Lehigh Valley wineries celebrate the holidays with open houses, special events and new wine releases

The wineries of the Lehigh Valley Wine Trail are encouraging wine lovers to buy local this holiday season by inviting them to festive events, offering specials on wine, and helping them pick the right wines for their holiday meals.

Passports for the 2015 Vino in the Valley Program (formerly known as the March Passport Program) are now on sale for $35 each at all nine member wineries as well as online, and make a great gift for wine lovers.

Lehigh Valley Wine Trail Holiday Events and Specials:

Blue Mountain Annual Christmas Open House
December 6 from 6-9 p.m.

This free event is their way of saying thank you for all the support their customers continue to give. Guests can enjoy live music by Adam Motto and complimentary refreshments. Please bring a canned good to support a local food bank. (Wine tasting is $5 for five tastes, and the $5 is redeemable towards a purchase of a bottle of wine.) Call 610-298-3068 for reservations or book online.

Clover Hill Coat Drive at all locations
December 8-14

Customers who donate a gently used coat will get a 10% discount on their purchase as a thank you. They are collecting all coat sizes, which will be donated to The Caring Place in Allentown and Berks Women in Crisis in Reading.

The Breinigsville winery is also selling tickets to its Beginner Wine Tasting Classes on Saturday, January 10 and 25 at 2 p.m. This 1.5 hour long class teaches the basics of wine tasting, gives tips on wine and food pairings, and helps to answer wine questions. Tickets make great holiday gifts and often sell out before the end of this year.

Galen Glen Holiday Open House Weekends
December 6, 7, 13 and 14.

Customers can enjoy a pairing of Voodoo Ravioli and an award-winning aromatic white wine. They are helping Santa collect monetary and toy donations for Toys-for-Tots. Bring a new, unwrapped toy or cash donation and receive a gift.

Customers are also encouraged to eat, drink and dress ugly. Dig out that old, ugly Christmas sweater, wear it to the winery and take a selfie by the tree. Then post it to the winery's Facebook, Twitter or Instagram accounts and show it to their staff to receive another gift. On December 15 they will announce an eat, drink and dress ugly grand prize winner.

Pinnacle Ridge is selling specialty gift boxes for wine lovers:

The Classic Selection - $51.76
2012 Cabernet Franc
2012 Pinot Noir
2012 Merlot

The Best of Both Barrels - $29.56
2012 Barrel-fermented Chardonnay
2013 Naked Chardonnay

Additional gift box options are also available at the winery. And its award-winning sparkling wines, Blanc de Blanc and Brut Rose are back in stock starting December 6.

Tolino Vineyards - White Wine Sale

The Bangor winery has a sale on 2010 and 2011 White and Rosé wines. Purchase one bottle for 15% off, six bottles for 25% off, and a case for 50% off. The 2010 Chardonnay is now 70% off. From now through Christmas for every $50 gift certificate purchased, customers will receive a $5 gift certificate to keep for themselves.

Also taste the newly released ice-style white dessert wine, Sweet Frances, named for Carl Tolino's mother. This wine is now available for $28.99 a bottle.

Vynecrest is offering Spiced Winter Red as its three-pack of the month for $25, and is having a Customer Appreciation Weekend on December 13 and 14 with special discounts on wine. It is also releasing two new wines, Spiced Winter White and No. 36, a dry red reserve.