CT Wine Festival - This WEEKEND!!!!

Hey all you wine-o's out there!  The CT wine fest is this weekend at the Goshen Fairgrounds.  Go to http://www.ctwine.com/ for more details.

Tickets are $25 at the door (unless you are the DD for the day, $10, which means no drinking for you).  You get a commemorative wine glass and a tote bag.... OHHHH a TOTE BAG! haha yes, I know, kinda silly!

If you can manage to get to a vineyard in the state today or tomorrow to buy tickets, they are only $20 each, so plan ahead if you are going! We will most likely be there so look for us! I will be the one taking pictures like a tourist!

WOOOHOOO!!! WINE FEST HERE I COME!!!!!!

Sharpe Hill Vineyards, Pomfret, CT - 06/25/2010

This vineyard probably had the best setting of the day, but my least favorite wines of the day.

It definately had the feel of stepping back in time a bit with the rustic barns and fences on the property.

When you walk into the tasting room, its quite charming.  There is a room off of the reception area that is cute and it possibly used for tastings when the weather is not nice out.

French country much?

Really cool sink in the bathroom

Tastings are $5 for 5 wines and a glass or $10 for all the wines and a glass. We paid $5 each and picked different wines from each other so we got to taste 10 out of 11 wines.

the vines

We were sent outside to do our tasting.  There is an area where you can eat and they also have chairs set up on the lawn for you to enjoy a bottle of wine and just relax.

restaurant/eating area

  

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chill out area

This is where we did our tasting, which was really awkward. There was no place to put a glass on or lean and relax:

And on to the wines (note, most of them didn't have a pleasant smell):

Ballet of Angels - sweet finish, little grapefruity. I have seen this bottle in many package stores in CT, but I had no idea that it was a Sharpe Hill wine

American Chardonnay 2008 - really oaky finish and very dry

Cuvee Ammi Philips 2007 - dry but slightly oaked

Vineyard Reserve Chardonnay 2008 - almost tastes like city water, very flinty

Dry Riesling 2008 - almost has a pear finish

Dry Summer Rose - very dry, slight strawberry finish

Red Seraph - full bodied and juicy

Cabernet Franc 2007 - really dry and tanin taste

St. Croix 2006 - very buttery finish, which I had never experienced in a red

Pontefract 2006 - sweet and dry with a slight spice

Personally, there wasn't a single wine I would buy from here.  Ballet of Angels is supposed to be their most popular wine and it definately isn't worth the hype.  I would almost suggest skipping this vineyard all together, unless you are trying to tour all of them like we are.  I'll leave you with a picture of some more of their vines across the street from the tasting room and restaurant.

Taylor Brooke Winery, Woodstock, CT - 06/25/2010

This is on a hill on the side of the road. They don't have a lot of room to grow, but they make a surprising number of wines for what they do.

They are the only vineyard in CT that is growing and producing the Traminette grape.  It was also the 6th anniversary of being open to the public the day we went.  So Happy Anniversary, Taylor Brooke!

All the labels on their bottles are from local artist Tom Menard and they are all pictures of the town the vineyard is located in, Woodstock, CT.

Their tasting room has recently undergone renovations to expand it.  Walking in we saw this flag

So I immediately knew this was my kind of place...

We got to chat with the owners for quite some time (Suggestion: do your tours on a friday, its a lot slower so you actually get to chat with the owners).  What began as a hobby turned into this business for them!  Awesome! Inspiration for the future!

Ok, the wines....

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Woodstock Hill White - slightly effervescent, clean finish

Riesling - most rieslings made in CT are dry, much to my benefit.  it had a peachy finish

Traminette - like smelling a bouquet. slightly floral taste

St. Croix Rose - dry and smells like strawberries, which is strange because it is not made with any

Green Apple Riesling - has almost a cheese smell to it. was ok

Summer Peach - smells and tastes like eating a Georgia peach

Cabernet Franc - dry and clean

Woodstock Valley Red - on the dry side, smells and tastes oaky

Roseland Red - has some cherry on the finish

Late Harvest Riesling - a sweet riesling, definately got a hint of honey in the taste and smell

Chocolate Essence - almost like eating a chocolate cake with raspberry sauce

Tastings are 2 for free, 8 for $4, and all for $6.

And you can purchase a logo glass for $3. This one has the logo painted on, not etched like the majority, so I would be careful about using after the fact because you could lose the logo.

Cassidy Hill Vineyards, Coventry, CT - 06/25/2010

Look for this sign if you are coming from I-84

This vineyard all the way at the end of a road, but its actually quite quaint.  There is a barn on the property where they make the wine, a log cabinesque building for the tasting room, as well as the owners' house.

The building they use for tastings

You can wander among the vines or take a walk out to The Thinking Tree and sit on a bench underneath it surrounded by tall grass the blows in the breeze. It is a very peaceful setting.

Nice area for picnics

Vines

The Thinking Tree

Ok on to the wines!!!!

Tastings are $5.00 and you can buy an etched glass for an additional $3.00.  Since this is what we are doing instead of taking vacations, we resolved to buy the glasses if we had to.  The glass actually had a pretty nice shape.

Logo is inspired by the Thinking Tree

2009 Pinot Gris - This is actually my favorite type of white wine and Cassidy Hill did not dissapoint. It was everything a pinot gris should be, light, fruity, almost slightly citrusy, that feels effervescent on the tounge.  Consequently, this is the only bottle of wine we bought the whole day.

Winding Brook - It was oaky but a pleasant oaky.  A little fruity, not too sweet.

2009 Coventry White - Not overly sweet, citrusy notes

Jet's Red - Named after the vineyard dog, it had clove undertones and is made with blueberries, although I couldn't taste them.  The clove was a different touch than you normally see in reds.

They were also releasing a riesling the next day, but we didn't get to sample that.

Trying the Jet's Red

Also note: they usually have live music on Friday nights, so if you are in the area, stop by for a glass!

Chamard Vineyards, Clinton, CT - 06/19/2010

This vineyard is right off of 95, next to the Clinton Crossings Outlets.

Its a very picturesque vineyard to visit.  There was actually a bachelorette party and a rehersal dinner going on there on different parts of the grounds. 

Entrance

Driving in

A pond on the grounds...

...with a fountain!

The buildings and grounds are very inviting, which made it so dissapointing when the wine was less than good.  I'm not going to beat around the bush, so we'll just move on to the tasting:

Chardonnay - This was the only white that was drinkable.  It was slightly citrus-y, but there was still a lot of oak-y notes.

Estate Reserve Chardonnay - Too oak-y.

Cabernet Franc - Alright for a red, but it definately didn't have a flavorful taste like I was expecting from the description.

Merlot - This definately had a licorice taste too it.  I almost had to hold my nose to get it down.

Sangria - Not on the list and for good reason.  This tasted like drinking potpurri.

Our overall experience here was very poor.  The workers were rude and unattentive.  The wine wasn't even mediocre.  We also did not get a logo glass, although I'm not sad about it.  I wouldn't recommend visiting this place, but if you choose to and also have a bad experience, there is always retail therapy nearby to recover.

Bishop's Orchard, Guilford, CT - 06/19/2010

This place reminded me of Lyman's Orchard Apple Barrel.  Its kind of like a farm stand type of store. There is a tour that is not on the site that costs $10 per person. We didn't participate in the tour, just the tasting.

For $6 each, we chose 6 wines and got an etched wine glass.  This is where traveling in a couple really came in handy because we got to try 12 out of the 14 wines they offer.

Wines:

Circle 1

Stone House White - A pretty good table blend, although nothing to write home about.

Whitfield's Pearadox - The pear flavoring in this was completely overpowering. I could barely get through this one, although my husband like this better than the Stone House White.

Circle 2

Celebration - This reminded me of the White Menage a Trois (my favorite by Folie a Deux) without most of the notes I like.

Faulkner's Spiced Apple - Definately not a fan.  I don't really like apples so this didn't do it for me. Very heavy apple taste.

Circle 3

Farm House Hard Cider - I couldn't distinguish between this one or the New England Hard Cider. All I know is, I'm not a Hard Cider fan.

New England Hard Cider - See notes above. Not worth repeating.

Circles 4 & 5

Honey Peach Melba - I could definately taste the honey flavor, but the fruits in these wines seem to take on an almost rotten taste and really wreck the flavoring that could be there.

Apple Raspberry Blush - This was alright, a little drier than the Honey Peach, but kind of dull.

Blushing Beauty - Pretty clean, although too sweet for me.

Amazing Grace - Definately too sweet and overly fruity

Circle 6

Strawberry Delight - Basically tastes exactly like strawberry jam.  The woman working suggested using this on a dessert instead of drinking it. I could see that would be an acceptable use for it because it was way too much to drink.

Hyland Red - Went well with the chocolate that was in my mouth, but alone was too sweet.  The woman working said this was probably the least sweet of all the sweet wines, just an fyi.

You can browse the store to take home some farm fresh goodness after you are done tasting.  They sometimes serve samples so you might be able to fill up before you go on to your next adventure.

Gouveia Vineyards, Wallingford, CT - 06/19/2010

Exit 14 off 91 South

We kicked off our summer wine tours with this lovely vineyard in Wallingford, CT.  It was $7.50 for each of us we got to taste 5 wines that they chose and then we got to pick one to taste.  We also got to take home an etched wine glass with the vineyard's name/logo. 

Picnicing on the hillside

The grounds are very pretty and there is a good view from the hill it is located on.  The inside of the tasting room/bar/restaurant is simple and elegant.  People had brought tables and picnic lunches and were sitting outside enjoying some wine.  You can also order food here.  You CANNOT bring your own beverages.  I would definately consider going back here to try a few more wines as well as enjoy the scenery.

Before I get into the wines, a few more notes for the wine scene in general:
-It is good to go as a couple or with someone you are comfortable sharing drinks with... this way you get to sample more wines if you both pick different offerings.  We took full advantage of this.
-Some of the vineyards are offering tours. Sometimes they cost extra, sometimes they are free. Unless you are doing a tour or planning on eating a meal there (whether you picnic or order), your trip to the vineyard will probably be really short.  It only takes about 20 mins max to sample 5-20 wines.  I would recommend planning to visit more than 1 a day.
-If you are planning on buying bottles of wine, the cheapest you will find is around $15.  Take note that most of these wines aren't worth that, let alone more than that, so you might end up dissapointed if you thought it would be a good opportunity to stock up.
-I tend to like wines that are dry to semi-dry, so most of this will be biased to those kinds of wines.  You will probably notice that I have bad reviews for a lot of wines because around there they tend to make the sweeter varieties. If you like that kind of thing, then these tours might be for you!

Ready to start tasting!

Ok, on to the wines!
Seyval Blanc - It was crisp and smooth.  Nice table wine for the summer. This happens to be the only bottle we bought the whole day (06/19).

Chardonnay Oak - Very oak-y with a buttery finish, 2 things I don't like in my white wines. 

Cayuga White - Simple white wine, not very notable.

Whirlwind Rose - A typical rose, but much too sweet for my liking.

Stone House Red - Clean finish, light on the palate.

Cabernet Franc - Popular blend in CT.  It was alright, but nothing really sticks out about it.

Epiphany Reserve - A dark dessert wine.  It was supposed to be fruity, but it was just overpoweringly sweet.

They also have Chardonnay Steel, Stone House White, and a Merlot that we didn't get to try.

My glass and passport