Tassel Ridge Winery

Tassel Ridge Winery–November 2008

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November 2008 at Tassel Ridge
– At A Glance

Saturday, November 22, 11:30 – 2:00

Saturday, November 22, 7:00 p.m.

Friday-Sunday, November 28-30.

Saturday, November 22,
11:30 a.m. – 2:00 p.m.

Nouveau Taste-off

Join us at Tassel Ridge Winery between 11:30 and 2:00 for our first ever Nouveau Taste-Off. Compare the Tassel Ridge Winery Nouveau with Nouveau Beaujolais from France. We will have as many different labels as we can buy for this event. Decide which you like best. We will pair the Nouveau’s with brats. This event is now FREE. (If you have already paid for admission to this event, we will refund anything that has been charged to your credit card). We will have a limited supply of brats and French Beaujolais Nouveau that we will serve until we run out. 

Our wine educator, Steve Richardson, will lead a comparative tasting of at least two different French Beaujolais Nouveaus and our 2008 Nouveau. This tasting will start at 11:30. Compare his analysis with your own. If you are new to wine tasting, this will be a great opportunity to watch an expert and then try a comparative tasting on your own.

So, what is the big deal about Nouveau? Traditionally, the Beaujolais Nouveau is the first wine of the season. It is released on the third Thursday of November and is eagerly awaited by party-goers from Beijing to Las Vegas and Paris. I enjoyed an opportunity many years ago to be in Paris at a wine bar where the Nouveau Beaujolais arrived in its barrel, was tapped and enjoyed by everyone. At its best when slightly chilled, the Nouveau is very fruity. It is simple and made for quaffing by the glassful.

A Nouveau is NOT made for ageing. It is at its best the day it is released. Plan to consume this wine during the holidays. In fact, it is a nice complement to turkey dinners.

Saturday, November 22, 7:00 p.m.

Fruits of Our Harvest Wine and Food Pairing Dinner

Join us as we celebrate the fruits of our harvest with the release of our 2008 Iowa Nouveau.  You’ll relish succulent pork loin in a demi-glace of Tassel Ridge 2008 Iowa Nouveau. This festive dinner will finish with “Pears in Nightgowns,” a decadent dessert paired with our special mulled wine. Price is $60 per person plus tax. Please make your reservations by Wednesday, November 19 by calling 641/672-9463. 

Heart of Iowa Wine Trail Hosts Holiday Recipe Tour

During November and December 2008, the member wineries of the Heart of Iowa Wine Trail are hosting their first Holiday Recipe Tour. Visit each member winery, starting at Tassel Ridge Winery, and create a collection of unique holiday recipes, each of which is paired with a different wine. The fee is $20. Guests will get a Heart of Iowa Trail recipe binder to store their recipes in and a colorful recipe card at each winery. See the list of member wineries at www.heartofiowawinetrail.com. Each winery will have wines to taste.

Looking for the Perfect Wine for Your Thanksgiving Dinner?

“Perfect” is in the eye of the beholder in this case. The choice of wine is made more difficult by the wide range of flavors and levels of sweetness in traditional Thanksgiving foods. Adding to the challenge is the fact that you might be bringing the wine to someone else’s dinner table and you may not know exactly what they like. I will present an array of choices below for your consideration.


Candlelight – One approach is to focus on pairing a wine with the turkey. Turkey is usually a meat that is mild in flavor and very limited in fat. Candlelight is a Chardonnay with a hint of sweetness that will work well with all but the cranberry salad and candied yams. Serve Candlelight chilled.




 

 


Tickled Pink – Tickled Pink is a blush wine with some sweetness. It is a wine that most people who don’t regularly drink wine will enjoy. It will have a little more body than the Candlelight and will complement everything but the cranberry salad and candied yams. I’d take Tickled Pink if I didn’t know the preferences of a host and hostess. Serve Tickled Pink chilled.



 


Nouveau – With still more body than the Tickled Pink, Nouveau is fruity enough that it will complement most of the dishes on the Thanksgiving table. Since many people prefer a red wine whenever they can get it, Nouveau is a good compromise because it will still please many who prefer sweeter wines with less body. Serve Nouveau slightly chilled.




 

Zinfull Red – Zinfull Red is an over-the-top serious red wine that cries out for fully flavored and spiced food. Thanksgiving dinner usually doesn’t match that description but some people just have to consume a big red with any dinner. This pairing is not my choice but I include it because I know some people are going to like it. Serve Zinfull Red at room temperature.


 

 

Fruit Stand Cranberry – Cranberry wine is a fully flavored sweet wine that will dominate any of the flavors on the Thanksgiving table. I just have to sip a taste or two and I am thinking about Thanksgiving dinner. It captures the essence of cranberry. Serve cranberry chilled.





 


Oskyfizzante Red – A sweet, fizzy, blush wine offers interesting flavor and mouth feel that complements the Thanksgiving dinner. This is another wine that I’d consider taking as a hostess gift for people who don’t usually consume wine with their meals. Serve Oskyfizzante Red chilled.

 


Oskyfizzante White – If you’d like to offer two or more wines with Thanksgiving dinner, consider the Oskyfizzante White with the hors d’oeuvres and one of the other wines above with the main course. Serve Oskyfizzante White chilled.




 

Finalé Premier Red and Granfinalé Chocolate – Traditional Thanksgiving desserts like pumpkin and mince pies are tough to pair with any wine because they are so sweet. But, as sipping wines to be served after everything is cleaned up and put away, our Finalés are outstanding choices. The Finalé Premier Red is fruity, sweet, and very satisfying. The Granfinalé Chocolate is similar but offers hints of chocolate on both the nose and palate. The Finalé Blackberry and Raspberry are made entirely from blackberry and raspberry juice however they exhibit many of the same characteristics as the other Finalés. They are all great sipping wines served after dessert. Serve Finalés at room temperature.



Tassel Ridge Winery Harvest Club

Are you looking for the perfect gift for a wine lover? Members of the Tassel Ridge Winery Harvest Club receive four shipments of Tassel Ridge Wine each year in March, May, September, and November. We’ve picked those months because they are usually temperate enough that we can ship wine without risking excessive heat or cold damage. Each shipment contains two bottles priced at retail plus shipping unless club members pick the shipments up at the Winery. In that case, there is no shipping charge. The average price of each shipment with shipping is $45.

We offer two wine preferences:

Re-orders of full case quantities of the Harvest Club selections are always priced at retail less 20% when orders are placed within sixty days of the original shipment.

Harvest Club members have the first opportunity to purchase limited edition wines before they are offered to the public. They are also offered special tasting opportunities when they visit the Winery. In the future, we plan to have wine and food pairing dinners for club members only, special tastings with the wine maker, and opportunities to see how wine is made all of which are designed to make the experience of consuming Tassel Ridge Wines especially enjoyable.

The Tassel Ridge Harvest Club is open to people 21 years old and older. Shipments are paid for with a credit card that is kept on file.

This is a great way to stay up-to-date on our new wines. Because some of our wines are never sold through retailers, you may not see some of these wines unless you visit the Winery regularly.

Consider a Tassel Ridge Harvest Club membership as the perfect gift for a person who enjoys wine. Call for more information.

Custom Labels are a Great Way to Recognize Success and to Celebrate an Accomplishment


Most Tassel Ridge Wines are available with custom labels that allow you to celebrate a big zero birthday, recognize a friend’s special achievement, or to thank the person who already has everything. Provide us with a photo and some guidance as to what you want on the label and we will do the rest. We have a one case minimum (12 bottles) and we charge a $10 fee for label set-up. Custom labeled wine does NOT qualify for the case discount. Check our notebook of special wine labels to find ideas for your label.

Do You Want To Ship Tassel Ridge Wine Out of State?

We can now ship to the following six states (Illinois now requires a license that we don’t have):

If you’d like to be able to ship wine to other states not mentioned above, please let us
know and we will investigate what kinds of licenses and permits are needed for shipment.

What’s Happening in the Vineyard?

With the first hard frost, our vineyards all shut down and went to sleep for the winter.

Two members of our vineyard crew will now go to work cleaning and servicing equipment so that it will be ready for next season.

What’s Happening in the Cellar?

We are bottling like crazy now. The Nouveau was bottled early in November. We bottled another batch of Red, White, & Blue and
then a new wine that we will introduce soon. (We will have a
couple of surprises coming soon). 

Did You Receive the 2008 Tassel Ridge Winery Catalog?


If you did not receive your copy, it is because we only have an e-mail address for you. Please phone us at 641/672-9463 and provide your postal address. We will get your copy of our new catalog in the mail immediately.

Last Call on Wines About to Run Out

We are nearly sold out of the following four wines:

We have small quantities of each of these wines available at the Winery on a first come, first served basis. Case discounts of 10% on twelve bottles of any of our wines apply.

Restaurants that Serve Tassel Ridge wine

Tassel Ridge Wines in Restaurants:

You can enjoy Tassel Ridge wines with your meals at several Iowa Restaurants:

Waterfront Seafood in Clocktower Square, West Des Moines at West University and 28th Street is our latest new restaurant. They offer Candleglow White, Prelude, and Twilight. These wines pair very well with their menu that includes shellfish, sushi, and boned fish such as tuna, swordfish, and halibut. The Twilight pairs well with their steaks. And now, enjoy Waterfront Seafood in Ankeny just south of Tones Spices. 


Our Hours:

In November 2008, we are open for tours, tasting, wine, and gift shop sales seven days a week during the following hours:

We are normally open seven days per week however we will be closed on Thanksgiving Day. We will be open on Friday, Saturday, and Sunday after Thanksgiving.

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, drive southeast and 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

—Bob Wersen, President

Email Jody Brockway at info@tasselridge.com to sign up a friend for our enewsletter.

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—Bob Wersen, President