Marguerite Barrett
Contributing Writer

Memorial Day weekend couldn’t have been more perfect here in New England: gorgeously sunny, warm and almost no clouds to mar the picture-postcard-perfect blue skies.  I woke up Sunday morning to a fresh breeze, birds singing and a siren’s call beckoning me to hit the open road.   However, I also knew from past experience that the siren’s call goes out far and wide, particularly on a lovely holiday weekend, and if I didn’t plan well, I’d be stuck in the middle of large jostling crowds of people; not the way I like to experience new wineries.

I’m nearing the end of my quest to visit all of Connecticut’s wineries, having only 8 of the state’s 30 wineries left to go.   As I looked over the list of remaining wineries, I decided to combine win(e)ding roads with winding roads and selected wineries at either end of Route 169, one of the longest designated scenic roads in the state, meandering through farmlands, forests and some of the most quintessentially New England small towns you will find anywhere.

First stop: Maugle Sierra Vineyards in Ledyard, Connecticut, located in the Southeast New England AVA.  Established in 2002 by Paul and Betty Maugle, Maugle Sierra has 11 acres under cultivation growing St. Croix, Traminette and Cayuga grapes.  They also bring in Chardonnay, Merlot, Cabernet Franc and Vidal from Long Island and Massachusetts, and produce a total of 7 wines: 2 whites, a rosé, 3 reds and a dessert wine.

Maugle Sierra’s signature grape is the St. Croix, a grape grown extensively throughout Connecticut and New England, but one that’s often used as a blending grape, usually in combination with Cab Franc or Merlot.   Maugle Sierra was the first vineyard I found with a 100% St. Croix wine, which they produce both as a table wine and a dessert wine.  St. Croix also serves as the base for their rosé.  Since then, I’ve found a couple other St. Croix wines, including one at my second stop of the day, Taylor Brooke Winery, but it’s still unusual enough of a find that I take special notice when I come across them.

The winery is located in the southeast corner of the state, very close to both Foxwoods and Mohegan Sun Casinos and not far from Mystic, making it an easy side trip for anyone who may be coming in to spend the weekend.  Meandering down the hilly and heavily tree and brush-lined Route 117 and into the gravel-lined yard shaded by tall oak trees, it’s hard to imagine there’s enough open land for vineyards.   However,  park your car, head back along the path leading to the winery entrance and you’ll see the vineyards and farmlands open up in front of you, cascading down gently sloping hills.

The entrance to the winery is around back set into the basement of the larger house and winery buildings. The approach takes you through a large grassy patio area with patio tables and chairs scattered across the lawn.  Once you finish your tasting inside the tasting room, Paul and Betty will actively encourage you to bring a picnic and settle in for a few hours – or an afternoon.   The tasting room itself is small with an old-world European charm, and a very different feel than any other Connecticut winery I’d visited.  Overall, Connecticut wineries and tasting rooms reflect Connecticut – often housed in large barns or old farmhouses, the tasting rooms are usually light and airy with nods to New England history and/or farm life.

Maugle Sierra is like stepping into another world – a heavy dark wooden door opens into a small, but charming room that has a bit of an italian flair.  Low ceilings and dim lighting contribute to the intimate feel of the space.  The tasting bar runs the length of the back wall and could hold 6-8 comfortably and 10-12 closely.  Four wrought iron bar tables are arranged in center of the room, seating an additional 16.  On busy days, I imagine the tasting room gets pretty crowded with people lined up several deep at the bar.  This day, however, there were only 7 of us – myself, a young couple in from New York, and a family of four from Pennsylvania.  Several other couples came in as we were finishing, but for most of the hour I was there, it was just the seven of us with host Paul Maugle, making for a very relaxing way to start the day.

This coming weekend, June 19th and 20th 11-5, Maugle Sierra will be hosting their Summer Wine Festival on the winery grounds.  Maugle Sierra is also a sponsor of The Tasting Room with Bruce Newbury, a weekly talk show on 104.7 WXLM radio which features local wines and wineries.  On Sunday the 20th, Newbury will be broadcasting live from the Maugle Sierra Tasting Room.

Coming Thursday, June 17th: The Wines of Maugle Sierra

Maugle Sierra Vineyards
825 Colonel Ledyard Highway (on CT Route 117)
Ledyard, CT 06339
860-464-2987
The Tasting Room is open year-round.  Summer hours: Thursday and Friday, 12-6; Saturday and Sunday, 11-5.  Check the website for winter hours.

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Gretchen Neuman
VinoVerve Editor

Whhoooa… Back up there partner! I skipped a highlight of Minnesota. Silly me.

That highlight is Minnesota’s only AVA, Alexandria Lakes. The appellation was created in 2005 and is located between Lakes Ida, Carlos, Darling, Alvin and Miltona. (Hey, it is Minnesota, the land of 10,000 lakes, after all)

The AVA is nearly 11,000 acres and home to one winery. Carlos Creek Winery is the largest winery in the State of Minnesota and is located on 160 acres of which 12 acres are planted with vines such as Frontenac, Marechel Foch, Valiant, Swenson Red, La Crescent, King of the North, Brianna, Marquette, Petite Pearl and Edelweiss. They make sixteen wines from their estate grown grapes as well as out of state grapes and juice and six apple wines (there are fifteen acres of apple orchards on the property as well).

Best of all? The winery is just a hop, skip and a jump from the interstate! Hoping that I will get a chance to stop!

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Gretchen Neuman
VinoVerve Editor

As the time ticks down to my adventure at the Wine Blogger’s Conference in Walla Walla, I have finally come to the end of my exploration of Washington State’s appellations. Puget Sound.

I have visited this area before nearly 16 years ago. Unfortunately, I was unable to enjoy any wine… or seafood or walking through the Pike Street Market as I was pregnant and the smell of fish in a quantity over two fillets made me violently ill.  Yes, the Puget Sound AVA includes beautiful Seattle and the less lovely Tacoma (where I visited a closed-down copper smelting operation and tracked down abandonned slag at Fort Defiance.. do I know how to party or what?). Even back in 1994 when I visited the area there were wineries in the area, scattered on the many islands that are found in Commencement Bay, but the AVA itself wasn’t designated until the following year.

The history of vineyards in the Puget Sound goes back to 1872 when a Civil War veteran named Lambert Evans planted vines on Stretch Island.  The region has huge variations in its rainfall amounts ranging from 15-60 inches.  However, the  majority of this precipitation falls during the cold season and summers are generally warm and dry.  The AVA surrounds the Sound and snakes along the northern coast of the Olympic Peninsula to Port Angeles.  There are only about 100 acres under cultivation and the varietals are often cold weather acclimated options such as Muller-Thurgau, Siegerrebe and Madeleine Angevine.  More traditional wine types are also being produced in the region but most of those wines are being made from grapes grown further east.

Unfortunately for me, I will not be able to revisit Puget Sound on this trip as it is off my beaten track.  But obviously, I would go back and visit Seattle and see how that smelter plant property has been reconditioned (it was pretty dirty in the old days).  I would also go back and drive through the Olympic Mountains which were beautiful and I would definitely go one of the whale watching cruises.  I couldn’t do that before as the boat probably would have smelled of fish and being pregnant before put me on the list of people who wasn’t allowed on the boat. (Party poopers)  An added tourist option has opened up in the area.  The town of Forks, home of Twilight is not far from Port Angeles ( in fact I think Bella goes shopping there in the first book or movie in my case).

This brings to a close, my exploration of Washington AVAs.  At least until Ancient Lakes or Mid Columbia River are designated.  Until then, I will just have to concentrate on the things that I will learn in Walla Walla at the Wine Blogger’s Conference.

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Gretchen Neuman
VinoVerve Editor

You must have thought that I forgot all about the series I was writing about Washington State wine AVAs. But you would be wrong. Like an elephant, I never forget. Busy, distracted, confused, possibly, but forgetful? Not so much.

We have looked at nine of the eleven appellations in the state and with time ticking down until I leave for my trip to the 2010 Wine Blogger’s Conference, I thought it would behoove me to get cracking on the last couple.  Today, I am going to look at the biggest of the AVAs.  The Columbia Valley.

The Columbia Valley is like the big daddy of Washington wine regions, though less a Titan like Cronus who swallowed his children whole and had to be cut open to set them free, but more like Zeus from whose forehead Athena sprang fully formed, in that it is home to six of the smaller, sub-AVAs.  Specifically, those AVAs include Horse Heaven Hills, Lake Chelan, Rattlesnake Hills, Red Mountain, Snipes Mountain, Wahluke Slope, WallaWalla and Yakima Valley (additionally two new AVAs named Ancient Lakes and Mid Columbia River have been applied for… we will let you know when we hear about it in the future).

The region is huge at 11 million acres of which 17,000 are under cultivation and includes 99% of all the wine grapes grown in the State of Washington.  The soils are generally volcanic and loamy which allows for excellent drainage but also nutrient depleted which makes the vine work harder to produce fruit.  The valley is located in the rainshadow of the Cascade Mountains (think Mt. Rainier, Mt. Hood and Mt. St. Helens) which means that the area is dry and drip irrigation is used in vineyards  Oh, yes.  These grapes suffer to produce their beautiful fruit!  Additionally, due to its more northern location, the Columbia Valley receives two more hours of daylight then more southern wine producing regions (i.e. California).

I am looking forward to my Washington adventure and have started to compile of list of things to do with if I arrive early (something about a leadened foot of mine that causes that to happen).  For instance:

• I would like to see hops growing.  75% of the hops grown in the U.S. are grown near Yakima and apparently there is a Hops Museum in Toppenish.
• I have been to Mt. Rainier but I would LOVE to see Mt. St. Helens. (I know WAY too many geologists to not get a little nerdy when it comes to rocks)
• I would love to see the petroglyphs at Buffalo Eddy
• or the first Catholic church in Washington
• or the Ahtanum Mission
• and I am certain that there will be a ton of Lewis and Clark stuff.

If you know about something that a nerdy girl like me would like please let me know.  I am planning to take much more audio visual stuff this year, so I am hoping to have some really cool things to show.  You can contact me here.

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Gretchen Neuman
VinoVerve Editor

I am nothing if not predictable. After discovering that there was a Lake County in California, it was all but certain that I would have to prepare a map of it….

So… Voilà

The Red Hills Lake County is one of five AVAs located in Lake County, California including Clear Lake, High Valley, Benmore Valley and Guenoc Valley. Red Hills is located on the southwestern shore of Clear Lake. It is located at the foot of Mt. Konocti, an extinct volcano between Excelsior Valley, Big Valley and the Mayacamas Mountains. The appellation was designated in 2004 and consists of 31,250 acres of which 3,000 are under cultivation. The soil is volcanic and is full of shards of obsidian that was formed as the magma from the Mt. Konocti cooled quickly due to the waters of the lake. The elevation of the area is betwen 1,400 and 3,000 feet and receives between 25 and 40 inches of rain per year. The region is perfect for Bordeaux and Rhone grapes such as Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot, Malbec, Cabernet Franc, Grenache, Mourvedre and Zinfandel.

Wineries and vineyards located within the AVA include:

Sol Rouge
Fortress Vineyards
Ferrel Ranch Vineyard
Red Hills Winery
Obsidian Ridge Vineyard
Fore Family Vineyard
Becht Vineyard
Eden Crest Vineyard
Roumiguiere Vineyards – Red Hills Ranch
Snow Lake Vineyard

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Gretchen Neuman
VinoVerve Editor

When I bring home wine, it is generally white. Not because I don’t like red wine, but for during the week, I tend to avoid red wine because sometimes the tannins wreak havoc on my head. So imagine my husband’s surprise when I came home with a bottle of red wine on a Tuesday. Better yet, a California Cabernet Sauvignon which I generally view as too big a wine for most occasions (California wines generally get too much publicity).  After he had a sip, he understood.

The wine, The Girls in the Vineyard is silky smooth, intense and fruity.  The wine makers, Rob and Kat McDonald and Matt Stone believe in bringing “wines from the vines to you without any fuss and where possible do a good deed along the way”.  To that end, they do not have a fancy tasting room, waste money on advertising or excessive print materials.  What they do provide is wine produced from sustainably grown grapes from the Amber Knolls Vineyard, the bottles are made near the winery to lower to carbon footprint of the process and the capsules are recyclable.   Additionally, the winery makes a $2.50/bottle or $30/case donation to the non-profit of your choice for those customers who purchase directly, but it is available locally if you aren’t looking to buy in bulk. Check Good Grapes for instance.

One of the reasons that I decided to write about this particular wine is where the grapes are grown.  The Amber Knolls Vineyard is in the Red Hills Lake County AVA.  Kevin was a bit surprised to hear that there were hills in Lake County.. but only until I pointed out that this particular Lake County was located in California.  Of course, with twelve Lake Counties in the United States, it is easy enough to be confused.  This particular Lake County surrounds Clear Lake which is the largest natural lake completely within the State of California (Lake Tahoe is partly in Nevada).

“So,” Kevin asked me, “Who are the girls?  Are they the daughters of the owners?  Or their pets?”  HA!  As if!  The folks at The Girls in the Vineyard specifically promise as part of their pledge NOT to sell you a “lifestyle” to avoid showing you pictures of their pets.

The Girls, as they turn out are the vines themselves.

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Gretchen Neuman
VinoVerve Editor

Missouri. The Show Me State. Home of four AVAs and before Prohibition the second-largest wine producing state in the country.

And being in St. Louis meant that these wineries were a hop, skip and jump from me.

So what did I do? Naturally, in our Friday afternoon break, I grabbed the car and started out to wine country. Missouri has over 80 wineries to choose from located both within and outside of their AVAs. Given my love of AVAs, I wanted to try to reach those in designated regions. All four are within a reasonable drive from St. Louis.

Given that I was being accompanied by my personal sommelier but somewhat easily bored teenager, Sophie, I decide to stick as close to the hotel as I could to keep her happy. This narrowed my options to two.

Augusta was the first designated appellation in the US beginning June 20, 1980 and is located along the river bottoms and alluvial plains of the Missouri River though generally at slightly higher elevations. The loamy soil has more of a clay content. The location is that of one of the first wineries in the state, the Mount Pleasant Winery. The region is fifteen (15) square miles and is home to seven wineries and one brewery.

I visited two of the wineries.

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Gretchen Neuman
VinoVerve Editor

At the time of this writing, the Red Mountain AVA is, indeed, the smallest appellation in the State of Washington, although if the trend of designating smaller and smaller sub-regions continues we will eventually have every block of vineyard considered unique.  The appellation is located in both the Yakima and Columbia Valley AVAs in Benton County, Washington between the towns of Benton City and Richland.  This area has 4,040 acres, 600 of which are under cultivation.

Appropriately enough given the name of the appellation, the area is known primarily for its high quality red varietals including Cabernet Franc, Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot, Sangiovese and Syrah.  It is believed the quality comes from the Southwest facing slopes which are warmer than typical for the Columbia Valley and cool evenings which preserve the acid levels within the grapes.  Additionally the gravelly soil with high levels of calcium carbonate and acidic soils help to balance the flavors and concentrate the berry flavors of the grapes.  Is this how the mountain got its name?  No.  It is named for the wine red color that the native cheatgrass turns in the spring.

Wine began to be produced on the Mountain in the 1970s with John Williams of Kiona Vineyards and Jim Holmes (now) of Ciel du Chaval.  There are now 13 wineries including:

• Blackwoood Canyon
• Buckmaster Cellars
• Canon del Sol Winery
• Col Solare Winery
• Corvus Cellars
• Goedhardt Family Winery
• Hedges Cellars
• Hightower Cellars
• Kiona Vineyards and Winery
• Oakwood Cellars and WInery
• Seth Ryan Winery
• Tapteil Vineyard
• Terra Blanca Winery

The total acreage in the AVA under cultivation is 14.85% of the total… imagine the wines that could be produced from 15% or 20%!

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Gretchen Neuman
VinoVerve Editor

The answer is neither. Snipes Mountain is named after an early pioneer to Yakima, Ben Snipes, who built a house at the base of the mountain and established a cattle ranch in the 1850s. The viticultural area is a subset of both the Columbia Valley and Yakima Valley AVAs and is unique due to the existence of rocky aridisols which contain gravel deposits that range in size from that of a fist to melons. The appellation is in the rain shadow of the Cascade Mountains which deprives the region of precipitation and yet lies in the ancient river bed of the Columbia River. The AVA includes Snipes Mountain as well as nearby Harrison Hill and can be located between the towns of Sunnyside and Granger, Washington.

Vineyards were initially planted on the mountain beginning in 1914. Only one winery is currently in operation in the AVA, but other vineyards exist supplies grapes to other wineries. The appellation is one of the smallest in the state with only 4,145 acres in total area of which only 535 are in production.

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Gretchen Neuman
VinoVerve Editor

Designated as an AVA in 2005, Horse Heaven Hills has been producing wine grapes since 1972 when Mercer Ranch owner, Don Mercer planted a seven acre block of Cabernet Sauvignon with the hope of growing grapes that would rival those of Chateau Lafite in Bordeaux. That vineyard, now owned by the Champoux Family in partnership with the Andrew Will, Powers Winery and Woodward Canyon produces high quality Cabernets. Twenty vineyards are located within the AVA, including Washington’s largest which belongs to Columbia Crest. The majority of the vineyards are producing for grapes for wineries in other appellations. Seven wineries call Horse Heaven Hills home.

Wines produced on the south facing slopes of the hills have reduced rot and fungal diseases due to the strong winds blowing up from the Columbia Gorge. Additionally the winds keep the area dry, stressing the vines and producing higher quality fruit. Other varietals produced in the area include: Barbera, Cabernet Franc, Cabernet Sauvignon, Chenin Blanc, Grenache, Malbec, Merlot, Mourvedre, Petit Verdot, Riesling, Roussane, Sauvignon Blanc, Syrah, Viognier and Zinfandel.

The appellation and the mountains got their name from James Gordon Kinney an early settler of the area who, remarking about the knee high grasses that fed the feral horses in the area, “This is surely a horse heaven!” In fact, the fossil record of the area shows that early horses were in the hills as early as 12,000 years ago (the feral horses seen by Kinney were actually re-introduced into North America by the Spanish Conquistadors). Either way, I keep thinking of that Poco album, Legend that had the cover art designed by the late, great Phil Hartman. And yes, that means I am old enough to remember record albums.

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