The Shenandoah Valley Wine Growers Association

Wine tours are a fun, relaxing way to spend the day with a group of friends, or that certain someone. Wine tours come in a variety of shapes and sizes, from the “get on the big bus and go with us” tours to hiring a driver and seeing the trail at your own pace and even the let’s-draw-straws-and-the-looser-is-the-designated-driver tours. No matter which you choose, here are a few simple things you can do to make the day go smoothly.

The most important thing is to know who your driver is. Honestly folks, a little taste here and a little taste there really can add up. Have your designated driver lined up and supplied with non- alcoholic beverages. The second most important thing is to know where you are having lunch, or at least have an idea of where lunch is. You do not want to be doing a day long wine tour with no food. Many wineries today have very restaurants as well.

Last but not least, keep a note book, or have your designated driver keep notes for you so you can recall your favorite wines and be able to pick them up at your local supplier long after the tour is over. Do all of these things and you are going to have a wine tour experience to write home about!

Anyone have a corporate summer party this year? I used to love the company picnics. I got to meet the spouses and children that my co-workers always talked about and I could mingle with the bosses without the stress of the office. The only thing I didn’t like was trying to figure out what to take and in what container.

I usually ended up taking my famous cinnamon rolls. Not because they fair well in the summer heat, or
because I could transport them in a couple ziplock baggies and arrange them on a paper plate after arriving at the get together, but because people always requested them! My co-workers would see me arriving and literally come out to my vehicle so they could get a few before the rush.

The batch would usually be almost gone before I got from the parking lot to the field - Now that’s an entrance! Cinnamon rolls - the perfect corporate party dessert.

• Napa Valley is California’s number one tourist attraction.
• One average bottle of wine contains 0 .75 liters.
• It takes approximately 2 1/2 pounds of grapes, eight bunches, to make one bottle of wine.
• 2 1/2 lbs of grapes is about 800 grapes.
• This equals between three and five bottles of wine per grapevine, depending on the yield.
• 85% of the vine’s flowers will not set and become grapes.
• One acre will yield approximately two tons of grapes which will produce right around 4000 bottles.
• Each typical glass of wine is about 6.4 ounces.
• Each serving has between 130-150 calories depending on the type,whites having less that reds.
• Grape juice has about 130 calories.

Established in 1883, Wente vineyards in Livermore, California is the oldest family owned winery still in operation. It began as a modest winery of only 47 acres, but through the years has grown to include over 2,000 acres.

The vine cuttings came straight from France’s University of Montpellier viticulture nursery. These cuttings were then nursed to produce an exceptional chardonnay. Carl Wente, the founder of Wente wineries could give some creditr to his great success to Napa Valley’s Charles Krug, whom he used to work for and trained under.

There are wonderful wines here in America and some of the best come out of California. With a Tour of the Wine Country, you can sample just a few of many available.

So you think wine is for drinking or gift giving.  Well it is…among other things. Wine makes a great cooking tool. Full bodied reds smooth out and sweetens beef flavors, giving meat a hearty depth to it’s taste. Back in history, red wines were used to dye hair and decorate the body for ceremonies. In religions, the red wines were a stand in for Christ’s blood and is still used as such religiously today. Medically, due to it’s alcohol content, wine has been used as an antiseptic for wounds. Early dentists utilized wine also, but experts argue that it may have only been because if one drinks enough, they don’t feel the pain as much. I’m curious to know of any other strange or unique wine uses. Please post them here.

Wine’s most favorite stopper has been popular for ages and, to this day, still holds the top spot for wine stopping choices. Cork comes from trees. The cork is found between the outer bark and inner bark and serves as insulation for the trees inner workings. It is resistant to heat and fire, water resistant and also resists rot. This makes it the number one choice for wine bottles. Even though most trees have cork bark, most cork is harvested from the Cork Oak Tree. This tree has the thickest layer of cork of any tree.

Keeping wine securely bottled is not the only use people have found for this material. It is often used in flooring, rockets and as flotation devices. Now the next time you take a gift of wine to a dinner party you can impress the other guests with your cork savvy.

If your interested in knowing allot more about Corks, check out www.HomeBrewitt.com