Gov. Blunt, Ag Department Announce Missouri Wines to Join Tour of Missouri

(JEFFERSON CITY, Mo.) – Gov. Matt Blunt and the Missouri Department of Agriculture today announced that Missouri wines will be along for the ride when the Tour of Missouri professional cycling race returns to the Show-Me State Sept. 8-14, 2008. The Missouri Wine & Grape Board is proud to return as a silver sponsor of the Tour of Missouri and introduce cycling enthusiasts from across the globe to Missouri’s world class wines and juices.

“The Tour of Missouri will highlight Missouri’s beautiful scenery, kind hospitality, great food and challenging cycling terrain,” said Gov. Matt Blunt. “Missouri has gained great economic benefits from the tour as we showcase the many destinations and products that our state has to offer and we are looking forward to another successful Tour of Missouri this year.”

Missouri wine country is a major feature of the 2008 Tour of Missouri. The challenging, scenic terrain of wine country, a favorite of both riders and spectators, is featured in stages five and six of the race. The course winds through river bottoms, up gentle hills and even through intense bluffs passing alongside vineyards and charming, historic wine country towns like St. James, Hermann and Augusta.

“Missouri wineries are gearing up for this year’s tour and look forward to the opportunity,” said Jim Anderson, executive director of the Missouri Wine & Grape Board. “Many wineries are hosting special events in conjunction with the race offering a variety of wines and juices for fans of the tour.”

Tour of Missouri fans will be able to experience Missouri wines at each stage of the race. Missouri wines and juices will be poured exclusively in the VIP hospitality tents at each start and finish city. Representatives from wineries across Missouri will be on hand to pour samples and talk about their award-winning products. In addition, the Missouri Wine & Grape Board will host a booth at several of the Health and Wellness Expo locations in start and finish cities.

Gov. Blunt recently highlighted the positive contributions Missouri wine makes to the state and economy with a visit to the Montelle Winery in Augusta. The winery’s 2007 Dry Vignoles was honored with this year’s Governor’s Cup Award, which was the third consecutive win for winery owner Tony Kooyumjian.

Napa Valley

An undeveloped roadside overlook along Oakville Road affords views of the vineyards in central Napa Valley. To the east, the Yountville Hills are the low hills beyond the vineyards. The highlands along the eastern side of Napa Valley are part of the southeastern Clear Lake-Sonoma volcanic field. It formed from lava and ash eruptions along the developing San Andreas Fault system in the late Tertiary (roughly between 8 to 2 million years ago). The region still is experiencing geothermal heating, possibly best represented by the hotsprings in the Calistoga area at the north end of Napa Valley.

Wine by the glass bringing new visitors to Ontario wine country

HILLIER—The Ontario government is helping bring more visitors to Ontario's wine regions by permitting the sale of single servings of wine for guests to enjoy as they tour a vineyard, announced Government Services Minister Gerry Phillips today.

Ontario is becoming known around the world for making top-quality wine,” Phillips said at The Grange of Prince Edward, a winery in Prince Edward County. “Wine makers asked for the government’s help to promote their products and improve tourism in the wine regions, and we listened.”

Regulations that came into effect earlier this month will allow wine and beer makers to apply for a licence from the Alcohol and Gaming Commission of Ontario to sell individual servings of their products at their manufacturing sites. The licence is aimed at helping wineries enhance the tour experience for their visitors and bring more visitors to Ontario’s wine regions. For example, a winery would be able to sell a glass of wine for guests to enjoy as they tour the vineyard, learning about the grapes, the wine making process and the finished product.

“Many great wines are produced in Ontario,” said Agriculture, Food and Rural Affairs Minister Leona Dombrowsky. “This program will better enable people to appreciate the quality and calibre of Ontario wines.”

Prince Edward–Hastings MPP Ernie Parsons added, “world-class wineries are bringing people to their vineyards, creating new tourism experiences and helping people learn more about their fantastic products. This program will do the same for Ontario’s wine regions.”

“Being able to buy wine by the glass will further enhance the experience for visitors touring Ontario’s picturesque wine regions. This announcement allows the public another opportunity to discover why Ontario VQA wines are being recognized around the world for their excellence,” said Wine Council of Ontario chair, Norm Beal.

“Ontario is growing some of the best grapes in the world,” said Grape Growers of Ontario chair Bill George Jr. “They’ve earned a reputation for excellence and this new initiative will help more people experience what’s growing in their own backyard.”

There are more than 100 wineries in Ontario located in the Niagara Peninsula, the Lake Erie north shore, Pelee Island and Prince Edward County. In the past six years, Ontario wines have been recognized with more than 125 international awards for excellence.

Food Scraps and Wine: An Agreeable Combination

Fine wine and garbage aren't usually an appetizing combination, but a new venture by Jepson Prairie Organics brings the two together. Compost made from the food scraps of more than 1,500 food related businesses and thousands of residents in San Francisco is being used on vineyards throughout Northern California's wine country to enhance the quality of the soil.

Jepson Prairie Organics began making compost with food scraps from the city in 1997, and in 2002, a vineyard management company approached Jepson to purchase compost for use in its vineyards. More than 300 tons of food scraps are sent to Jepson's composting facility each day, and 12 vineyards are currently using Jepson's compost. The Organic Material Review has analyzed the finished compost and deemed it appropriate for use on organic farms.

Everyone involved in this project is excited about the program because it is one example of "closing the loop"—organics are taken from San Francisco tables, composted, put back into the soil, and returned to San Francisco restaurants as wine. Chris Choate, regional manager for compost facilities, says, "San Francisco likes the program because it shows how restaurants can do their part to divert waste from the landfills."

Linda Hale, vineyard manager at Madrone Vineyards, thought using Jepson's compost was a great opportunity. "Farmers are environmental stewards and must be careful with the soil," she notes. Using compost produced with food scraps allows the vineyard to help both the soil and the environment. Since it was so easy to get involved, Hale could see no reason not to take advantage of this opportunity.truck applying compost.

"Participating in this program is a win-win situation," agrees Darek Trowbridge, vineyard manager at Everett Ridge Vineyards and Winery. "The quality of the compost is better than what we used before, it is cheaper, and we are recycling a waste product." He attributes the good quality of the compost to the diverse feedstock. Trowbridge estimates a $5 to $10 savings per yard from using Jepson's compost at his vineyard since food scraps are seen as a waste product and therefore cost less than a new product. In addition, trucking costs less than transporting compost from afar. He thinks this program is a successful way to reuse some of the items society consumes.

Choate anticipates the partnership between Jepson and local vineyards will continue to thrive, as it is beneficial to the growers and the environment. There are no additional costs for growers, people are seeing the farm and city connection, and the program is right in line with current trend in the United States towards sustainable and organic agriculture.

Wine Tasting Safety

A safe and enjoyable wine trail wine tasting begins with a designated driver. The sometimes busy, frequently narrow and windy, country roads that make so many of these wine trails interesting have enough hazards without alcohol impaired drivers. The designated driver could be someone in your party or you could take advantage of one of the many limousine services or private tour guides.

Many wine trails, such as the Westside Road out of Healdsburg, have a variety of scenery, farm animals and picturesque picnic areas for the enjoyment of the whole family. If wine tasting is an added benefit of a family day in the country then taking turns with one parent driving this time and the other the next is a great way to share the load. Every winery wants us to make it clear that drinking wine is an adult pursuit in our country. You and your drinking guests must all be 21 years old or older to partake in these glorious wines.

Another option is to just not swallow. Practice the five S's; see, smell, sip, swirl and spit. It's perfectly acceptable and all wineries will have a receptacle available for this purpose.

Many of the wine trails we profile don't have any place for you to buy food along the way so you may want to bring a picnic lunch. Most wineries don't open until 10 or 11 AM so have a good breakfast and call to make sure their tasting room is open. Plan your itinerary so that at lunchtime you end up at a winery that has a picnic area — we include picnic area availability in our articles. Be aware that any wine consumed at a winery picnic area must have come from that winery. Alternately you could plan your trip so you end up in town to eat in a timely fashion.

Michigan Sparkling Wines For Anytime

Whether you call them champagne, bubbly or just plain fizz, they are just the thing for your New Year celebration, or any important event. Here are some sparkling ideas; and best of all, they come from right here in Michigan.

From the experts at Wine Spectator and the Beverage Testing Institute to the person on the street, the word has spread that Michigan produces some of the best champagne-type wines anywhere. And they come in so many different styles that you will surely find something to enjoy. Let's start with the sparkling wines that have impressed the wine writers, then move on to those that are just good, clean fun.

Larry Mawby at L. Mawby Vineyards in Suttons Bay is Michigan’s most well-known maker of bubbly. He has a style for nearly every taste. One wine that gets a lot of attention – it was Best Sparkling Wine at the Michigan State Fair Wine and Spirits Competition – is Mille. This is a dry, vintage-dated sparkling wine made almost exclusively from Pinot Noir. A wine like this is sometimes called a “blanc de noir” because it is a white wine made from dark grapes. It is big and flavorful and very highly regarded by Champagne lovers.

Larry also makes a Blanc de Blanc that is very popular. As the name implies, this is made exclusively from white grapes – in this case, Chardonnay. This is a lighter and very attractive wine with a broad appeal.

Another top dry, vintage-dated sparkler is made by Bel Lago, near Cedar. Their vintage Brut is made from the more typical combination of both red and white grapes. Other dry Michigan fizzies that have been highly rated are Tabor Hill’s Grand Mark, Good Harbor’s Moonstruck, Round Barn Winery’s Artesia and Fenn Valley’s Premier Cuvee.

Several wineries make sparkling wine from Riesling grapes. These are dry but have the typical Riesling aromatic qualities. People who try them just love them. Look for versions made by Shady Lane Cellars and Chateau de Leelanau to complement your New Year’s buffet table.

Then there’s the fun stuff ... sparkling wines that are impossible to dislike.

Topping the list of the most popular holiday bubblies are Sparkling Raspberry and Passionate Peach from St. Julian. Even the experts are impressed – they have more gold medals than the U.S. Olympic Team. You get the true taste of the fruit and moderate sweetness. Just plain delicious.

Another very popular and more traditional fizzy is Carpe Diem from Chateau Chantal. This is mostly Chardonnay with just enough Pinot Noir to give it a lovely rose’ color. It is the best-selling wine at the winery.

Enjoy Missouri’s Wine Country On The Tour Of Missouri

"Missouri is home to many exceptional wineries and the Tour of Missouri is a tremendous opportunity to showcase to the world a selection of Missouri’s award winning wines," Gov. Matt Blunt said.

At each of the finish cities on the Tour of Missouri, a feature of Missouri Wines will be present at the Health and Wellness Expo. Visitors of the Missouri Wines booth can join in games, win prizes, learn more about the state’s grapes and receive information regarding Missouri’s 72 wineries.

At each start city and the beginning of each day, race-goers with purchased 2007 VIP Hospitality experiences will be able to enjoy grape juices from Missouri wineries in the hospitality tents. At the finish city each day, a selection of award winning Missouri wines will also be available in the hospitality tents.

The Tour of Missouri will begin on Sept. 11 in Kansas City and will travel to Springfield, Branson, Columbia, Jefferson City, St. Charles and end in St. Louis on Sept. 16.

"The tour will lead fans through the heart of Missouri’s diverse wine country and go through Hermann on Saturday, Sept. 15," said Jim Anderson, executive director of the Missouri Wine and Grape Board. "We are excited for the opportunity for so many Missourians and tourists to see what Missouri’s diverse scenery, history and wine country is all about."