Spiced Winter Red is back for the fall at Vynecrest

Spiced Winter Red is available starting today.

The 2013 harvest is going great. We are picking Lemberger and Merlot this week. Just a few more weeks and all of the grapes will be in; we just need this great weather to hold out until then.

It is just about time to set our sights on the holidays. Christkindlmarkt opens in just a few weeks on November 21 and we will have a booth there as always.

October is National Breast Cancer Awareness month. Vynecrest is donating $1 to the Pennsylvania Breast Cancer Coalition for every 3 pack of the month sold.

October Specials 

* Wine of the Month - Chambourcin, additional 10% off
* 3 Pack of the Month - 3 First Blush for $25
(at winery only, 3 pack can't be combined with other discounts)

Upcoming Events

• October 3 - Macungie Farmer's Market, Memorial Park, 4 - 7 pm
• October 4 - Artist Harvest, Kutztown, 5 - 8 pm - Throughout downtown Kutztown the Artist Harvest is a celebration of art at multiple locations. Come explore the town and meet our artists and photographers while enjoying the bounty of the season. For more information and a complete list of participating vendors click here.
• October 10 & 17 - Macungie Farmer's Market, Memorial Park, 4 - 7 pm
• October 19 & 20 - Lehigh Valley Wine Trail Chambourcin Weekend - Vynecrest will be highlighting the versatility of our Jewel of the Lehigh Valley, the Chambourcin grape, by pairing our 2012 dry Chambourcin wine with Sticky Chicken - slowly cooked chicken basted in a flavorful sticky marinade that clings to the chicken. This sauce, made with our Chambourcin wine (recipe available), can be used for Sticky Chicken over rice or Sticky Chicken Wings.
• October 24 & 31 - Macungie Farmer's Market, Memorial Park, 4 - 7 pm

Glass Half Empty
by Jan Landis

In 1999, our son Ben was studying for his MBA at Lehigh University and had contact with ArtsQuest staff members who are involved with Christkindlmarkt in Bethlehem. One thing led to another and we signed on to be the winery at this festival for the four-week Christmas season.

Since we prided ourselves in making wines similar to those of Northern France and Germany - Pinot Grigio, Pinot Noir, Riesling, and Lemberger -we felt strongly that we needed to develop a German Gluwein for Christkindlmarkt. We already grew the Baco Noir grape in our vineyard which had a wonderful complex nature, so we researched recipes for a Gluwein and began to develop our own Spiced Winter Red.

Our other son, Sam, was home at the time and John, Sam and I spent an afternoon in my kitchen trying various recipes adding spices to our Baco Noir wine and heating cups of it in the microwave. Various amounts of cloves, nutmeg, cinnamon and orange extract were tried until we came up with a winning combination.

We chose a black and white Currier & Ives-like photo of the winery for the label, and bottled about 100 gallons. We thought it was a great wine warmed up in a crockpot and served with shortbread or spice cookies; if only it would sell. And sell it did! So well, in fact, it only lasted for the first two weeks that first year at Christkindlmarkt.

Greatly encouraged, we made more of it the next year and again it sold out. We seem to keep making more of this holiday favorite each year as it is also popular with campers in the off-season. We take pride in using freshly ground spices in our recipe which hasn't changed very much since that first time in my kitchen. The only difference is now we make about 1,100 gallons of Spiced Winter Red, and we don’t make it in my kitchen.

Harvest season at Pinnacle Ridge brings new wine releases, a special event and live music

Harvest is here!

Happy harvest season to all of our wonderful customers! Thank you for all of your support and your passion for what we are doing. As we begin to undertake the always daunting (and equally rewarding) task of harvesting our vines, we would like to invite you all to come out and enjoy the sights. The fair weather is fleeting, the grapes are coming off of the vines and we have begun to process our fruit.                                  
There are going to be a lot of great events and happenings at Pinnacle Ridge this fall, and we want to invite you to come out and take part. Want to be a part of the team that helps harvest our fruit? Give us a call at (610) 756-4481 or shoot us an e-mail at pinridge@aol.com.

House Concert Series  - October 12

Steve Brosky and Jimmy Meyer will be jamming in the barn that Saturday afternoon from 2-5 p.m. They will help to kick off the release of our brand new 2012 Cabernet Franc. Also, check out some vintage gifts and notions from Bee Stung by Melanie Tatasciore that will be available throughout the afternoon. They will include everything from homemade jewelry, to artisan bath and body scrubs

Lehigh Valley Wine Trail Event: Chambourcin Weekend                                                            

Join us October 19 and 20 for the Lehigh Valley Wine Trail's annual Chambourcin weekend - an entire weekend of food, fun and cheer devoted to one of the Lehigh Valley's signature grape varieties!                                
New Wine Releases

2012 Pinot Noir
This lighter-weight red has aromas of vanilla, cherry and pie spices. The moderate tannins give way to cherry fruit flavors coupled with the wood influences derived from aging the wine in French oak barrels. A perfect wine to enjoy with lighter pork and chicken dishes.

2012 Cabernet Franc
Our Cabernet Franc displays herbal aromas, hints of vanilla and crushed berries. The flavor profile follows that of the nose and this wine displays moderate tannins, indicating an aging potential of anywhere between 3-5 years. The Cabernet Franc does very well in the Lehigh Valley and this particular wine is an excellent example. Pair this wine with wild game, like pork or venison, or with a light blush pasta sauce.

Casting a Spell to End Hunger - Galen Glen Winery to hold food drive to help Shepherd House Food Pantry

On Saturday, October 26 from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. and Sunday, October 27 from noon to 5 p.m., Galen Glen Winery will host Verhext Weekend. Verhext translates to bewitched in German. The Winery staff is asking, "Are you a good witch or a bad witch?" Are you like Elphaba Thropp or Glinda from the Wizzard of Oz? The winery's always bewitching, fun, and energetic staff will be offering a complimentary food pairing of Flying Monkey Muffins with our Witches Brew, Muller Time. We invite everyone to come to the winery and eat, drink and be scary while helping others.

During this weekend our staff wants to help our local food pantry, Shepherd House, which is an emergency pantry that provides three days of meals (including breakfast, lunch and dinner) to families in need in the following communities: Beaver Meadows, Jim Thorpe, Lehighton, Nesquehoning, Palmerton, Summit Hill, Tresckow, and Weatherly. Between December 2012 and May of 2013 Shepherd House served 16,944 people. The pantry operates on donations and grants and does not receive government funding. Per Director, Stanley Haupt, they are currently awaiting news on a grant from the PA Department of Agriculture.

Galen Glen Winery is asking everyone who visits the winery on October 26 and 27 to consider bringing donations of non-perishable food items (peanut butter, canned tuna and vegetables, pasta, etc.) or monetary gifts to help Shepherd House as they enter their most critical time of the year. For each family who brings donations, Galen Glen will offer a small thank you gift. Harvest is a time of abundant blessings, please help us bless Shepherd house!

About Galen Glen Winery
Galen Glen Winery is located in the beautiful rolling hills of Andreas Pennsylvania. The vineyard is on the family's double-century farm and is full of history. Our tasting room's knowledgeable and engaging staff always make your visit enjoyable. Year round we are open every Wednesday, Thursday and Friday from noon to 5 p.m., Saturday from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. and Sunday from noon to 5 p.m. Plan to spend an afternoon enjoying our exceptional views and award-winning wines with some locally-made meats and cheeses or bring your own picnic lunch.

For more information about our award winning wines and other upcoming events, please visit our website www.galenglen.com, "Like" us on Facebook at Galen Glen Vineyard & Winery or follow us on Twitter @galenglenwine. Contact the winery by telephone at 570-386-3682.

Clover Hill celebrates 28 years in business this month

Clover Hill Vineyards and Winery, the Skrip family and our staff are proud to share 28 years of Clover Hill wines. A few facts:

• In 1976, John and Pat Skrip purchased the property where Clover Hill Vineyards and Winery stands today. They planned on building a new home on the property and also wanted to farm the land. Initially, they intended to plant Christmas trees, then thought about a potato farm, and finally settled on growing grapes.
• 1977 was their first grape harvest and they sold the fruit to local home winemakers. For 5¢ more a gallon, John and Pat would crush and press the grapes for you!
• In 1985, John and Pat decided to make Clover Hill their full time occupation and received a PA Farm Winery license. The first year of business, they produced and sold just under 2,000 gallons of wine a year.
• Currently, Clover Hill owns and operates six vineyards, has four tasting rooms, and produces almost 80,000 gallons of wine a year.
• John and Pat Skrip have been joined in the business by two of their children, John III and Kari.

We are very proud to be a second generation, family-owned business. We thank our customers for enjoying and sharing Clover Hill wines over the years. A very special thank you to all current and past Clover Hill staff, who have helped make our dreams come true. Thank you for continuing to enjoy Clover Hill wines and we look forward to many more years to come!

Chamourcin Weekend on the Lehigh Valley Wine Trail
9850 Newtown Road, Breinigsville, PA 18031
October 19 and 20
Saturday 10 am - 5 pm and Sunday noon - 5 pm

Cheers to the Chambourcin grape! The Chambourcin grape is the only grape all eight wineries on the Lehigh Valley Wine Trail grow, but it is produced in many different styles. So take this weekend to travel the trail and sample various styles of wine made from the Chambourcin grape. Each winery will celebrate this special grape in various ways.

At Clover Hill we will hold cooking demonstrations to be paired with our 2012 Chambourcin and our Turtle Rock Red (also made from 100% Chambourcin grapes). Our cooking demonstrations will take place at 1, 2, 3 and 4 pm both days. Visit our website soon for more details on what’s going to be cooking at Clover Hill. You can also visit www.lehighvalleywinetrail.com to find out what each winery has in store for this annual Chambourcin grape celebration.

Grape harvest 2013 begins at Vynecrest

The grapes are starting to come in. Recently we picked Seyval Blanc and a grape named Geisenheim that we use for our Riesling blend. Now we are picking Vignoles, Chardonnay and Traminette. The harvest has been great so far. Soon we will pick Pinot Grigio and Pinot Noir.

It was a big week for Vynecrest at the Great Allentown Fair. Once again, John Landis was a chocolate cake judge, and then on September 1 we participated in the Great Grape Stomp along with Clover Hill Winery.

Our team was the politicians - Allentown Mayor Ed Pawlowski, Lehigh County Commissioner Percy Daugherty, Lehigh County Executive Matt Croslis, and Pa. Rep Gary Day, who stomped against Clover Hill's team of media representatives. It was a very close finish with the slight edge going to Clover Hill. It was all in good fun to emphasize the importance the impact of our local Lehigh Valley wineries have on Pa. agriculture and local business and industry in the Valley. The stomp was followed up by a cupcake tasting with our Cherry Divyne wine.

September Specials 

• Wine of the Month - Riesling, additional 10% off 
• Three pack of the month - 3 Vynecrest Red for $30

(at winery only; three pack can't be combined with other discounts)

Upcoming Events

• September 19 - Macungie Farmer's Market, Memorial Park, 4 - 7 pm
• September 26 - Macungie Farmer's Market, Memorial Park, 4 - 7 pm
• September 29 - Jazz Sunday - Live Jazz music in the Vyneskeller, 1 - 4 pm
• October 3 - Macungie Farmer's Market, Memorial Park, 4 - 7 pm

Glass Half Empty
by Sam Landis

Harvest.. September usually signals a lot of similar thoughts to many people. Back to school. End of summer. The beginning of football. But for me, for the last 30 years of my life, September has always meant one thing - harvest.

We began picking grapes recently, in what is now the 36th harvest at Vynecrest Winery. Some things have changed such as grape varieties, equipment, people, and vineyards. Some things have not changed such as paper, rock, scissors between Malachi and I to see who picks up the heavy lugs. Stupid fights with my dad over how to hook up hoses. Cold Miller lights at 7 p.m. as my mom brings us appetizers while we clean up.

But the biggest change at harvest at Vynecrest is that we are starting to look differently at what picking grapes really means. For years we would look at the grapes as grapes and see how we could grow the best possible grapes and then see how we could make the best possible wines from those grapes. Now, this is not the worst blueprint in the world, mind you, as it has served us well for many years.

But, recently in the last few years we have started working backwards. All grapes have their own identity (Ph, TA, Sugar, Tannin,), and that all stops once you make that final snip of the stem and they fall into the press. So we have started to work off the wine we want to make first as the determination of when we pick the grapes. Some of our wines are better served with higher Ph or lower acid or higher alcohol or lower alcohol, and these decisions are made in the vineyard and not the wine cellar.

There is still a lot to learn and we still make mistakes, but we are getting better and better every year and that is a pretty cool thing to be a part of and a very rewarding thing.

But I still like that some things never change. We are picking Chardonnay now so I am looking forward to a couple cold Miller Lights tonight at 7 p.m. with some snacks, waiting for the beginning of football... ah, harvest.