Vynecrest September wine specials, new wine releases, and harvest update

Harvest update - Traminette has been picked and is in the winery fermenting, and we’ve also finished picking the Pinot Gris and Cayuga. We picked Pinot Noir and crushed it to become a Pinot Noir Dry Rose.

What's new - We have recently released the 2014 Lemberger, Vynecrest White, Vynecrest Red and Riesling.

September Specials 

* Wine of the Month - Summertime Red, additional 10% off 

* Three pack of the month - 3 First Blush for $25

*at winery only, 3 pack can't be combined with other discounts.

September 27 - Vineyard & Winery Tour and Jazz Sunday

Vineyard and Winery tour begins at noon. $5 per person. Tour should wrap up just in time to enjoy some live Jazz music in the Vyneskeller from 1 - 4 pm.

Glass Half Empty by Sam Landis

We started our 39th harvest here at Vynecrest this week and let me tell you there is nothing so romantic, poetic and inspiring as picking, pressing and fermenting the first grapes from a new year's vintage....booooooring.....let's take a quick peak into what "harvest" really is.

Yes, of course there is some inner beauty of growing and producing a future wine right from your own soil. There is the change of seasons and the maturation of the vines from spring through fall. There is the reward of all the hours spent in trying to fine tune 25 acres of grapes each plot of vineyard needing its own specific blueprint. There is the marrying of minds between the Vineyard Manager John and the Winemaker Malachi. There are notes, numbers, graphs and data to ensure the when that stem is clipped and that bunch of grapes falls into our press we have done the best we can for that future wine.

Then there is the other 90 percent of harvest which entails doing the same thing over and over and over. Once all of the intellectual capital is expended harvest really is all about shutting your mind off and becoming a robot. Set up, pick up, lift up, stack up, clean up, repeat. Mind you, this is not that terrible a thing in the least. You would be amazed at how quickly 10-12 hours disappears when you are not tethered to your iPhone, iPad or laptop (which I am as guilty of as anyone). It's actually incredibly liberating and lends itself to the best eight weeks of every year.

When a telemarketer calls to try and set up a meeting I tell them "Sorry, it's harvest season." 

Trash night at my house... "Sorry, it's harvest season." 

Can you do a special free tasting for our club, you will get such great exposure... "Sorry, it's harvest season." 

Sam, you are up on this month's newsletter write up... "Sorry, it's harvest season."

60 percent of the time it works every time.

Celebrate Christmas in July at Vynecrest, July 19 - 22

Christmas in July

It is that time of year again at Vynecrest! July 19 through July 22 mention this promotion, and get 25% off 12 or more bottles. For our customers who can't make it to the winery, we are offering free shipping on 6 or more bottles during the same time period, July 19 through 22. No discount code needed at checkout, you just need to have six or more bottles in your cart. This discount applies to online orders only; phone-in orders will be subject to normal shipping prices.

July Specials

Wine of the Month - Chardonnay - additional 10% off
3 Pack of the Month - 3 Vynecrest Red for $25.00
(specials available at winery only)

In The Vineyard

The 2012 vintage started for Vynecrest with our annual delivery of Montmorency sour cherries from Peter's Orchard in Carlisle, Pa. The cherries are fermenting in the cellar now.

In the vineyard, we are busy removing excess leaves and shoots from the vines. Soon we will have to start hedging and dropping some of the fruit from the vines.

Upcoming events

• July 19 - Macungie Farmer's Market, Memorial Park, 4 - 7 pm
• July 21 - Live music in the Vyneskeller, Billy Bauer, 1:30-4:30 pm
• July 26 - Macungie Farmer's Market, Memorial Park, 4pm - 7 pm
• July 28 & 29 - Wine on the Mountain, Penn's Peak
• July 28 - Live music in the Vyneskeller, Gary Reed, 1:30-4:30 pm
• July 29 - Jazz Sunday - Live Jazz music in the Vyneskeller with Andy & Dan, 12:30-3:30pm; Vineyard & Winery Tour with the winemaker, 1 pm, $5 per person
• August 2 - Macungie Farmer's Market, Memorial Park, 4 pm - 7 pm
• August 4 - Live music in the Vyneskeller, Billy Bauer, 1:30-4:30 pm

Glass Half Empty

Starting this month, our newsletter will feature a quirky inside look at the wine business from one of the the four partners. We sometimes get so bogged down in the day-to-day duties that we forget to mention some of the most interesting things that go on around here. Some of these things are insightful, some are depressing and some are just downright funny. So here is the first installment of "Glass Half Empty" which is aptly titled since our best ideas usually occur at the end of the day after a glass or three...


By Sam Landis

We were just at the Split Rock Wine Festival in the Poconos a few weeks ago and I am always shocked at not only the outfits I see (or lack there of), but the wide range of consumer preferences of wine. Red, white, sweet, dry, blah blah blah... but as we get into the dog days of summer and the thermostat starts rising, wine temperature has always intrigued me.

We try to serve our white wines and sweeter reds as cold as possible for obvious reasons during the summer. I even know of some people (actually a lot) who put ice cubes in their wine. Some would scoff at this idea, but from my point of view if that's your preference, go for it. Who cares what people think? It's YOUR wine.

I wanted to share a little tidbit I have with one wine in particular, Chardonnay. I was in the wine cellar a few weeks ago talking with Malachi and we both got into how, for whatever reason, we enjoy drinking our Chardonnay and other Chardonnays room temperature. Because of the fact that most Chardonnays go through Malolactic fermentation and are usually aged on oak, when they are chilled down they get stripped of a lot of these unique characteristics.

So give it a shot next time you're at a barbeque or having friends over. Try some Chardonnay head-to-head - one chilled and one room temp - and see what you think. It might just be something that you're missing out on....or you might just go grab some ice cubes immediately! Either way who cares? It's YOUR wine!