Tassel Ridge Winery–November 2007
If you are having trouble seeing this newsletter, copy this link into your web browser www.tasselridge.com/newsletter11-07.htm
New Wines:
2006 Candlelight
Our new 2006 Candlelight is a very fruity and slightly sweet Chardonnay with lots of citrus and green apple on both the nose and palette. Made from grapes grown in the Central Valley of California, this wine has had no malolactic fermentation nor oak ageing. It is all fruit and it pairs very nicely with many mild flavored foods. Tuna and swordfish work very nicely. An Asian stir-fry would be a very nice compliment to this flavorful wine. Chicken or turkey would also be a nice food pairing.
Price: 2006 Candlelight in 750 ml bottle is priced at $13.00.
Our Candlelight has been available for about 2 ½ months and people who have tasted it have said things like, “Wow! I never liked Chardonnay before but this is a great wine. It is so approachable.” It is also a very versatile wine because it can be served as an aperitif without any appetizers or it will pair well with almost any appetizer. And, it goes with a wide range of meals. Candlelight has quickly become one of our best selling wines.
See our full wine list: www.tasselridge.com/wines.htm
Are You Planning Receptions and Parties During the Next Few Months?
Consider including our Candlelight (described above) as your standard white wine. Our Twilight will work well as your standard red wine (described under Gift Ideas below). Our Fruit Stand fruit wines (Blackberry, Raspberry, Cherry, Plum, and Cranberry will appeal to guests who want a sweeter wine. Particularly appropriate this time of year is our Cranberry Wine. If you like Cranberries, you will love this wine!
Our Dipping Oils are great with French Bread and most important, they don’t involve any work to prepare. Try one of our cheese toppers for something a little different, something that is also easy to prepare.
If your holiday plans call for mulled wine, we offer three mulled wine recipes for your consideration. The Tassel Ridge Winery team has tried the first two and they’ve given their “thumbs-up” on them. The third is my idea of a mulled wine and I’ve prepared it many times.
- Sweet Mulled Wine:
- 1 bottle Red, White, and Blue
- 1 tsp. whole cloves
- 1 tsp. whole allspice
- ¾ cup brown sugar
- 1-2 cinnamon sticks
- 1-2 orange slices
- Stir sugar into wine until dissolved, add all ingredients into a crock pot on low, float the orange slices on top. Serve warm.
- Traditional Mulled Wine:
- 4 cups cranberry juice
- 1 ½ cups apple cider
- 1 ½ cups Twilight
- ¼ cup brown sugar
- 2-4 ounces Bisschopswijn mulling spices* (add to taste)
- Combine liquids in a pot and stir in brown sugar to dissolve. Add mulling spices in muslin bag (provided in Bisschopswijn package) and heat over medium heat until hot. Reduce temperature and simmer 30-60 minutes. Serve warm with cinnamon stick for stirring.
- *Bisschopswijn is available at Tassel Ridge Winery. It contains a mix of cinnamon pieces, whole cloves, whole allspice, orange oil and cinnamon oil.
- California Mulled Wine:
- 1 bottle of 2007 Nouveau (available soon)
- 1 tsp. whole cloves
- 1 tsp. whole allspice
- 2-3 cinnamon sticks
- 1 cup white sugar
- 2-3 orange slices
- 1 cup of water
- Put water and spices in a pot and bring to a rolling boil. Reduce heat to simmer and add wine and sugar. When the wine is completely hot, it is ready to serve. Just add orange slices and pour into cups with handles (it will be too hot to use glasses).
Planning Thanksgiving Dinner?
Several people have asked me which wine or wines they should serve at Thanksgiving this year. Most of us have read articles that say that pairing wine with traditional Thanksgiving foods is difficult. That is not quite true. The problem is that while some wines work quite well with the turkey, mashed potatoes, and dressing, they don’t work well with cranberry relish salad or candied yams. Well, the fact is that no wine will work well with cranberry relish salad or candied yams so my advice is to select a wine that works well with the turkey and stop seeking perfection. Here is my Thanksgiving meal wine pairing plan.
- Serve Fruit Stand Cranberry as the aperitif before dinner
with or without hors d-oeuvres. - Serve Tassel Ridge Candlelight with dinner.
Serve a Tassel Ridge Finalé after the traditional pumpkin pie and maybe even after coffee.
What’s Happening in
the Cellar?
Almost all of our tanks are now full. About the time we finished harvesting our last Iowa grapes, our Syrah grapes arrived from Lake County, California. Then came the Chardonnay, Muscat, and finally, the Zinfandel.
To make space for our 2007 harvest, we finished bottling the Candlelight, bottled a batch of Fruit Stand Blackberry, and plan several bottling sessions in early November including several red wines from the 2006 harvest, and our 2007 Nouveau.
Fall in the Vineyard
Gift Ideas:
When you are selecting a hostess gift, consider giving a two bottle set with one dry red and one semi-dry white. Our recommendations are:
2005 Twilight is our beautifully balanced dry red wine made entirely from Cabernet Sauvignon grapes grown in Lake County, California. It was aged in American AND Eastern European Oak for 14 months and then blended and bottled. This wine displays jammy fruit and vanilla on the nose with plum and spice on the palate. Serve at room temperature. Store at 55º-60ºF. Great with fully flavored foods such as steaks, prime rib, and spicy pasta dishes.
Price: 2005 Twilight in 750 ml bottle is priced at $20.00.
2006 Candlelight is our fruity semi-dry white wine made from Chardonnay grown in the Central Valley of California. Because it has not had a malolactic fermentation nor any aging in or with oak, the fruit is right up front. With citrus and green apple notes on the nose and palete and nice acidity, 2006 Candlelight will complement Asian stir fries, fish, and chicken. It will also work very successfully as an aperitif.
Price: 2006 Candlelight in 750 ml bottle is priced at $13.00.
The next time you are in our gift shop, take a minute to check out the new shirts and sweat shirts. Some of the shirts have our In the Dark label on the backs while the ladies fitted shirts carry the Group Therapy, Wine (Tassel Ridge), and Wine Diva logos with sequins and other decorations.
Tassel Ridge Wines Now Appearing in Retailers Near You
For a complete list of retailers, click here.
In the past few weeks we have added the following retailers:
Boone • Hy-Vee Wine & Spirits
Lake Mills • Main Attractions
Marshalltown • Hy-Vee Wine & Spirits
Monroe • Monroe Liquor
Olds • Saint Avenue Stop
Urbandale • Accents & Interiors
Vincent • Mrs. T’s Mercantile
We have extended our retail service range from Central and Southeast Iowa to include North Central and parts of Northeast Iowa along I-35, U.S. Highways 18 and 218, and I-380. We will soon be adding retailers in Mason City, around Clear Lake, in Cedar Falls, Waterloo, and Cedar Rapids.
Selections of Tassel Ridge Wine are now available at the retailers and restaurants listed. Note that most retailers do NOT offer all of our wines, but rather focus on those wines that sell the best. Ask your retailer or contact us directly for other wines.
If you have a favorite retailer where you’d like to purchase Tassel Ridge wines in the future or a restaurant where you’d like to consume Tassel Ridge wines, please e-mail me at bwersen@interpower.com and we will arrange to contact them.
Upcoming Events:
Saturday, November 10: Wine and food pairing dinner at Tassel Ridge Winery featuring Vande Rose Artisan Ham and our 2006 Iowa Nouveau. Price is $45 per person.
Friday, November 16: Bonnie Lucas of WHO Radio will broadcast live from Tassel Ridge Winery from 4:00 p.m. until 7:00 p.m. Come and join the fun as Bonnie shops the Tassel Ridge Winery gift shop!
Mark your calendars for Sunday, December 2 for the Tassel Ridge Winery wine and food pairing reception featuring holiday hors d’oeuvres and desserts and appropriate wines. Price is $20 per person.
Wine Tastings in Retailers
Complete list of local wine tastings
Our Hours:
Effective October 1, 2007, we are open for tours, tasting, wine, and gift shop sales as follows:
- Monday, 9 a.m. – 6 p.m.
- Tuesday, 9 a.m. – 6 p.m.
- Wednesday, 9 a.m. – 6 p.m.
- Thursday, 9 a.m. – 6 p.m.
- Friday, 9 a.m. - 6 p.m.
- Saturday, 10 a.m. – 6 p.m.
- Sunday, 12 p.m. – 6 p.m.
We are now open seven days per week!
Our Location:
Tassel Ridge Winery is easy to find. It is just south of State Highway 163 on 220th Street in Leighton. From Ottumwa and Oskaloosa, drive northwest on 163 to 220th Street and turn left towards Leighton. From Des Moines and Pella, turn right at 220th Street. Drive west on 220th about 0.7 miles from the Highway and right into the Tassel Ridge Winery parking lot. view maps
Email Brian Babcock at info@tasselridge.com to sign up a friend for our enewsletter.
Previous Issues:
--Bob Wersen, President