Wine For Dessert (Literally)

I feel like I can't be the only with this dilemma. There is nothing worse than finishing a big Thanksgiving meal and looking at all those desserts, knowing that you do not have any more room for any of those delicious pies, cakes, and cookies. You try to walk off some food and make space, bust out the sweat pants, or just gorge yourself anyway, but none of these are ideal.. Well, I have found a solution, and it's wine! Pumpkin Pie Wine, that is, from Wenwood Farm Winery in Bland Missouri. This wine is the closest I've ever come to drinking a liquid version of pumpkin pie with a bonus of alcohol.

This wine can be chilled, served at room temperature, or slightly warmed to enhance the mouth-feel and aroma of the pumpkin pie awesomeness contained within. You could even go crazy and try putting some whipped cream on it! (Let me know how that works out for you. I'm very curious, yet unwilling to risk possibly ruining my wine.) I have tried a few pumpkin wines this year, but this is my first pumpkin PIE wine. Just sit back in your stretchy pants, pour yourself a glass, and enjoying drinking your pumpkin pie dessert.

Fall is also the season for mulled wines. All you need is a good base wine warmed up with sugar, spices, and citrus fruits. Edg-Clif's Hollyberry Red is the perfect wine to make a Holiday Treat Mulled Wine. The holiday gift wine comes complete with a gift tag and the mulled wine recipe. It's fun, easy and a great indulgence on a chilly day relaxing by a warm fire. The best way to warm your wine is too use a crock pot and share with good friends.

There are also times when I feel like I have to choose... wine or dessert? I usually pick wine (priorities), but now I don't have to. In the small town of Hermann, Missouri, I have made a wonderful discovery at Jillsie's Bistro & Boutique Cafe. Along with numerous lattes, smoothies, and breakfast delights, you can also order Norton Ice Cream. Yes, you read that right, and no, it's not just Norton flavored ice cream.

Real Norton wine from Stone Hill Winery is an ingredient in this splendid treat. This homemade ice cream is a beautiful lavender hue. When you taste it, you will immediately taste pure, simple homemade ice cream, and it finishes as if you just took a sip of a delicious Norton.  Stone Hill's Norton really enhances the vanilla and is not at all overpowering. Jillsei's has combined wine and ice cream, and it's pure genius!

So there you have it; these three excellent options to finish off your Thanksgiving dinner with that incorporate fabulous Missouri wines. What is your favorite wine-related dessert? Please share with on MO Wine Please's Facebook page.

Autumn Recipe: Soft Pumpkin Cookies - Paired w/ Cynthiana

Looking for a quick, easy way to please the pallets of loved ones (especially the kiddos) while at the same time your own?  These soft, pumpkin cookies are simply wonderful!!  

Soft Pumpkin Cookies

Prep: 10 min.

Cooking: 18 min.

Level: easy (peasy)

Cooling: 15 min.

Yields: about 36 cookies

Ingredients:

• 2 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
  1 teaspoon baking soda
  1 teaspoon baking powder
  1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
  1/2 teaspoon ground nutmeg
  1/2 teaspoon salt
  1 1/2 cups granulated sugar
  1/2 cup butter (1 stick), softened
  1 cup 100% Pure Pumpkin
  1 large egg
  1 teaspoon vanilla extract
  
  
  
  Directions:
PREHEAT oven to 350° F. Grease baking sheets.

COMBINE flour, baking soda, baking powder, cinnamon, nutmeg and salt in medium bowl. Beat sugar and butter in large mixer bowl until well blended. Beat in pumpkin, egg and vanilla extract until smooth. Gradually beat in flour mixture. Drop by rounded tablespoon onto prepared baking sheets.

BAKE for 15 to 18 minutes or until edges are firm. Cool on baking sheets for 2 minutes; remove to wire racks to cool completely. Drizzle Glaze over cookies.

The Hunt for Pumpkin

I do consider myself a connoisseur of pumpkin beers from the various microbreweries here in Missouri, but pumpkin wine...now that is something you have to hunt for.

Why is it that a state that is perfectly capable of producing pumpkins on a wide scale has yet to produce a popular pumpkin wine?  Perhaps it is the amount of change one must do to the pumpkin with regards to additives to get the yeast really pump(k)in'.  It's really hard to imagine why though a winery wouldn't at least try a seasonal wine such as this.

It already is a norm for a winery to go as far as to add spices to their wines during the holiday season.  This addition of what most wineries refer to as "mulled spices" can be pleasant, but for me can be  overwhelming and sometimes barely tolerable for more than a taste (in my opinion).  Though I will say we have had a few mulled wines that were palatable for at least a glass (Blumenhof is our favorite), however, I do not recall ever finishing a mulled wine bottle of any kind.  Endless Summer Winery in Hermann has posted they'll have a mulled Apple Wine (while supplies last) and they also have a Pecan Wine that is "fallish".

Some wineries do have seasonal wines that they carry, and that are primarily purchased during the fall and winter seasons.  St. James Winery for example carries a fall seasonal, their Cranberry Wine.   Also, Sainte Genevieve Winery has their Christmas Plum Wine that is made from fresh plums and is only available from November to December (though I have seen it lurking around a little before and a little after at times).  The Campfire Mead from Windy Wine Co. is also one that could be enjoyed in the fall and winter.

So far, we've only heard of a few wineries in Missouri that have attempted pumpkin in wine and that is Hemman Winery & Windy Wine Co., 7Cs Winery, and Wenwood Farm Winery's "Pumpkin Pie" that  I hope we have the opportunity to taste theirs before they run out of this seasonal rarity.

#FallingForFall

Fall officially starts Sunday, September 22nd! Leaves are falling, pumpkin lattes are steaming, and the air is brisk. Last year, we gathered a group of friends to celebrate the autumn start in the best way we know how... WINERY HOP! To make this trip more festive we paired our favorite wine trail with apple picking and fall beer tasting. We started our day off at Augusta Brewery Company. I always enjoy their beer sampler, and they also offer 18 local wines if you want to keep it consistent all day. This year we highly suggest checking out the Augusta Bottoms Beer Fest  on October 5th. We have never been, but we have heard great reviews from our friends in our home-brew club, The Brewminati. Over 20 microbreweries will be sampling including Crown Valley Brewing. Tickets are on sale now, and you're sure to find a plethora of Oktoberfest and Pumpkin beers to quench your fall thirsts!

 

The next stop on our #FallingForFall day was Mount Pleasant Winery to get some Missouri wine is us! As Wine Club members we were able to get free tastings for ourselves and our friends which is always a great perk of the club. After tasting, we found a sunny spot on the hillside to enjoy a couple bottles and take in the view of the beautiful Augusta landscape. 

 

If you have never been apple picking, I highly suggest you make a trip this fall to my personal favorite, Centennial Farms. I have been visiting this farm since I was a child, and it never disappoints. We rode the tractor back to  the orchard where we had our pick 24 varieties of apple to pick from. The pure pleasure of picking an apple straight off the tree and taking a bit, easily makes Fall my favorite season. Aside from purchasing apples you pick, they also sell honey, apple butter, relishes and other homegrown options. 

 

We had to end on a 'wine note', so we heading to Montelle Winery to finish our epic Autumn Adventure. We sipped on Vidal Icewine and grooved to the music of the live band. Our Fall Winery Hop was complete, and we are already planning another one for this Fall. Follow our itinerary or make your own plan to get out there and enjoy the Fall season. If you would like us to create a custom trip just for you, we would love to help and can provide insight into most winery regions in Missouri. Contact us here.