Fall Tour: Twin Brook Winery

Stopped by Twin Brook Winery in Gap, Pa., this morning and found winemaker Jason Price bottling blush. They also are pushing to get a couple more dry reds bottled over the next week in order to restock their shelves, as sales this fall have significantly lowered that part of their inventory.

Stopped by Twin Brook Winery in Gap, Pa., this morning and found winemaker Jason Price bottling blush. They also are pushing to get a couple more dry reds bottled over the next week in order to restock their shelves, as sales this fall have significantly lowered that part of their inventory. Bottles of their Consiglieri, their off-dry Chianti-style red, and their medium-bodied 2006 Cab Franc could be found upstairs on the shelf along with a number of dry whites and sweeter wines.

Had a chance to sample a couple of the wines out of the tank: the 2008 Chardonnay and Pinot and 2006 Cabernet. Winemaker Tim Jobe called the Chard the best he has picked off the vine since '05, and I could understand why he said that after one long whiff and taste. It will be put into cold stabilization as early as Friday and could be bottled and put on the shelf before the new year. The Pinot was far more subtle; he said both are clearing up quickly. He also was excited about the Cab, and a look, sniff and taste of that dry red explained why he's eager to share it with his customers. Loved the color, loved the taste. They could be bottling that Cab as early as next week, and then it's a matter of waiting for the wine to recover from the beating it takes getting bottled before it's put up on the shelf. As Price said later in an e-mail, "We will have to be as patient as possible until it shows itself again. Hopefully, not too long."

Jobe said they spent a good part of the year fighting diseases, and survived a rather rainy late part of the spring and early summer, but have come away from harvest convinced this will prove to be an excellent crop and vintage. He’s expecting a busy week and anticipates a busy December, although he said this time of the year the requests for tasting decrease dramatically. People are more intent on coming in, buying what they want, and heading out rather than choosing to linger and taste, he said.

Editor's note: I did open the Cab Franc, one of my favorites reds, on Wednesday afternoon. It is a wine most wine drinkers probably aren’t familiar with, and one that can be found at some but not all of the regional wineries. At Twin Brook, it’s one of their higher price point wines, at $18. As one who’s always looking for a bargain, I generally eschew much above $15, but felt like I got my money’s worth with this one. You’ll generally find Cab Franc as a partner in the bottle, often with Merlot and Cabernet Sauvignon, its offspring, rather than alone. It’s a grape that’s predominant in Bordeaux, one also found across the globe in countries such as Italy, New Zealand, Argentina and Chile. In the United States, the grape has found a home in this area’s cooler climes, up into the Finger Lakes in New York, down across the Piedmont in Virginia, and in small areas of Michigan and Washington.

For those who can get overwhelmed or put off by the darker and heavier reds with their higher tannins, this is a varietal worth at least tasting if you get out to any of the regional wineries that make it "straight up."

Frederick Cellars lists upcoming schedule

This schedule comes courtesy of Frederick (Md.) Cellars co-owner Emily Williams on what's planned for the rest of the year:

Nov. 28
Frederick Cellars
Frosty Friday at the winery – All Aboard the Frederick Wine Train
Fri 9am–9 p.m.
Opening early on Frosty Friday to get ready for Santa’s arrival in Everedy Square. As the Frederick Wine Train (our model train display) leaves the station, grownups can enjoy mulled wine ($); there’s complementary cider and holiday cookies for the kids.

Nov. 29
Frederick Cellars
Karyn Oliver – Solo & Acoustic
Sat 7–9 p.m.
Up-and-coming singer-songwriter with a passionate, soulful voice.

December entire month (closed Christmas Day)
Frederick Cellars
Climb Aboard the Frederick Wine Train
Sun/Mon 1-6 p.m., Tue/Wed 4-9 p.m., Thu / Fri / Sat 12-9 p.m.
Model trains travel around the county, making a whistle-stop at each winery on the Frederick Wine Trail.

Dec. 5
Frederick Cellars
Opening Reception for Art Exhibition “Far and Near” by John Connors
Fri 5–9 p.m.
John Connors’ exploration of Italy, the Delmarva eastern shore, and his Frederick hometown are depicted in an exhibition of some 20 new watercolor landscapes. Free

Dec. 6
Frederick Cellars
First Saturday in December – Holiday Recipe Tour
Sat 12–9 p.m.
Stop by the winery to pick up complementary recipe cards with ideas for using Frederick Cellars wines.

Dec. 6, 7
Frederick Cellars
Winery Holiday Open House
Sat 12–9 p.m., Sun 1–6 p.m.
For grownups, enjoy mulled wine ($) and our signature ‘wine wigglies’ ($); complementary cider and holiday cookies for kids. Hearty soups ($) are available if the weather is nippy.

Dec. 13-14
Frederick Cellars
Winery Holiday Open House
Sat 12–9 p.m., Sun 1–6 p.m.
For grownups, enjoy mulled wine ($) and our signature ‘wine wigglies’ ($); complementary cider and holiday cookies for kids. Hearty soups ($) are available if the weather is nippy.

Dec. 14
Frederick Cellars
Draft Horse Rescue Fundraiser
Sun 4–7 p.m.
Fundraiser for an organization that is committed to saving draft horses from slaughter and adopting them into new homes as trail and schooling horses. Tickets can be pre-purchased (discount) or at the door. Vist www.gentlegiantsdrafthorserescue.com for more information.

Dec. 19-21
Frederick Cellars
Holiday Shopping for Guys
Fri / Sat 12–9 p.m., Sun 1–6 p.m.
If you’ve been waiting for just the right gift-giving inspiration to come along, visit the winery this weekend for special discounts and unique ideas, including luxurious soaps and lotions made from grapeseed oil.

Dec. 21
Frederick Cellars
Holiday Troubadour Music by John Durant
Sun 4–6 p.m.
Come enjoy the Old World Music of Troubadour John Durant. John's special performance will include holiday tunes from around the world and feature the mandolin and other renaissance instruments. Free

Fall Tour: Frederick (Md.) Cellars

Virtually every winery in central and eastern Pennsylvania is parked somewhere in the woods, many off thoroughfares that twist through the countryside en route to the front door. An exception would be Frederick Cellars, in Maryland, which according to its Web site is located in historic downtown Frederick, among the shops and restaurants of Shab Row and Everedy Square.

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Because of its location, co-owner Charlie Daneri said the other day by phone that the best news they received this year was approval to have entertainment on site, including music, following long-running negotiations with the city of Frederick. “For a long time we were not allowed to,” Daneri said, “and we recently, as in mid-summer, got the right back. So what that means, finally now we’re able to have entertainment again, so we now are scheduling a lot more music, musical groups, for the evenings. So that’s been our biggest news. We did it when we first opened, we did it for about four or five months, and was very successful and people liked it.

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"You know, because we’re a city winery, we can’t do outdoor events. We don’t do, like a lot of wineries do, where you have summer music festivals and that kind of thing. We just can’t do it. We’re right in the city. We have our property, which is basically our building and a parking lot, and that’s it. So we have to depend on other types of entertainment, and they’re typically smaller scale. For us, if we bring 40 or 50 people in for a musical event, that’s a big event. As opposed to, ‘Yo, I just brought 2500 people in for a summer jazz festival.’ We can’t, and don’t do that. So our focus is totally different. Our focus is on small, focused events.”

Daneri and wife Emily Williams followed that script this summer by creating Wine’d Up Downtown, essentially a Monday through Friday happy hour that ran from 4:30 to 6:30 p.m. “Basically, all we were doing was trying to encourage folks to come in in the late afternoon in sort of a typical happy hour-type style. We offered half-price on glasses of wine. It’s still going, although I’m not sure it will continue in the winter. We have some nice outdoor seating, which of course now we have closed down. We introduced it more last summer, but we’ll just have to see in the winter how that continues.”

Frederick Cellars produces 11 wines, which run the spectrum from red to white and dry to sweet. They also advertise sales of an aged Cabernet Sauvignon, from 1999 through 2001. At the opposite end of that is a Nouveau that they plan to introduce in the next week and a half. Daneri said it’s a limited release, 25 to 30 cases, a Chambourcin/ Chelois blend that he calls “nice and light-bodied, just a tad sweet. We had a Beaujolais party and tasted it, and everyone loved it. Now I just got to get it in the bottle. That will be like a holiday wine for us.”

A grower in Montgomery County, Md., provides those grapes. Daneri said in the past they would just blend them with something else, but made the decision to bypass the blend and “see how it stands up by itself. It actually turned out pretty nice. People seemed really happy with it.”

It’s one, Daneri summarized, that’s made in a nouveau style -- absent any oak – and designed to have sooner rather than later.

“The comment we’ve been making is, not only can you drink it young, you need to drink it young,” he said. “This is not a wine that you’re going to put in your cellar and let age. You’re going to take it home and drink it on the holidays.”

Kreutz Creek giving 30 pct. discount Friday

One thing we're starting to see more often are the Black Friday discounts. Kreutz Creek Vineyards of West Grove, Pa., is following in the footsteps of other wineries by having a 30 percent off discount on case sales at the winery and its West Chester tasting room. That sale will take place this Friday.

They sent out a coupon earlier today to its e-mail subscribers that allows for the discount on case bought Friday. If you're not on the list and interested in purchasing a case or two, give the winery a call between 11 a.m. and 8 p.m. tomorrow or after 11 on Wednesday. Not sure how late both sites will stay open Thanksgiving Eve. The hours Friday will be 11 a.m. to 9 p.m.

Taste of PA locks in for late May in York

It's a long way off, but Brian Dudley sent a reminder today about the second annual Taste of PA Wine & Music Festival , which is scheduled for May 30-31 at the York Fairgrounds. You can find more info on last year's at this link, and expect to read more details once the calendar turns a few times and we head into spring. It's sponsored by the Sons of the American Legion Post 403.

NY director touts benefits of WineAmerica

Sharing these two items with some universal interest to wine drinkers from the New York Wine & Grape Foundation's weekly e-letter:

WINEAMERICA annual fall conference last weekend in Georgia provided several good reminders why ALL American wineries should be members of this one-of-a-kind organization (the only national organization for American wineries). The political sea change in Washington is going to require an enormous educational effort with the new Administration and members of Congress—who need to know right away that our industry generates over $162 billion annually for the national economy. The Farm Bill that was passed earlier this year, which contains many new benefits for “specialty crops” like grapes and wine, is now in the implementation phase—which is very complicated to sort out. While direct interstate shipment of wine has been going on for several years, with major increases after the 2005 Supreme Court decision, there are still lawsuits in different states that can change the picture. And with the global, national, and state economies all in a tailspin, there’s no doubt that “sin taxes” will again surface, as they already have in California where Governor Schwarzenegger has proposed a “nickel a drink” excise tax hike that would be devastating to consumers and our industry. Fortunately, we have WineAmerica to look after our interests—and it’s one of the best investments you can make.

MODERATE CONSUMPTION of wine seems to lower the microvascular complications of type 1 diabetes (not generally associated with obesity), with less benefit from beer and none from spirits, according to a new study. The effect was especially strong for people consuming between 3 and 18 drinks per week and on a regular basis (5-7 days a week) rather than sporadically. A separate study showed that moderate wine consumption also lowers the risk of Alzheimer’s Disease or other dementia. In other words, regular moderate wine consumption is good for the heart, and good for the mind (and great for the soul).

Ex-Flyers part of NHL Signature Series

Here's a case where the wineries aren't

from the area, but the former sports

stars who have their name on the label are.

Bob Clarke and Dave Schultz have given Philly sports fans plenty to be thankful for since they both joined the NHL Flyers, one in 1969 and the other in 1971.

So it’s appropriate that you should be able to toast their wines at the Thanksgiving Day table, as both are representing the Flyers in the NHL Alumni Signature Wine Series. Had a chance to taste the Clarke Cabernet Sauvignon last week and would give it a smile as big as the one he used to flash after assisting on a goal. Schultz has his label on the Chardonnay. And while it was easy to kid him about marrying his mug and signature to a Chard rather than something big and red, the fact is that both wines are made by California winemaker Ironstone Vineyards and will be well worth popping the cork and pouring out the juice.

“I know it tastes good,” Schultz said by phone recently. “Sometimes people think it’s a gimmick-type thing and they want an autograph and they’ll never drink it. I know that the wine is excellent. I want people to taste it; that’s why we’re doing the tastings because once they taste it, if they like that type of a wine to continue to drink it.”

Both wines are selling for $14.99, joining Mike Schmidt’s Zinfandel on store shelves. Schmidt’s is part of a home run hitters’ collection that is listed for $17.99. Schultz said you can find both his wine and Clarke’s in stores throughout South Jersey down to the Shore, and noted they are just beginning to find their way into state stores in Philadelphia area. Tastings for both are planned at those stores, and Schultz said he’ll attend some of those to lend some momentum to the sales.

The NHL Signature Wine Series features two ex-players from six different teams promoting either a Cab or Chard; among some others behind included in this series are former Blackhawks Bobby Hull and Tony Esposito, former Red Wings Gordie Howe and Ted Lindsay, and former Rangers Rod Gilbert and Mike Richter.

Money from the sales will support charities affiliated with the NHL Alumni Association, and also the team and player represented. Clarke’s, as you’d expect, will go to the American and Canadians Diabetes Associations; his ability to achieve so much despite diabetes gave hope to an untold number of young athletes. Schultz selected Katie's Krusaders, which raises funds and awareness regarding the incidence of cancer in children.

“They were responsible for building the Ronald McDonald House at St. Christopher’s Hospital,” said Schultz. “They help families who have very sick children and have to spend every day traveling to the hospital . . . they help them with paying expenses and that kind of stuff.”