Kentucky Wine Lover

Jul 29th12 Mile Creek Winery

Early this year I wrote a New Year’s Resolution to visit some of the newer Kentucky’s wineries, those that have opened in recent years. This Saturday we added one to that list. 12 Mile Creek Winery opened in Campbell County and we talked about going right away, but time passed and they just celebrated their second anniversary and this was our first visit. It won’t be our last. We had a very nice visit!

Tami and Kevin Stewart have created a friendly atmosphere with a variety of wines to please any visitors. The tasting room is a lovely room with a comfortable feel. They have wine, food, and music most weekends. We enjoyed all of those Saturday night. I got to try a new wine for me, a dry white made with the Edelweiss grape. The floral aromas are followed by fruity flavors and combine to make an interesting wine. My husband had Cabernet Sauvignon. Our food was excellent, a Buffalo Chicken Naan Bread and a Naan Reuben. The music was Jeff Blackburn and Steve Maynard, who we always enjoy!

It was a fun evening! We had a nice visit!

by admin with No Comments

Jul 29thRucca at Brianza Gardens and Winery

We became fans of a local music duo a couple of years ago after hearing them at Brianza. We saw them several times and enjoyed their music. Saturday was the first time that we have seen them for a couple of years (they were pursuing other parts of their lives), but they’re back. They played at Brianza Gardens and Winery on Saturday afternoon.

We enjoyed their show immensely! The music ranges from Fergie and the Indigo Girls to country classics like Johnny Cash. We especially were pleased that they remembered our favorite and sang a great rendition of “Hell on Heels” by Pistol Annies.

The wine, as always, was excellent. Thanks to the winemaking skills of Tony Parnigoni.

It was a beautiful day to relax with good wine and good music!

by admin with No Comments

Jul 29thMusic and Wine in Northern Kentucky

Saturday was a great day for wine and music lovers in Northern Kentucky. We started the afternoon with a visit to Brianza Gardens and Winery in Boone County, with a Mini Music Festival that led off with a visit from Rucca and ended the evening at 12 Mile Creek Winery in Campbell County listening to Jeff Blackburn and Steve Maynard. Good music, good wine and good food – what could be better!

by admin with No Comments

Jul 25thWine and Cheese Day

Wow, another day to celebrate our love for wine. Today we get to add one of our favorite snacks. It sounds like a perfect day to relax with a Kentucky wine from your favorite winery and one of Kentucky’s excellent cheeses, such as a Cabernet Sauvignon from Lovers Leap Vineyards and Winery paired with a cheddar from Kenny’s Farmhouse Cheese. Perfect way to end Wine and Cheese Day!

by admin with No Comments

Jul 22ndFrench Lick Winery

A visit to French Lick Winery, in Indiana, isn’t just for tasting wine. The winery is home to a café, a distillery, and a gift shop. While their wines are always great no matter what your tastes are, a visit to the café is a “must do”.

A couple of weeks ago, we decided that it had been too long since our last visit and made the trip one Friday. For us, it is about a three hour drive but it is really worth it. There were some changes since our last visit, such as the décor, the gift shop, and the variety of tastes offered by the Spirits of French Lick Distillery, but the wine and the food were still the same – excellent!

: Gift Shop 2015

: Dining Area 2015

: Winery – 2015

: Gift Shop 2019

: Dining Area 2019

: Dining Area 2019

by admin with No Comments

Jul 22ndSeasonal Sangria

Anyone who knows me or has read my blog knows that I am not a fan of sweet wines. But this summer I have been a fan of some of Kentucky’s sweet wines. You might wonder why and the answer is Sangria. This is a season for fresh fruit and refreshing drinks – that means Sangria to me.

Our favorite is peach sangria made with a mix of peach juice and peach wine and fresh peaches, blueberries, and lime slices. We did add a bit of grappa, peach nectar, and sparkling water. The result is an excellent refreshing drink to enjoy on a hot July day. We have also tried using blueberries and blackberries.

Wineries, such as Prodigy Vineyards and Winery and Purple Toad offer a variety of fruit wines. Kentucky’s farms offer fresh blueberries (which I’ve picked several times recently) and blackberries. I must confess to buying peaches from South Carolina and the Grappa and Peach Nectar come from Huber Vineyards and Winery in Indiana. Summer offers a variety of fresh fruits to create a wonderful Sangria, choose your favorites.

by admin with No Comments

Jun 21stA Kentucky Wine and Vine Review

Compliments to the planners of 2019’s Kentucky Wine and Vine Festival. The festival was the best we’ve attended for several years and by far the best Wine and Vine Festival ever. Part of the reason was its new location at the R. J. Corman property. The grounds are gorgeous and the part of the property devoted to the tents and festival goers was perfect. Mother Nature cooperated and the weather was good.

As we arrived at the property, there were people directing parking. With so many visitors, we were a bit far away but were immediately picked by a cart that took us to the entrance. There was an inviting walkway through a tunnel to the festival itself. After paying admission and getting our glasses and tickets for tasting, we began our walk through the booths. There was a large number of vendors with a variety of wares. A few of the notable booths were hot sauces, olive oils and balsamic vinegars, cork gifts, handmade jewelry, hand painted signs, and of course wineries. Food trucks provided food choices throughout the day and musicians entertained providing a musical background for the day. We were just there for a few hours, so we missed the evening festivities, but really enjoyed the day.

We enjoyed the wineries that we visited with, touching base with Rose Hill Farm Winery, meeting the people from Bluegrass Vineyards and having a glass of old vine Zinfandel from Chrisman Mill Vineyards and Winery. There were other wineries from around the state as well. My only suggestion to improve the festival in the future would be to have more wineries and a wider variety of wines to taste.

With the change of venue, the larger number of vendors, the food choices, and the entertainment, the festival was a good one. Looking forward to next year!

by admin with No Comments

Jun 12thKentucky Wine and Vine Fest 2019

Saturday is a good day for wine lovers in Kentucky. On June 15, the annual Wine and Vine Fest will be held in Jessamine County. (For those who don’t know the history of wine, the first commercial winery in the United States was established in Jessamine County over 200 years ago by Jean Jacques Dufour.) Kentucky has celebrated the states’ wine industry with a Wine and Vine Festival for nearly two decades. The biggest difference this year is the location. For years, the festival was held in downtown Nicholasville. This year the festival will be held at the RJ Corman Grounds, a beautiful site for a wine festival.

From 1 PM to 9 PM, there will be vendors featuring local artists, food vendors and trucks, live music, and wineries from around the state pouring tastes for visitors. The festival ends with a balloon show and fireworks. You can get your tickets at the gate on Saturday.

We’ve attended the festival for years and are looking forward to the new venue. Saturday is a great day to celebrate Kentucky wine. Hope to see you there!

Check the link at http://www.kywinefest.com/ for information on the wineries and the event schedule.

by admin with No Comments

Jun 6thOliver Winery

My apologies to Bill Oliver and the folks at Oliver Winery. Their excellent vineyard is named Creekbend. Some of their best wines come from the grapes from that vineyard, such as Vidal Blanc, Cabernet Doré, Chambourcin, Traminette, Vignoles, Crimson Cabernet, and Noir.

Sorry for my lack of editing.

by admin with No Comments

Jun 6thOliver Winery

As we have many times in the past, we spent the last weekend in May celebrating our Anniversary (51, this year) at Nashville, Indiana. At the exact time of our anniversary, we were sharing a bottle of wine at a table under the trees by the lake at Oliver Winery.

Having visited Oliver the first time about twenty-five years ago, we’ve seen many changes. From the new winery building, to the new expanded tasting room, to the new wines from their Creekside Vineyard, Oliver winery has grown to be the largest winery in Indiana and one of the largest in the eastern United States. The winery was started in the 1960s by Bill Oliver’s father, but took off when Bill Oliver became the owner in the 1980s. When we visited first in early 1990s, the winery was still small and the tasting room a cozy building that still hosts special tastings on the grounds. What was the same was the beautiful lake next to the winery with the surrounding trees making it the perfect spot to picnic with a bottle of wine and the cheese and fresh baguette sold in the tasting room.

This visit we were treated to perfect weather that made sitting outside a great way to celebrate our special day. We did share a memory when we noticed the graveled walks that allow visitors to enjoy a walk down the hill to the lake. On one of our early visits, we were sitting by the lake and wanted to get a second glass of wine. I walked up to the tasting room, got our wine and started back down to our table. As you might be guessing there were no walkways then, it had rained a shower earlier, and I immediately slipped and slid down the hill on my bottom. Wearing white jeans that day, I was a mess but I’m proud to say not a drop of wine was spilled.

Oliver Winery should be on the to-do list of all wine lovers in the area. There’s wines to suit all tastes, from the driest to the sweetest. Their wines, the beauty of the grounds, the lovely tasting room, and the knowledgeable staff have made Oliver one of the east’s most popular wineries.