for years and its Pinot Grigio is a real winner -- crisp, clean, lovely and a terrific buy at $6.99. Even more of a surprise, though, was a wine called Barefoot Cellars. We go so far back with Barefoot that we remember when it was a second label of Davis Bynum Winery and was called Barefoot Bynum. Now Barefoot Cellars is owned by Gallo and its Pinot Grigio is just as common in jug-size bottles as in regular-size bottles. It's nonvintage and its appellation is simply "California."
If we had to take a guess, we'd assume this was a very simple, acidic wine with some sweetness. But that's why we conduct our tastings blind. We found the wine charming and filled with fruit, with some depth and no obvious sweetness. We were pleased and surprised when we found that it cost $5.99. We tasted it twice more -- once in a large bottle -- and our notes were consistent. Jennifer Wall, the winemaker, said the Pinot Grigio contains 6% of an unusual, aromatic grape called Symphony. "Symphony is a fantastic grape. I love it. It's one of my secret blending wines that I use in a few wines. It's an aromatic and flavor booster that gives the wines a little extra oomph that amplifies the floral aromatics and flavor.
"My goal when I blend is to create a wine that is varietally correct first, then food-friendly, then affordable," she said. "It tastes like it was grown in the vineyard. I want people to enjoy it alone and with food. It's dry so that it doesn't compete with the food." The winery made a million cases of the Pinot Grigio.