The Missouri Wine Lover's Bucket List

There are a few things I believe every Missouri wine lover should experience in his or her lifetime. Get out there and experience all Missouri Wine Country has to offer!

1. Go on a Missouri Wine Trail Event
With over 125 wineries in Missouri, you may feel a little overwhelmed when you start to plan your excursion. Luckily, there are 9 very different wine trails that make planning a winery hop fun and easy, including The Hermann Wine Trail, Route du Vin, The Great Northwest Missouri Wine Trail, Missouri River Wine Trail, Kansas City Wine Trail, Missouri Weinstrasse, Ozark Mountain Trail, Mississippi River Hills Wine Trail, and Aux Arcs Wine Road. These trails host fun events throughout the year that usually involve theme wine and food pairing. It’s barhopping, winery style!

2. Visit Wineries Off the Beaten Trail

Trails may make planning a winery outing easy, but don’t limit yourself to only trail wineries. Some of the state’s hidden gems will take some hunting to find, but they are well worth the effort. Visiting these lone wineries will give you a chance to take in the Missouri country side and possibly discover new and exciting sites. Plan a road trip to Frankfurt, MO, and you’ll be delighted to find one of the state’s smallest wineries, Claymalnay Vineyard & Winery. It may be tiny, but the friendly owners and distinctive wines will leave a lasting impact.

3. Step Outside your Tasting Comfort Zone

My favorite part of visiting Missouri wineries is the chance to sample new wines. This isn't something you can do at the grocery store or even most restaurants, so you should take full advantage of tastings opportunities. Don’t be afraid to challenge your palate and indulge in a wine you don’t usually drink. Each winery leaves its own special characteristics on different varietals. Taste outside your comfort zone and discover how your preferences may change over time. Ask questions and engage with the person pouring your samples. They just might be the wine maker, like at Horst Vineyards.

4. Take Part in a Grape Stomp
This is your chance to become part of the winemaking process and all you need is a clean pair of feet! After harvest many wineries throw grape stomp celebrations and invite people to actively participate. You haven’t lived until you've had your feet dyed purple from Missouri grown grapes! Many of these events are free or the proceeds are donated to charity. Les Bourgeois Vineyards and Cave Hollow West Winery are just two of the wineries that throw large crush festivals.

5. Plan a Winery Weekend Getaway
Many wineries in this state have much more to offer than just wine. For example, a weekend at Chaumette Winery can be complete by renting out one of their classy villas, pampering yourself at the spa, sun bathing by the pool, dining at the Grapevine Grill, and of course sampling their wines in the tasting room. Don’t be afraid to book a room at a B&B, and explore what all a winery town has to offer. Your trip may start with wine, but it will end with an adventure!

6. Tour a Wine Cellar or Vineyard
Vineyards offer a spectacular view and perfect backdrop for a romantic picnic date. Take the time to experience where the wine you are drinking started its long journey to your glass. Most wineries that have vineyards are open to giving tours or allowing visitors to wander through their rows of vines. Historic wine cellars also give you an intimate glimpse into the wine making process as it dates back to pre-Prohibition times. Stone Hill Winery, Hermanhoff Vineyards, and Mount Pleasant Estates each have captivating cellars and offer tours. You may even get lucky and receive a barrel sample.

7. Join a Wine Club
If you love Missouri wine, the best way to capitalize on it is by joining a wine club. Wine clubs help you ensure your wine cabinet is always stocked with your favorite Missouri varietals. They come with great discounts, special offers and exclusive events. Many clubs offer the option for home delivery in case you don’t live near your beloved winery and who wouldn't love seeing a package of wine show up at their doorstep on a monthly or quarterly basis?

If you're looking for a club that offers a more hands on experience, I suggest Edg-Clif Farms & Vineyard's "Grape Friends" Wine Club.  Members are given the opportunity to volunteer and work in the vineyard alongside the owners and wine maker. The club also always access to wine making tutorials, opportunitiers to purchase grapes or juice (as available),  complimentary wine tastings, and many other perks.


Feel free to use my Bucket List as a jumping off point or create your own. Cheers!

7 Reasons to Visit Missouri Wineries this Fall

Summer may quickly be coming to an end, but that’s no reason to put away your wine chillers and picnic baskets. Fall is the perfect time to break out the sweaters, grab a group of friends, and venture out to Missouri Wine Country. If you haven’t visited a winery in autumn, you don’t know what you’re missing. Harvest, crush, fall festivals and so much more make fall a time to fall in love with Missouri wineries all over again. If I haven’t sold you on the idea of Missouri wineries in the fall yet, allow me to give you 7 solid reason to spend your autumn weekends sipping Missouri wines and watching the leaves change.

1.    HARVEST

Have you ever wondered just how your robust glass of Norton or spicy bottle of Traminette came to be? The winemaking process starts in early fall with the harvesting of grapes from vineyards across the state. During this time of year vineyards are weighed down by large clusters of purple and green grapes. Green grapes usually ripen in late August to September, while red grapes usually need to stay on the vines until October. Harvest can be very time consuming and uses lots of manpower. Wineries that hand pick their grapes are always looking for help during harvest. This is your chance to make a first-hand impact on the Missouri wine industry. You’ll be able to enjoy a beautiful day in the vines, meet new people, taste the grapes that will one day be served at the wineries, and possibly be compensated with wine, food or even grapes of your own to take home. Jowler Creek Vineyard & Winery will have its last harvest of the year on Saturday, September 27th. Email info@jowlercreek.com to reserve your spot to help pick their Norton. Red Fox Winery & Vineyard will be announcing their harvest dates on Facebook as the grapes ripen. You can RSVP at (816) 392-0955. Expect to start picking at 7am and be served food and refreshments. Also, keep an eye on Edg-Clif Winery’s Facebook page for updates on their last harvest date which is likely to take place Saturday, September 27th. All grape pickers that help out at Edg-Clif are served lunch and offered special pricing on wine after the harvest is complete.

Harvest may be the first stop of winemaking in the fall, but it is certainly not the only reason to visit Missouri wineries.

2.    CRUSH

The second step of the winemaking process is known as crush, and it’s my favorite step. I know the idea of grape stomps may come to mind when talking about crush, but I prefer to pass on that messy situation. (Don’t worry. There will be grape stomp info further down my list for all you people who want to feel the grapes between your toes!) I recently took a drive out to Blumenhof Winery to witness their crush process first hand. It’s a really impressive operation that they have down to a science. While I was there, they crushed and pressed Valvin Muscat and Rayon D’or grapes, and I got to sample freshly pressed juice from each. The aroma of the Valvin Muscat grapes was intoxicating and filled the air. Each juice tasted sweet and almost like an apple cider. It’s amazing to think next year I may be drinking a bottle of wine that I saw go from grapes to juice before my eyes. Winemakers, Mark and Eric Blumenberg were eager to explain the process and answer any questions. Keep an eye on Blumenhof’s Facebook page for updates on when their next batch of grapes will be ready to be crushed and pressed. Don’t be afraid to ask winemakers to give you a behind the scenes look at the winemaking process. Most are happy to show off their hard work and give you a rundown of the procedure. 

Once you’ve harvested some grapes, crushed and pressed; now we just wait for the juice to ferment into amazing Missouri wines. However, there is still a ton of fun happenings to keep you coming back all autumn long!

3. OKTOBERFEST

Fall is full of some of the best winery events of the year, including possibly the largest of them all, Hermann Oktoberfest! For the entire month of October, you can make the trip to Hermann every weekend to take part in festivities taking place at all of the wineries. Stone Hill Winery will offer live music, wine & beer, and traditional German foods including a special Oktoberfest menu at the Vintage Restaurant. Stop by Lost Creek Vineyard for some pumpkin chunkin’, riding vineyard tours, and entertainment (not to mention one of the most picturesque vineyards in the state). Hermannhof Vineyards will be celebrating with wine, beer and brats as well as German music by the Loehnig Family. Bommarito Winery will be hosting Grilled Pizza Saturdays featuring Chef Mark serving fresh ingredients from St. Louis Italian District, “The Hill.” Röbller Vineyard Winery, OakGlen Winery, Adam Puchta Winery, and the entire town of Hermann will also be celebrating in the traditional German fashion. Everyone can be German during Hermann Oktoberfest. The food, music, and wine will have you polka dancing and PROST-ing before you know it! 

This may be one of the largest Missouri winery festivals of autumn, but there are many others taking place all around the state!

4.   FALL FESTIVALS

Festivals! Festivals! Festivals! There just aren’t enough weekends! You could spend nearly every weekend  of the month at winery festivals. Sounds like heaven doesn’t it? Let’s start with Les Bourgeois Vineyards’ Crush Festival on October 4th from 2-6pm at the A-frame. If you’re looking to dye your feet purple, you can take part in the grape stomp!  Primitive Soul will be providing live music as attendees take part in pumpkin painting, fishing and lots of games for the kids.

The following weekend, head to the Harvest Hootenanny Festival October 10-12 at Mark Twain Cave and Cave Hollow West Winery. This is a great one to take the whole family. There will be a petting zoo, arts & crafts, a fun run, and pumpkin carving to keep the kids entertained. The festival also includes a farmers market, craft beer festival, home brew competition, Tour-De-Hannibale Bike Ride, and live music. And yes, another GRAPE STOMP!

If you happen to be on the northwest side of the state, you may prefer to check out Jowler Creek Winery & Vineyard’s Fall Festival happening October 11th from 5-9pm. If you want to soak in all that fall has to offer, this is the place to be. Mulled wine and s’mores will be served around a bonfire. You can also take part in traditional fall games and enjoy jovial fall music and take in the brisk autumn air rolling in over their vineyard.

On October 18th, Crown Valley Winery will be hosting its first Pumpkin Chuckin and Smash Fest at the Crown Valley Brewery. Thirty teams will compete in pumpkin carving, chucking, pie eating, and slingshotting. Each team will receive a commemorative t-shirt, but only one team will be crowned the grand prize winner and gets to enjoy a Beer Dinner for eight at the Brewery and a Fall Basket from Crown Valley. Team registration is free, and this sounds like a smashing good time with friends!

Let’s say you spend that last weekend of October in Hermann for Oktoberfest. Now you may think you’re done with Missouri wineries for the year, but you’d be terrifyingly wrong.

5.      HALLOWEEN

Wineries may not come to mind when you’re making your Halloween plans, but how does spending an evening in a haunted winery that used to be an orphanage, a nursing home and a safety bunke? Watch Belvoir Winery’s Ghost Hunter’s episode, and then call to reserve your spot at their Halloween Massacreade on Friday, October 31st immediately. I can testify that this place has a truly eerie feel about it. Even before I heard the story about the ghosts of children that roam the halls, I felt something brush by my leg on that way to the restroom. During my wine tasting, I was informed that this is a normal occurrence in their halls. If you want to be scared this Halloween, this is the place to be. Live music will be supplied by 80’s rocker band, STRIKEBACK, and you’ll be able to watch outdoor screenings of classic Halloween and horror movies. Psychic and card readers will be on tap to hype up the spookiness. Sip on all of Belvoir’s tasty wines while enjoying a truly frightening Halloween party at one of Missouri’s most excitingly, spooky wineries!

6. FALL WEATHER/SCENERY

Festivals and events can be a lot of fun, but sometimes you just want to unwind at a winery and enjoy the change of season. Feeling the cool autumn air, watching the leaves fall, and drinking your favorite Missouri wine can make for an ideal fall day. Throw in a bonfire, and it just might be perfect. Ladoga Ridge Winery will be putting on its “Fireside Fridays at Ladoga” starting September 21 through the entire month of October (except October 12). Bring a blanket and some chairs and circle up by the fire with a loved one. The winery will provide music, food and the bonfire of course.

If you really want to reflect on the transition of the seasons this fall, you may want to take part in Fall Yoga in Wine Country. Kathy Kessler of Haleyon Spa will be touring the Augusta Wine Country instructing yoga classes at various wineries. Beginners are welcome. The yoga class costs $16 and includes a complimentary wine tasting after class. Call 636-228-4110 to reserve your spot. Sessions include: 10:15-11:45AM  September 28 at Noboleis Vineyards, 9:30-11AM October 4 at Chandler Hill Vineyards, 10:15-11:45AM October 12 at Seven Stone Weingarten, 10:15-11:45AM October 18 at Augusta Winery, 10:15-11:45AM October 26 at Noboleis Vineyards, & 9:30-11AM November 1 at Montelle Winery.

Sometimes you don’t need yoga or a bonfire to get in touch with the fall season. Sometimes you just need that special autumn themed wine to make everything fall into place.

7. NEW RELEASE

A new season calls for new wines! There’s just something about a limited edition wine that makes it taste so much better. One of my personal favorite autumn wines comes from Wenwood Farms Winery. While everything else has been eagerly awaiting pumpkin beers, I have my calendar marked for the release of Wenwood’s Pumpkin Pie Wine. It’s a delightfully sweet wine with all the right spices to transport you to a slice of grandma’s pumpkin pie. You’ll be able to sample and pick up a bottle at the Wenwood Harvest Home Festival on September 27th from 11AM-5PM. This really is a limited release. If you’re curious to try it, don’t wait!

Another Missouri fall wine favorite is St. James Winery’s Cranberry Wine. Its release date is set for October 1st when you should be able to find it in grocery stores across the state. Cranberry is an iconic fall flavor, and St. James does a great job of bottling that essence into a superb wine. It pairs very well with Thanksgiving turkey and can even be used to make a holiday cocktail.

This may be a little further into the future, but it may be worth marking your calendar for. Ste. Genevieve Winery’s release of their Christmas Plum Wine. But I suppose that could wait for another list…

Wine Club Review: Cooper's Hawk Winery & Restaurant

As die hard Missouri wine fans, we have been members of multiple wine clubs to help keep our wine cabinets stocked. We usually try a different club every six months or so to mix things up. We highly suggest you consider joining a wine club. The steady supply of wine, discounts, and perks make it worth your while.

Along with whichever Missouri wine club we are trying out at the moment, we like to supplement that with a larger wine club. We've consider the Wall Street Journal Wine Club and Zagat Wine Club, but we recently stumbled across something a little more local and have been very pleased with it. While driving around Town and Country, MO, I noticed a new sign that read, Cooper's Hawk Winery & Restaurant. Of course, I immediately called Michael to ask if he was aware of a new winery in town and to tell him to meet me there as soon as possible.

Upon visiting the winery, we found out that it was started near Chicago, IL in 2005 and has been growing ever since. The grapes and fruit they use come from vineyards in California, Oregon, and Washington and are delivered to their private winery where they make their award-winning wines. Yes, we were a little disappointed to find out this wasn't a Missouri winery, but we couldn't ignore the quality wines, top-rated customer service, and perfectly paired menu. We were hooked!

Cooper's Hawk offers multiple tasting options. The Standard, Lux, and Sweet Tastes all rotated monthly. With over 45 wines, these tastings never get old. Our favorite part of the tasting is the option to add a truffle from the bakery for just $1. We highly recommend the dark chocolate truffles! After our first pairing, we looked over the Wine of the Month Club brochure and knew we wanted to be a part of it.

Since we're a couple we went with the 2 bottles a month Variety option for $35.99. This includes a standard monthly tasting for each of us ($14 value), 2 bottles of wine a month, a 10% discount on retail wines and carry out orders, a free entrée on our birthdays, and invites to Members-Only events. The flexibility of this club really stood out to us. We pick up our wine bottles every month from the winery, do our free tastings, and usually stay for dinner. We have the option to stick to the suggested tastings or trade out anything we don't feel like sampling. We can do the same with our bottles. They have suggested wines of the month, but we can pick and chose the bottles we really want.



We went to our first Members-Only club event in May. The Seis de Mayo dinner (the day after Cinco de Mayo) was a four-course meal served in the festively decorated private barrel room. We were greeted with red Sangrias and mingled with other wine club members. Each dish was paired with wine and came with some history on the holiday of Cinco de Mayo and games for prizes. We left that evening stuffed full of fantastic food and each with a bottle of wine.

So far this wine club has exceeded our expectations, and we continue to rave about it to anyone who will listen.

The moral of the story is... Join a wine club! 

Jowler Creek - Quiant, Personalized, & Environmental

Jowler Creek Winery was just one of many wineries we visited while touring the Greater Northwest Wine Trail back at the beginning of July.  We had no idea what to expect, but were pleasantly surprised when we rolled up to this country winery, complete with all natural weed control via the sheep in their vineyard, and rustic feel of the duo running the show: Jason and Colleen.

Jowler Creek is a winery that is the spawn of two loves, one of agriculture and one of viticulture.  Combined, Jason and Colleen form the perfect team not only to produce high quality wines, but to produce a relationship that intermingles their love for the countryside as well as wine.  They care for each step of the wine making process by utilizing sustainable means, including focusing their energy on quality and not quantity; so you know you are getting wine that was made with tentative eyes.  Because of this, Jowler has won many awards for their efforts.

They began by planting Norton vines in 2004 and have since added to their vineyard a plethora of varietals including: Vignoles, Cabernet Franc, and Traminette.  Officially opening their doors in 2005, Jowler Creek attracts many a visitor in their tasting room, where one can enjoy their many dry - sweet wines (we recommend their Norton, Butterfly Blush, and their Nort) from 11 - 5pm on Saturdays and Sundays.

Pros
This place is teaming with personality.  The tasting room is a brown metal building, built to resemble an old barn.  It tricked Davina into thinking the doors on the front were the entrance, but alas are only for show; the entrance is just off to the left.

The wine selection is well balanced, from beginning to end and offers a novice to Missouri wines a multitude of pleasant varietals that are capable of growing here.  The advanced wine drinker can also find something here as well.  They have a unique 'Nort' that is very tasty and is easily one of the better 'Ports' we've had in Missouri.

Jason and Colleen are knowledgeable about their wines and are quite friendly.  They took their time to explain every detail about each wine and even admitted to some that weren't up to par for their standards.

Cons
The winery itself is very nice, but it was unfortunate that one could not easily walk around the vineyard and enjoy the scenery due to the livestock living in their.  This con is but a small one because Jowler Creek is one of the few wineries that we know of that takes care of their weed issue the all natural way, without using herbicides.
 
We aren't sure if they are used to larger crowds or not, but when we were at the winery the tasting room was a bit cramped.  Of course, this is a great thing and shows one that their wines are obviously very good and very popular.  Jason and Colleen both admitted that they've already outgrown the building which houses not only their tasting room, but their entire production facility.

The Vignoles sampled at Jowler Creek was not to par with a typical Vignoles.  The wine makers admitted it, but it was something to note.  As a Vignoles fanatic it was disappointing to see it on the list, but then to taste what it turned out to be.  Looking forward to seeing how it turns out next year though.

However, despite these two environmental cons and the Vignoles disappointment, the winery is very well kept up.  The vines are very pretty to look at, the inside of the tasting room was regulated temperature wise and was a great break from the beating sun.  It was also nice that the production facility was right there so one could get a sneak peak at their establishment.  All too often we find a tasting room with no view of the production facility and in my opinion, this is one of the more exciting things about going to wineries.  Getting the chance to see how it's all made; from vine, to crush, to fermentation, to bottle, to taste.  All these steps are part of the winery experience and you get to have it all at Jowler Creek.

Notable Wine:

Jowler Creek Chambourcin - Earthy, but balanced with cherry and a little bit of vanilla, this dry red wine was our favorite of the dry options.

Jowler Creek 'Muskrato' - Though this wine is not featured on their website, it is a very pleasant, sweet white wine.  A light floral bouquet followed by a very delicate, fruit forward pallet; light in color and very easy to drink,.  Be careful, before you know it the bottle is gone.

If you find yourself in the Kansas City area and have time to kill, make your way north to Platte City and stop in at Jowler Creek Winery.  Where the owners are friendly, knowledgeable, focus on sustainability and make quality wines that show how Missouri varietals can truly taste.  For all this, we are giving Jowler Creek Winery a 4.5 out of 5 on our scale of notable wineries.

MO Wine Please rates wineries on a scale of 1 - 5.  Here are the factors taken into consideration when rating:

• Environment - 5
• Tasting Experience - 5
• Wines - 4.5
• Knowledge of Winery - 5
• Location - 5