Eastern Connecticut Wine Trail

Marguerite Barrett
Contributing Writer

Having finally finished writing up my notes from my various summer excursions, it’s time to turn our attention back to Connecticut.  I’m actually getting very close to completing my tour of Connecticut Wineries.

I started out following the Connecticut Wine Trail – first the wineries of the Western Trail situated primarily in the Litchfield Hills, and then on the Eastern Trail where most of the wineries fall along the coast.  Along the way I discovered that the Connecticut Wine Trail is not comprehensive – in fact, there are about 10 wineries in the state that aren’t listed on the Wine Trail.  Turns out, inclusion on the wine trail requires a monthly membership fee, one which some of the newer and smaller wineries have opted not to pay at this point.

That’s the case for today’s winery, Cassidy Hill Vineyard.  During general conversation, I learned that membership in the Connecticut Wine Trail runs about $200 per month, and in Cassidy Hill’s case, they weren’t yet convinced that the Wine Trail website drove enough extra traffic to member wineries to justify the expense.  All wineries, whether they are part of the Wine Trail or not, are listed as part of the Connecticut Farm Trust and included in the Passport program which the Trust runs every year.  Which also explains why there were more than 30 wineries listed in the 2009 Passport but only 26 listed on the Wine Trail website.

Located in Coventry, Connecticut – about 20 minutes from Hartford and close to the University of Connecticut’s main campus at Storrs, Cassidy Hill is tucked away down a long country road.  Surrounded by farmland and vineyards, the tasting room and winery is a log-cabin inspired building with a shape that evokes the tobacco barns that still dot the central areas of the state.   A long patio stretches 1/2 way along the front of the building and has outdoor seating for a good 10-15 people.

Inside the space is light and airy with wood-paneled walls, high oak beams along the ceiling and a welcoming mix of comfortable chairs and bistro tables for guests who want to relax and stay awhile.   A large L-shaped bar is tucked into the back corner of the main room; the bar could hold 12-15 people and the tables set up around the room could easily hold another 30 or so.   That afternoon I had managed to entice Christy back onto the wine trail with me, and as we entered we greeted by a very friendly staff who, despite the fact that they were fairly busy that afternoon gave us the option of having our tasting at the bar or at one of the tables.  That was a pleasant surprise – many of the other wineries aren’t able to accomodate tastings at the tables unless the winery is absolutely dead that afternoon.  But not only was it an option, but the staff was able to keep up with the demand and as far as I could see no one had to wait long in between the individual pourings.

The afternoon we visited the tasting menu included 6 wines, 3 whites, 1 blush and 2 reds.  The tasting, which includes all six wines, is $5 and you can purchase the logo glass for an additional $3.  Glasses of wine are $5 and the the winery provides a 10% discount on a case of wine.  For details about the wines we tasted that afternoon, check back here on Christmas Eve.

Since we’ve stopped by in early September, they’ve added some new wines to their menu, including a Late Harvest Vidal, and have 3 new wines scheduled for 2010 release.  Definitely worth a trip back, particularly given Coventry is practically my backyard!

If you’re planning a trip to Cassidy Hill, I also recommend a stop at Dmitri’s restaurant, also in Coventry – a Greek-American bistro, it’s quickly become one of my favorite restaurants in Connecticut, and they have the best gyros I’ve had outside of Chicago’s Greektown.  If you’re coming from Hartford or points west, Dmitri’s is right on the way.

Look for “The Wines of Cassidy Hill” here at Vino Verve on 12/24.

Cassidy Hill Vineyard
454 Cassidy Hill Road
Coventry, Connecticut 06238
Tasting Room Hours: Friday, Saturday, Sunday 11:00 am – 5:00 pm

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Marguerite Barrett
Contributing Writer

Continued from Thursday, November 12

Both Christy and I found the reds to be interesting, fruity and quite enjoyable, and we definitely preferred them to the whites.  We also found ourselves somewhat puzzled as to why the staff so preferred the Winthrop White and Sweet Reserve over any of the reds.  But that’s the beauty of a tasting menu; hopefully there’s something for everyone somewhere on the list.

Heritage Trail currently produces three reds, beginning with the

Shetucket Red A blend of Rubiana grape (another grape developed by Cornell University) and Merlot, the Shetucket Red is a surprisingly pleasant drinkable table wine.  Garnet colored, the nose is lovely with rich cherry notes and that “sea-air tang” that I often find in northeastern reds.  Aged for one year in French oak, the wine is on the light side of medium-bodied with subtle notes of cherry and light spice on the end which provides an interesting finish.

Rochambeau Red Heritage Trail’s newest wine – 2007 was the first year produced – the Rochambeau Red is a blend of Villard Noir, Chambourcin, Merlot and Cabernet Sauvignon fermented in stainless steel for 20 days and then transferred to aged French Oak and racked in American oak.  The result is a lighter-bodied table wine with soft notes of cherry and dark berries and pleasant notes of toast on the finish.

Cabernet Franc The tasting finished with Heritage Trail’s Cabernet Franc.  A deep garnet color, this is a medium-bodied wine with a soft nose with nice notes of cherry.  In the mouth, cherry is again the predominant note with a pleasant vanilla finish from the oak.  This isn’t one of the strongest Cabernet Francs on the Connecticut Wine Trail, but it’s a eminently drinkable wine and my personal favorite of the Heritage Trail wine list.

Having finished up the tastings, we each ordered a glass, me of the Cab Franc and Christy the Shetucket Red and settled back to relax and enjoy the peacefulness of Heritage Trail’s lovely views in the late afternoon summer sun.

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Marguerite Barrett
Contributing Writer

Continued from Tuesday, November 10th.

To our surprise, the tastings weren’t presented according to the printed tasting menu, and we actually began with the two sweeter whites before moving on to to the lighter, drier whites.  It was an interesting choice, explained to some degree, by our server’s announcing that the first two she was pouring for us were her favorites among the Heritage Trail wines.  Unfortunately, they weren’t ours.  The first selection was the

Winthrop White.  100% Cayuga estate grapes, the tasting notes indicate that this is Heritage Trail’s “Estate Boutique label.”   It’s a sweeter wine, almost too sweet, but is completely overpowered by the nose which is very earthy and bordering on unpleasant.  As this was our first wine of the tasting, both Christy and I thought the odors were from the glass – as if it had been washed in extremely hard water.  But after surreptitiously sniffing our water glasses, we realized it was the wine.  The nose has a strong, pungent, mustiness which Christy said reminded her of the smell of a manure.  Interestingly, you don’t taste the earthiness; the wine itself is light and sweet.  With a softer – or fruitier – nose, the wine would have been quite pleasant, but we just couldn’t get past the nose.

We quickly moved on to the

Sweet Reserve A blend of 70% Cayuga and 30% Seyval grapes, this, as the name implies, is another sweet wine.  The tasting notes indicate this is a semi-sweet wine, but it more closely resembles a sweet dessert wine.  In the mouth, there are lovely notes of citrus and apricot, although there is a strong citrus/acid bite at the end which was a bit startling.  But as with the Winthrop White, what we tasted was overshadowed by what we smelled: another strong, musty, earthy nose.  Not as pungent as the Winthrop White, we still found the nose unpleasant and had a hard time getting past it to enjoy the wine.

We were thinking about saying something to our server when she returned, particularly given that she had been so enthusiastic about these wines when she poured them.  Perhaps we had gotten tastings from a couple of  bad bottles?  But then we overheard a different server saying to the people next to us who had openly commented on the smell, “oh yes, we get that a lot; people often say they find the nose to be very strong…”  and we realized, no we didn’t get a bad bottle.  But it did make me wonder why they didn’t mention the nose upfront and perhaps explain what it is we were smelling and why…

Christy suggested it might be the grapes – both were predominantely Cayuga.  Maybe the nose was a hallmark of the grapes?  But we’ve both had a number of Cayuga wines at other wineries, and didn’t have this reaction to the nose.  We then started to worry that perhaps this was a hallmark of all the Heritage Trail wines.   Luckily the next wine was much more to our liking…

Quinebaug White Another Cayuga blend, this time with Vidal, the Quinebaug is a light-bodied white wine, drier wine with a touch of sweetness.  The nose is pleasantly earthy, with grassy notes.  In the mouth, the wine has subtle notes of citrus and pear with a crisp finish.    We both liked this wine, although in all honesty, some of what we liked was that it didn’t have the nose of the first two wines.  Finally, we finished up the whites with the

Chardonnay This is an unoaked Chardonnay with a soft, fruity nose with notes of grapefruit.  In the mouth, the wine is smooth with lovely notes of grapefruit and a nice balance of acid at the finish.  Very nice Chardonnay, particularly for those who prefer their Chardonnays without oak.

With the whites behind us, we rinsed our glasses and awaited the Reds…

Continued on Tuesday, November 17th.

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Marguerite Barrett
Contributing Writer

As Christy and I drove down Route 169 everything seemed vaguely familiar, and I realized that not only had I been to Heritage Trail before, it was the first winery I wrote about for Vino Verve.  I can’t remember why I started the wine trail there in the late Fall of 2007 – or why I didn’t post anything until January 2008 – or why I switched over to the Western Trail on the other side of the state shortly afterwards – but as we pulled into the winery grounds, that first visit almost two years ago came back to me.

Since that visit the winery has acquired new owners, who have expanded the offerings to include a cafe with extensive lunch and dinner menus overseen by Heritage Trail’s Owner and Creative and Culinary Director, Chef Harry Schwartz; his wife Laurie is the winery’s Vintner.

The winery grounds and buildings are largely as I remembered, with the 18th century farmhouse serving as the property’s focal point.   When I first visited, though, the tasting room was in the back of the house – a side door led you into a large sun-room that served as the winery’s tasting room.   With the turnover in ownership, the Schwartz’s have moved the tasting room out of the main house and into the old 18th century barn which they have turned into a combined cafe/tasting room.  The cafe is surprisingly large and can probably seat 20-30 inside, and a large patio and veranda overlooking the expansive lawns and vineyards could hold another 30-4o guests.   They provide full service both inside and outside, even with tastings – a nice change from other wineries that provide patio seating, but don’t serve tastings directly at the tables.

The cafe menu is both varied and extensive and features both a lunch and a dinner menu – another surprise given that this is a relatively small venue.  The food is prepared onsite in the kitchens built into the back of the cafe, and features fresh local produce wherever possible.  In addition to Heritage Trail, the Schwartz’s also own Meadowstone Cheese in Brooklyn, Connecticut, and the cafe menus feature a number of dishes with local Meadowstone cheeses.   Some of the menu highlights include Wasabi Butterflies (fresh goat cheese flavored with wasabi crisp flatbread “wings”), the Lobster BLT, Smoked Chicken Wasabi Goat Cheese Panini, thin and crispy herbed mediterranean pizza with local cheeses, and the homemade gelato.

And, of course, the wines – which is what drew us there that afternoon.  Heritage Trail produces 7 wines, four whites and three reds.  A tasting of all seven wines will run you $7, with an additional $5 if you want to bring home a signature wine glass after your tasting.  Or, if you prefer, you can select the “Grand Pairing for 2″ which includes the full tasting menu for two people plus a selection of fresh goat and cow cheeses from Meadowstone Farms.

Christy and I had already stopped for lunch earlier that afternoon, so we opted for a tasting (each) outside on the patio – first up, the Winthrop White…

Continued on November 12th with the Heritage Trail Whites.

Heritage Trail Vineyards
291 N. Burnham Highway
Jewett City, CT 06351
860-376-0659
heritagetrailcafe@gmail.com

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Marguerite Barrett
Contributing Writer

I have to say it was hard to tell who was having more fun at Dalice Elizabeth Winery’s Grand Opening Celebration last weekend – the guests or the owners.

Gretchen had received a news alert on Thursday afternoon, which she promptly forwarded over to me, announcing the opening of Connecticut’s newest winery, The Dalice Elizabeth Winery in Preston.  The festivities kicked off on Friday afternoon with a ribbon cutting and brand unveiling ceremony beginning at 4:30 and continued until 8:00 with Italian cooking demonstrations, live music and the star of the event, the wines.   On Saturday afternoon, when I arrived, people were still talking about how successful Friday had been, and how they had had to force people to leave because everyone was having such a good time.

Saturday afternoon the party was still continuing.  Inside the tasting room John Wilcox, owner and winemaker, greeted guests, poured tastings and answered the myriad questions people brought with them.  Outside there was a large grill going making marvelous steak and bruschetta appetizers.  Chairs and tables were set up around the lawn for people to sit and enjoy the wines, the view and the company.   The overall atmosphere was casual and relaxed; people mixed and mingled and took turns at the tasting bar so everyone got a chance to sample all the wines.

The Dalice Elizabeth Winery is owned and operated by John and Mary-Lee Wilcox and their grandson, Blaze Faillaci.  The trio are owners of a gourmet food distribution business, Sumptious Selections, a business that Mary-Lee started with her daughter, Dalice Elizabeth.  Eleven years ago, the pair were days away from opening a winery and retail store when Dalice Elizabeth died suddenly and unexpectedly.  The family put the winery on hold, resurrecting the plans a few years ago.

The Wilcoxes have a long history of winemaking; Mary-Lee’s father, Raphael Blaze Faillaci, immigrated from Italy bringing with him the wine press still used by Dalice Elizabeth today.  John, Dalice Elizabeth’s winemaker, has been crafting wines for years, and he and Mary-Lee also run a wine-making school.  Their formerly private-label Zinfandel and Cabernet Sauvignon have garnered a number of awards and critical acclaim over the years, but until now, have not been available to the public.

The current Dalice Elizabeth vintages are all made from grapes brought in from California and Washington, although the entire winemaking process is done here in Connecticut.  They’ve planted both Chardonnay and Cabernet Franc on the Preston property, but it will be another three to four years before those vines are producing grapes ready for pressing.  In the meantime, John continues to produce well-crafted artisanal wines from his west coast grapes, including two whites (Chardonnay and Pinot Grigio) and six reds (Merlot, Cabernet Sauvignon, Sangiovese, Cabernet Franc, Syrah, and Old Vine Zinfandel).

Only the reds were available during opening weekend; the whites will be released shortly after the first of the year.  And of the reds only four were available as they had sold out of both the Sangiovese and the Syrah before I arrived.  But the remaining four made up for any lack.  All were rich, complex, smooth wines that practically melted in the mouth.  The Cabernet Franc had lovely notes of cassis and raspberry, and I made a friend in Mary-Lee when I exclaimed “oh this is lovely” after the first sip.  The Merlot is a brighter wine, with strong notes of cherry.  The Old Vine Zin is rich and mellow with notes of plum and chocolate that linger in the mouth.  And finishing the tasting was the Cabernet Sauvignon, rich and complex with notes of black currants and a hint of chocolate on the finish.

I will definitely be going back; already Christy (who was out of town and couldn’t make the grand opening) and my cousins Bobbie and Andy have volunteered to take a return trip with me.  In the meantime, I purchased a bottle of each to bring home with me – just to be sure I had a “good enough” sample to truly assess each wine.

Congratulations to John and Mary-Lee Wilcox, Blaze Faillaci and the Dalice Elizabeth Winery.  Here’s to great wines and a great afternoon!

Dalice Elizabeth Winery

6 Amos Road, Preston Ct 06365

+1-860-930-9198

info@ DaliceElizabeth.com

Dalice Elizabeth is open year-round for wine tastings and sales.  Current hours are Thursdays and Sundays, 11-5; Fridays and Saturdays, 11-8.  Hours may change during the winter; check the website for details.

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Marguerite Barrett
Contributing Writer

I seem to be slipping – either that or am just WAY too busy at work – but it was actually Gretchen who let me know that a new Connecticut Winery has hit the scene and are hosting a weekend-long Grand Opening Celebration this weekend!

Located in Preston, Connecticut on the shores of Lake Amos (and a scant 3 miles from the Foxwoods Casino and Resort), the Dalice Elizabeth Winery opened their doors to the public yesterday at the “Become a Part of the Family” Grand Opening Celebration.   The celebrations continue throughout the weekend: 11-8 on Saturday and 11-5 on Sunday.

In addition to their wines, Dalice Elizabeth also has a wine school where participants can learn the art of wine-making, and offers Italian Cooking classes for groups of six or more.

I wasn’t able to make the trek to Preston for the Friday evening ribbon-cutting ceremony, but will definitely be heading down this afternoon.

Welcome Dalice Elizabeth to Connecticut – and thanks Gretchen for passing along the news.

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Marguerite Barrett
Contributing Writer

Continued from Tuesday, October 6, 2009

Ballet of Angels may be Connecticut’s best-selling wine, but both Christy and I found ourselves much more taken with Sharpe Hill’s reds than with any of their whites.  First up was their best-selling red,

Red Seraph A blend of Merlot and St. Croix, this is a dry medium-bodied wine that will pair well with a wide variety of foods.  The nose is very spicy with notes of pepper and smoke.  In the mouth, the wine is smooth with light smoke and notes of dark stone fruits and a spicy finish.  The Merlot grapes provide body, while the St. Croix provides a crisp bite at the end which gives the wine some interest.  Not my favorite red, but I did like this wine.

Red Seraph 2006 Vintage Merlot Also a blend of Merlot and St. Croix, there is a greater percentage of Merlot in this blend making the wine smoother and richer overall than the Red Seraph.  That being said, this was my least favorite of all of the reds.  Both in the nose and the mouth I detected notes of cherry, although they are more subtle in the mouth than on the nose.  The oak is more subdued producing very light notes of smoke.  It’s not a bad wine, but in general I didn’t find it as complex or interesting as the other reds, particularly the next two…

Cabernet Franc 2006 This and the St. Croix 2006 (see below) were hands-down my two favorite wines of the afternoon.  I have been finding myself drinking a lot of Cabernet Francs lately, and this was one that made it on my list of “wines to come back for.”  Medium-garnet in color, the nose is rich and spicy with interesting notes of tobacco.  The mouth feel is lush and silky, and on the palate the wine is smooth with a smokey spiciness that balanced the light fruit notes of dark berries nicely to produce a wine with interesting character and depth.  Christy starred this as one of her favorites of the afternoon as well.

St. Croix 2006 100% estate grown, the St. Croix is the second of my two favorite wines of the afternoon.  Also a medium garnet color, the St. Croix is a fuller-bodied wine, with a soft, lush mouth feel.  The nose is soft with subtle notes of berries which are also detectable on the palate before the wine finishes with intriguing notes of licorice.  The licorice provides both a bite and a hint of sweetness that made the wine more interesting.  Our host indicated that this wine pairs well with game as well as with more traditional dishes such as beef or lamb.   While I really enjoyed this wine, Christy was less impressed, finding a lot of sediment at the bottom of her glass.

That concluded the reds but not the tasting as we cleaned our glasses and settled in to enjoy dessert in the form of the last two wines on the menu.

Select Late Harvest 2006 An estate wine made from 100% Vignole, this is a really, really nice late harvest wine.  Rich, lush and sweet, the color is a lovely orange-rose color that catches the light nicely.  The nose is subtle with soft notes of fruit which blend nicely in the mouth.  No one fruit note is predominant, and the result is a smooth, balanced wine that would be excellent on it’s own or paired with desserts, cheeses or fruits.

Pontefract 2006 This is a port-style dessert wine with rich notes of chocolate in both the nose and the mouth.  Very smooth, I found it not as rich as other ports and the mouth feel wasn’t quite as lush as I expect.  Made from 100% estate-grown St. Croix grapes, despite being a dessert wine,  the Pontefract retains that interesting final bite that one finds so often with St. Croix.

Both the Select Late Harvest and the Pontefract are produced in more limited quantities and neither are available by the case, and the Pontefract is limited to three bottles per customer.

As the tasting ended, we sat back and took stock of the afternoon: the American Chardonnay and the Cabernet Franc were our favorite white and red, and runners-up in the “wines we’d come back for” category also included the Cuvee, the St. Croix, the Red Seraph and both (or either) of the dessert wines.

All in all one of the more successful – and relaxed – Win(e)ding Road afternoons.

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Marguerite Barrett
Contributing Writer

Continued from Thursday, October 1, 2009

Christy and I normally head out on a Saturday or Sunday afternoon, so being able to go during the week was a bit of a treat.  Normally we head out on the Win(e)ding Roads once a month; we’d love to do more, but what can I say, life intervenes.  And even though Connecticut is a small state, we often are looking at an hour’s drive just to get over to the wine trails – so we generally plan a route that allows us to hit several wineries and get the most of the trip.

But we were on vacation, and this was somewhat spur of the moment.  It was a freebie, if you will, and while we had the address of a second winery plugged into the GPS, as we pulled into Sharpe Hill, it was with a sense of leisure – it didn’t really matter if we decided to stay all day.

The other nice thing about heading out on a weekday is that you encounter far fewer people.  It’s definitely a more pleasant experience when you aren’t trying to jockey for position at the tasting bar or getting elbowed by the guy next to you who has definitely had one (or two or three) too many.

We picked up our glasses and headed out to find seats on the grassy terrace.  There were a few other small groups, but the seats are arranged in small intimate groupings that seat up to 4 people, and we were able to relax and settle into our chosen seats and to some extent feel like we had the place to ourselves.  It was a really nice change from the normal lining-up-at-the bar experience.

We had opted for the full tasting menu – 12 wines including six whites, four reds, and two dessert wines.  First up was a tasting of Connecticut’s best-selling and best-known wine

Ballet of Angels This was not my first encounter with Ballet of Angels.  I had picked up a bottle at a local package store not long after I moved here from Chicago, and had given it as gifts to out-of-state friends.  I even got my cousin Bobbie hooked on it, and brought her a half-case of the wine at Thanksgiving last year.  It is a good wine, but there were several others in the Sharpe Hill line-up that I found myself liking better.   Ballet of Angels is a blend of 10 different grapes, with Viognier the primary grape.  A pale yellow, not quite straw color, the wine has a pleasant, slightly sweet nose with notes of grapefruit.  In the mouth, the wine is crisp, clean and light-bodied with lovely notes of citrus and very clean finish.   While a dry wine, the wine has a brightness that will appeal to even those who prefer sweet wines.

American Chardonnay 2007 Hands-down this was my favorite of the Sharpe Hill whites.  aged in American oak for six-eight months, this is a drier wine than the Ballet of Angels.  Also pale yellow in color, the nose is grassy with a pleasant mustiness from the oak.  The wine has an earthiness that I haven’t found too often in Connecticut wines, they tend more towards the fruity rather than the earthy, but this wine has lovely notes of green pepper which are balanced by a slightly acidic finish.  All in all a very nice wine.

Cuvee Ammi Phillips 2007 This is a limited edition wine, although our host for the afternoon wasn’t sure exactly how many cases they produce each year.  The Ammi Phillips is 100% Chardonnay aged 18 months in brand new French oak barrels.  The result is a richer, deeper and more buttery wine than the American Chardonnay.  The color, while also a pale yellow is a bit deeper than the previous two wines and has some jewel-tone qualities, catching the light nicely.  The nose has lovely notes of butter and smoke, and the wine has a soft, smooth mouth-feel.  The finish has a touch of both sweetness and acid which balance the smoke, producing a very satisfying wine.  That being said, I still preferred the earthiness of the American Chardonnay over the buttery smoothness of the Cuvee.

Vineyard Reserve Chardonnay 2007 This was described as a French-style Chardonnay, aged six-eight months in French oak barrels.  Like the American Chardonnay, this wine is more earthy than fruity, with lovely floral and slight grassy notes on the nose and in the mouth.  It’s not as smokey as the Cuvee; a result of being aged in older barrels.  While not a sweet wine, it’s definitely sweeter than either of the other Chardonnays, but finishes with a slight tartness.  This was my least favorite of the Sharpe Hill Chardonnays; I didn’t find it balanced as nicely as either of the other two.

Vineyard Dry Riesling 2008 While generally not a fan of Rieslings, often finding them sweeter than I generally like, there are Rieslings which I have really liked and will stock in my cellar.  Unfortunately this is not one of them.   Described in the tasting notes as having “complex citrus flavors,” I found the flavors to be more overpowering than complex.  Very strong notes of grapefruit are present in both the nose and the mouth, so much so that they overwhelm the wine.   Christy concurred, and we both passed quickly over the Riesling and on to the lone Rosé.

Dry Summer Rosé Made from St. Croix grapes, the Rosé is a lovely soft pale rose color, with a floral, slightly earthy nose.  In the mouth, there are subtle notes of strawberry which give the wine an interesting sweetness before finishing on a slightly tart note.  This, too, wasn’t one of our favorites, although we did like it better than the Riesling.  Christy observed that it seemed watered-down; I don’t know that I felt that, but I did find the wine didn’t have a lot of depth or complexity.

Despite the somewhat disappointing finish with the last two wines in this category, we had really enjoyed the Chardonnays and now cleaned our glasses, sat back and prepared to tackle the reds…

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Marguerite Barrett
Contributing Writer

Christy actually made it to Sharpe Hill before I did, a fact of which she is inordinately proud.  Not only had I started on my Win(e)ding Road adventures before she moved here from Texas last year, but I’m usually the one who organizes the trips – giving her a ring on a Friday night or Saturday morning and saying “I’m heading of to ____ fill in the blank; do you want to join me?”  So for her to be able to introduce me to a winery is a very unusual occurrence.

However, I like to think that our joint adventures have inspired her.  One weekend in late Spring when her now fiancée, Jeff, was in town for a long weekend, she took him to Sharpe Hill for the afternoon.  I’m not exactly sure why she picked Sharpe Hill over any other winery, but late that afternoon my phone buzzed with a series of texts from Christy about how beautiful the winery was, how good the wines were, how much fun they were having, and didn’t I wish I was with them.    After I pointed out that I hadn’t been invited so no fair taunting me with “don’t you wish you were here,” I promised that I would join her soon for a return visit, so she could introduce me to a Connecticut Winery.

That day came about six weeks later in July.  I was on a week’s vacation, and Christy had a rare Friday with no meetings or appts.  So she cleared her calendar, took the day off, and we headed up to Pomfret, Connecticut and Sharpe Hill Winery.

For many Nutmeggers Sharpe Hill is Connecticut wine – or rather their most popular wine, Ballet of Angels, is.  It’s Connecticut’s best-selling wine, partly due to the fact that it has the largest distribution of any Connecticut wine.  Pretty much every package store in every nook and cranny of the state will have Ballet of Angels.  When my colleagues at work first started hearing about my weekend wine trail adventures, they would inevitably ask, “Oh, have you tried Ballet of Angels, yet?”  Some of these were people who lived relatively close to one or more wineries and had no idea that they even existed, or that Connecticut produced wines other than Ballet of Angels.  But Ballet of Angels… that they knew.

Given all that, why had it taken me so long to get there?  That’s a good question.  Part of it is that I started my adventures on the western side of the state in the Litchfield Hills (I started in the Summer of ’08 and thought the hills would be gorgeous in the late summer and fall) and Sharpe Hill is in the far northeast corner of the state.  And being very much a Type A personality, once started, I wanted to complete the western trail before starting on the east.  And as the eastern trail runs largely along the shoreline, I started out working my way east along I95 before heading north towards Pomfret.  But if I’m being truthful, most of it was a reaction to all those “But have you tried Ballet of Angels, yet?” questions.  I’d get there, but on my time…

Get there I finally did, and the winery lived up to everything Christy texted me that first afternoon.  Set in the rolling hills of northeast Connecticut, the winery sits on the side of a hill amidst a backdrop of gardens and vineyards.  A trail runs through the vineyards leading you to the top of the hill where you get great views of the surrounding countryside.

The winery itself is charming with a studied historic New England character.   A group of interconnected red-barn-like buildings comprise the winery, the tasting room and restaurant.  The decor and gardens were obviously carefully selected to evoke a sense of New England’s rural colonial past – right down to the copper plates and kettles decorating the tasting room and the large stone sink in the rest room.

A large formal garden sits across from the parking area, slightly lower down the hill, and the area behind the winery consists of a large stone patio and grassy terrace with abundant seating.  The tasting room itself is quite small, and on nice days, like the day we stopped by, they hold the tastings outside, reserving the tasting room for the winter or on rainy days when there will likely not be many visitors anyway.  The seating arrangements are both intimate and expansive:  spread out across the lawn and patio are small groupings of wicker chairs and love seats (accomodating 2-6 people) surrounding “coffee tables” with lovely floral arrangements.  A portable bar cart is set up to one side and people can mingle as they will and enjoy a tasting or a glass of wine at their leisure.

In addition to the winery and tasting room, Sharpe Hill also owns and operates the Fireside Tavern Restaurant offering lunch and/or dinner seatings on Fridays, Saturdays and Sundays throughout the year, although the schedule is more limited in the winter months.  Space is limited so reservations for seatings is required.

We promised ourselves we would make reservations one day and come back for lunch, but that Friday afternoon we were there for the wines.  Sharpe Hill offers two tasting menu options: for $5 you get a logo glass and your choice of six wines; for $10 you get the glass and a tasting of all twelve wines.   It was Friday afternoon, we had nowhere else to go, so we opted for the $10/12 wines package.

First up?  Yep, you guessed it, Ballet of Angels…

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Marguerite Barrett
Contributing Writer

In addition to the distinction of being the only winery in Connecticut that does not charge a tasting fee, Bishop’s Orchards is the only winery that produces fruit wines exclusively.  The majority of Bishop’s wines are either apple- or pear-based, and all are made from fruit grown in the Bishop orchards in Southeastern Connecticut.   Bishop’s currently produces twelve wines, although the Hard Cider was not available for tasting the day I stopped by; all are pleasant, and most have won awards at either the Big E or the International Wine Competition.  If you are planning a day on the Eastern Wine Trail, don’t skip Bishop’s just because they produce fruit wines.  While I wasn’t converted to a fruit wine “fan,” I enjoyed the tasting and found it an interesting juxtaposition to the more traditional wines of Chamard and Jones which I also visited that afternoon.   Fans of sweeter wines will likely discover a few wines in the Bishop Collection that they find intriguing.

Pearadise The tasting began with a light white wine made from locally-grown Bosc pears.  The color is a very pale straw, and the nose has soft notes of pear.  Pearadise is a dry wine with touches of sweetness from the pear; the finish is crisp and clean.  The tasting notes recommend serving it chilled, and indeed, I’d recommend serving all the Bishop wines chilled.  This would pear nicely with light fruits and cheeses and grilled chicken or fish.

Stone House White Produced by aging in oak, Bishop’s Sweet Apple Cider, this is a light, dry white wine with strong notes of apple and a subtle smokiness from the oak.  The tasting notes indicate that this “reminds one of a Chardonnay” but I found it too light-bodied.  While the notes of apple were strong in both the nose and mouth, I found the wine itself to be a bit weak and slightly watery.   I expected a bit more body and depth from a wine that began as an apple cider.  It could be that I had a tasting from a bad bottle, but this was not one of my favorites.

Celebration Another apple-wine, this one is listed in the tasting notes as “off-dry.”  Celebration had a bit more body and interest than the Stone House White, and the notes of apple, while present and noticeable, are not overpowering.

Happley ImPeared This is a blend 1/2 apple and 1/2 pear.  As with the other wines, Bishop’s ferments apple and pear cider and then combines them to create this wine.  It’s an interesting blend; the slight tartness of the apple provides an interesting contrast to the smooth sweeter pear, and together are more interesting than when standing on their own.  I starred this as one of the more intriguing wines.

Faulkner’s Spiced Apple A semi-dry, apple wine with strong notes of nutmeg and cinnamon in both the nose and mouth.  The wine is made with Bishop’s Orchards mulling spices and would be interesting warmed, or even perhaps further mulled.  The notes of apple are strong yet not overpowering, and blend nicely with the spices.  I enjoyed this wine, but it doesn’t have the depth or body of Digrazia’s Autumn Spice.

Apple Raspberry Blush Another semi-dry wine, the Apple Raspberry blush is a rich pink color, with light notes of berry on the nose.  In the mouth, the flavor of the raspberries is very strong and overpowers the apple.  The presence of the apple is important, however, as it smooths out some of the tartness you sometimes find with raspberry wines.

Amazing Grace This is Bishop’s newest wine, produced and named in honor of their newest grandchild, born about 10 months ago.  A blend of cranberries and apple, the wine is crisp and pleasant.  The nose has lovely notes of tart cranberry, but in the mouth, the cranberry is subtle, and overall the wine is lightly sweet with a smooth finish.  I admit to being very surprised with this wine.  I expected something much sharper and certainly wasn’t expecting to like it.  While not my favorite of the afternoon, it was one of my preferred wines.

Honey Peach Melba This was another pleasant surprise.  With both honey and peach, I expected a very sweet, very rich wine.  Instead what I found was a light-bodied, slightly sweet wine with a nice balance of peach and honey.  The touch of honey tones down the peach flavor and together they blend into a smooth, crisp wine.  This will pair well with fruits, cheeses, and light chicken and pasta dishes.

Blushing Beauty The first thing that strikes you about this wine is the color – it’s a lovely, deep amber color.  Like all the other Bishop wines (with the exception of Amazing Grace which adds a touch of red to the wine for color), the color of the Blushing Beauty is the natural color produced by the fruit.  Also a peach wine, Blushing Beauty is a sweet wine, but not a dessert wine, with light notes of peach in both the nose and the mouth.

Crimson Rose A blend of strawberries and raspberries, this is a sweet dessert wine with strong notes of raspberry in both the nose and mouth.  I found the wine to be too light-bodied for a good dessert wine, while the flavors were nice, it didn’t have that rich depth that makes  a great dessert wine.  However, it was also pointed out that the wine reduces nicely into a syrup for fresh fruit or ice cream, and I found myself more intrigued when I thought of the wine as a sauce component than as a stand-alone dessert wine.

Strawberry Delight I imagine this is one of the more popular of Bishop’s wines, but is was one of my least favorites.  A dessert wine, I found it to be too sweet with a slightly bitter finish.  The strawberry notes are very strong in both the nose and the palate.  I found myself wishing this were a sparkling wine; the effervescence may have provided a depth or a texture that would help balance the sweetness of the strawberries.

Overall I found the Bishop’s Orchards wines interesting.  The pear wines had the most depth and character and rated higher on my list.  Not surprisingly, my least favorites were the berry wines (strawberry and raspberry), and I often found those too sweet and the berry flavors over-powering.  However, I have always preferred drier wines, and those of you who favor the sweeter wines should definitely find some wines of interest among the Bishop’s wine list.

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