The Grapevine

New vineyard added to listings

Webmaster — Mon, 14 Jun 2010 19:49:49 +0000

We added Cave Hill Vineyards today to our listings. They are located north of Somerset and grow several varieties of grapes including Cabernet Sauvignon, Chardonel, Chambourcin, Traminette, Cynthiana Norton, and Cayuga White.While they currently are not a licensed winery yet, they host a number events each year at their beautiful outdoor venue and are happy to offer tours of the vineyard.

Growing KY Wine Industry featured in Herald-Leader

Webmaster — Mon, 31 Aug 2009 13:25:53 +0000

The Lexington Herald-Leader is reporting today that Kentucky wineries are gaining respect, with eight Kentucky wineries winning medals at the Annual Indy International Wine Competition in Indianapolis this past June, as well as gaining notice from national press, such as Time’s Joel Stein.

Acres of Land (Richmond), Lovers Leap (Lawrenceburg), Equus Run (Midway), Elk Creek (Owenton) and Chateau du Vieux Corbeau (Danville) were all mentioned in the article.

You can read the entire article here, http://www.kentucky.com/latest_news/story/915702.html

New Wine Release – Jean Farris Syrah

Webmaster — Tue, 07 Jul 2009 20:04:09 +0000

Jean Farris Winery in Lexington announced the release of their 2007 Syrah in their July newsletter. Ben O’Daniel, owner states “After 19 months in the barrel and and repeated tastings, the wine is true to syrah style.”

From the Jean Farris July 2009 Newsletter:

“The Tempest has always been one of those wines. It was an original concept that just seemed to work in my mind and in the winery. The Viognier has always been a challenge, the needy child. Then we have the 2007 Syrah. This is not a large production for Jean Farris but it has been a learning experience.

The 2007 growing season was not great; the Easter Freeze limited yields on everything. With the reduced yields the fruit came in like a lumbering ox; big berries, with ruby coloring, flavors of tea and hints of berry under a tannic skin. I had to pull a few tricks out of my sleeve to tame the beast.

After 19 months in barrel and repeated tastings, the wine is true to the syrah style. In France the tradition is to blend the Syrah with Grenache and Mourvedre. The Grenache adds a light cherry or raspberry fruit while the Mourvedre adds a little rounding and supports the spice notes of the Syrah. In the lab I begin the blending of the Jean Farris Syrah with Mourvedre from the Desimone’s Grimes Mill Vineyard and then added a splash of Grenache, swirl, sip, and… reblend.

A blend is rarely an immediate success. A percentage here or there can make the difference. So after a few trials I arrived at a blend I like. I prepared a sample of the blend and over dinner we looked into every nuance of the wine, every flavor, tannin levels, mouth feel. It was good. I pulled the wine from barrel and now we have it to offer you.

The wine is still dense. The nose gives hints of dark cherry, and smokiness. While on the palette the fruit is of candied cherry, currents and spice. A layer of herb underlies the fruit and offers deep complexities. The finish is warm and bright. The wine has power and structure; it is a wine that changes with each taste. It offers itself with coaxing, not yielding all its secrets easily but in time like a new friend. Our hope is that you will enjoy the Syrah and that it may enrich a meal, or time with old friends.”

Upcoming Wildside Winery Events

Webmaster — Fri, 24 Apr 2009 14:51:46 +0000

Wildside Winery just announced two upcoming events for the month of May:

May 9th – a free wine and cheese pairing featuring six of Wildside’s red wines with Kenny’s Kentucky Cheeses. Runs from 2-6pm.

May 30th – BBQ and Bourbon Barrel Red, an event offering live music, barbeque and Wildside’s Bourbon Barrel Red wine. Cost is $13 before April 30th, or $20 at the door.

Call Wildside at 859-321-5046 to RSVP.

Several Kentucky wineries struck gold at Derby WineFest

Webmaster — Tue, 07 Apr 2009 20:35:41 +0000

Kentucky wineries earned 15 gold medals at the Kentucky Derby Festival wine competition March 24 in Louisville.

Eighteen Kentucky and Indiana wineries brought 145 varietals to the competition. A panel of 17 experts from the American Wine Society judged the competition.

Those winning gold were: Acres of Land (Richmond), Elk Creek (Owenton), Equus Run (Midway), River Bend (Louisville), Talon Winery (Lexington), and Wight-Meyer (Shepardsville).

Some of the winners will be featured at the fifth annual Kentucky Derby Festival WineFest April 28-29 at Kroger’s Fest-A-Ville on the Waterfront. Thirteen Kentucky and Indiana wineries will sample 99 varietals at the event.

Kentucky wineries and the medals they earned included:

Acres of Land, Richmond – two gold medals (Concord and Chambourcin), three silver and two bronze

Black Oak, Princeton – one silver and one bronze

Brooks Hill, Louisville – three silver and five bronze

Elk Creek, Owenton – two gold (Riesling and Petite Syrah), four silver and four bronze

Felice, Louisville – one bronze

Equus Run, Midway – one gold (Derby Chardonnay) and one silver

River Bend, Louisville – two gold (Chambourcin and Pomegranate)

StoneBrook Winery, Louisville – one bronze

Talon Winery, Lexington – two gold (both red hybrids), one silver and one bronze

Wight-Meyer, Shepherdsville – six gold (Moores Diamond, Concord, Chambourcin, Norton, Zinfandel and Moores Diamond Ice Wine), two silver and three bronze

For more information about the Kentucky Derby Festival and the WineFest, go to www.kdf.org.

For more information about Kentucky’s grape and wine industry, go to the Kentucky Department of Agriculture’s Grape and Wine Program page at www.kyagr.com/marketing/plantmktg/grape.htm.