May is a good time for wine lovers. Not only are the vines at the vineyards more welcoming with their spring growth, wineries are hosting more events, and wine festivals are scheduled.
On May 20 and 21, from Noon to Six, wine lovers around the northern part of the state will have the chance to visit one of the most interesting of the state’s wine festivals. Jane’s Saddlebag, known for its restaurant, petting zoo, and unique atmosphere, is hosting the annual Jane’s Wine Festival and Art/Craft Show. Wineries, music, arts and crafts vendors, and more food options are waiting for visitors this year. Local wineries as well as from other parts of the state will be pouring tastes and selling wine.
Sponsored by local businesses, this event each year has raised money for local causes and will again be donating a portion of their proceeds to the Cincinnati Children’s Hospital Medical Center. You can go, have fun, and support this year’s charity.
Jane’s Saddlebag is located just past Big Bone Lick Park, in Boone County. Check my links for their website. Tickets are available for a presale if you’re interested. Mark your calendar, plan to visit, taste wine, relax, and enjoy the day.
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Founded in 1798, Nicholasville is the county seat of Jessamine County, Kentucky. The city is also home of the state’s official wine festival of 2017, the Kentucky Wine and Vine Fest. It was at First Vineyard in Jessamine County that the country’s first commercial wine production got its start. The County today boasts of two of the state’s 72 licensed wineries, Chrisman Mill Vineyard and Winery and First Vineyard. On the second Saturday in May (the 13th), wine lovers can enjoy this historic city and sample many of Kentucky’s finest wines.
The Wine and Vine Fest kicks off on Thursday with a Farm to Table dinner, followed on Friday by a docent led Equine and Wine Tour of Taylor Made Farms, First Vineyard, and with a gourmet lunch served at Chrisman Mill Vineyard and Winery. The peak of the wine weekend is the festival itself held Saturday in downtown Nicholasville.
The following Kentucky wineries are scheduled to attend: Cave Hill Vineyard & Winery-Eubanks, Chrisman Mill Vineyards and First Vineyard-Nicholasville, Elk Creek Vineyards-Owenton, Equus Run Vineyards-Midway, Grimes Mill and Talon Wineries-Lexington, Hamon Haven Winery-Winchester, McIntyre’s Winery-Bardstown, Purple Toad Winery-Paducah, Prodigy Vineyards and Winery-Frankfort, Rising Sons Winery-Lawrenceburg, Wildside Winery-Versailles, and Springhill Vineyards-Bloomfield. The wineries will be pouring tastes from their fine wines and offering them for sale.
Wine lovers can do more than taste wines. Other activities include an art walk, and arts and crafts show, Kentucky Proud products, a Run for the Merlot, cooking demonstrations, wine tasting and wine pairings workshops.
The wineries will be pouring from 10 to 7, on Saturday, May 13. Other events may start earlier. Check out the festival’s website to get the full schedule.
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Some good news for wine lovers in Northern Kentucky, the annual Wine Festival at MainStrasse is only two weeks away. MainStrasse is a community in the west side of Covington, that is noted for events such as Oktoberfest, the Carroll Clock Tower, and the Goose Girl Fountain at the Sixth Street Promenade. In recent years, it has also been known for one of the state’s premier wine festivals. With regional wineries, as well as some from other regions of the state, pouring tastes from their award-winning wines, artisans selling specialty items, local foods, and entertainment, the festival attracts thousands of visitors each year. Those visitors have always been rewarded with a good time and lots of good wine.
This years festival will be on October 15, from 3 to 10 PM, rain or shine. For a $10 admission, wine lovers get a souvenir glass and 4 sample tickets. Additional tickets for more samples and glasses of wine can be purchased. Visitors can also buy bottles of wine to take home to enjoy later. The festival is open to those over 21. Parking is available in the 5th Street Parking Lot and the nearby IRS lot.
MainStrasse Village, a historic neighborhood with homes, shops, taverns, and restaurants, is located just off the 5th Street exit off of I-75, in Covington, just south of Cincinnati.
We’ve attended many years and enjoyed ourselves. MainStrasse is a lovely place for a festival and Kentucky has many good wineries. How could you not have fun.
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Wine lovers near Northern Kentucky will want to make plans to visit Jane’s Saddlebag this weekend (May 21 and 22) for their annual wine festival. From 11 AM to 6 PM, visitors will be able to wander through the booths filled with Kentucky wines and artisan crafts. Local wineries as well as wineries from other regions of the state will be pouring tastes and selling bottles of their many wines.
Located in Boone County, minutes from Big Bone, on Ryle Road, in Union, Jane’s Saddlebag is easily accessible from both I 75 and I 71. This wine festival is one of the best in the state. Visitors are able to enjoy music, food, wine, and crafts while relaxing in a beautiful country setting.
This year, I’ll be enjoying the festival as a wine loving visitor; hope to see you there.
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An injured right arm has kept me from both writing and from enjoying winery visits, just wanted to get some news out.
Like most other things, Kentucky’s vineyards and wineries are welcoming spring. Many are having events, while others are just opening their doors to the warm weather. Check the websites of your favorite wineries for events. Many are also changing to their summer hours. If you don’t have their web addresses, go to the kentucky wine link on this site for a winery directory.
Mark your calendars, Jane’s Saddlebag’s annual wine festival is just weeks away, on May 21 and 22. This has become a premiere wine festival, plus a visit to the 35 acre site is an interesting experience. Jane’s Saddlebag is located in Boone County, minutes from Big Bone, on Ryle Road, in Union. Wineries from around the state and craft vendors will be welcoming visitors.
Won’t be at a booth this year, but will be a visitor. Hope to see you there.
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Fall is the time for festivals in Kentucky, celebrating everything from ham to apples. Wine lovers will find celebrations of wine as well.
Bullitt County will once again host a wine festival on September 25 &26, at the Bullitt County fairgrounds. Go to www.bestkywineries.com for details about hours and times.
The Northern Kentucky Wine Festival will be held at MainStrasse in Covington on October 17. Visit http://www.mainstrasse.org/ for information about the upcoming festival.
In Lexington, on October 24, wineries from the state will also pour tastes at the Incredible Food Show held in Lexington Center next to Rupp Arena.
Many of the wineries host their own events. Check out the website of your favorite winery to look for their event or go to the Kentucky wine page at kentuckywine.com
Festivals are a fun way to try wines from many wineries so you can choose which ones to visit.
by adminOnce again, the wine festival at Jane’s Saddlebag was a huge success. Many visitors enjoyed the wine, the music, the vendors, and the food. From 11 AM to 8 PM, there was a stream of wine lovers strolling their way around the booths. Wineries were pouring tastes of some of their most popular varietals.
Even the rain showers that fell on the crowd didn’t stop the fun. People just found shelter until it was over and then walked on to enjoy another wine.
I enjoyed meeting many wine lovers and talking about wine. If you missed it, just wait for next year. Watch for news about the 2016 festival.
Warm weather is here and it’s the perfect time to spend a day strolling through the booths at a wine festival. Jane’s Saddlebag, in Boone County, near Big Bone Lick, is having a wine festival featuring Kentucky wines and crafts, on May 30, from 11 AM to 8 PM. Admission is $15.00, and includes a commemorative glass, 6 tasting tickets, and free parking. Tickets can be purchased at the event or bought from Jane’s website (see my link) early at a discount. In case of a rain day on May 30, the festival will be on Sunday, May 31.
Wineries from around the state will be meeting wine lovers and sharing tastes of their various wines. Some of those who will be at the festival are local, such as: Verona Vineyards, Rose Hill Winery, Atwood Hill Winery, StoneBrook Vineyard and Winery, Elk Creek Vineyards and Winery, and Redman’s Farm Winery. Others, such as, Lovers Leap Vineyard and Winery, Forest Edge Winery, Horseshoe Bend Vineyard and Winery, and Wight-Meyer Vineyard and Winery, will be traveling from Central Kentucky. There will be music provided by local musical groups throughout the day, as well as vendors with crafts and wine related items, and food choices.
I will be there signing A Wine Lover’s Odyssey Across Kentucky. I’d love to meet you and talk about one of my favorite topics – Kentucky wine. Also, you can ask me about the new book I’m working on right now.
Hope to see you there!
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Though April has been rainy and cold, May is almost here and the weather looks promising. Just the right time to start thinking about visiting wineries.
Mark your calendars — one of Kentucky’s best wine festivals will be May 30, 2015, from 11 AM to 8 PM, at Jane’s Saddlebag in Union, in Boone County.
Watch for more about the festival. I will be writing about the details.
by adminWhether it’s to celebrate Octoberfest, Italian Heritage, goetta, or wine, Northern Kentucky and Cincinnati have demonstrated time and time again that the banks of the Ohio is a great place for a festival. I’ve been to several in the past, and have to say they know how to throw a party. Expect one this weekend at the Northern Kentucky Wine Festival.
MainStrasse is one of the best spots for a festival. The tree lined Sixth Street promenade between the Clock Tower and the Goose Girl Fountain is a perfect location for a stroll under the tent from booth to booth tasting Kentucky’s wines. The MainStrasse Village hosts great festivals.
MainStrasse Village is a historic neighborhood, with German heritage and architecture, just off the 5th Street exit from I-75/71. Parking is available in lots nearby, including complimentary parking at the IRS lot at 4th and Johnson. There are shops, restaurants, and taverns in the MainStrasse area.
The Northern Kentucky Wine Festival will be held from 3 to 10 PM, on Saturday, October 18, 2014. Four sample tickets and a souvenir wine glass are available for $10, but you can purchase more tickets or wine from the wineries. Fourteen wineries, including some of Kentucky’s best, such as Verona Vineyards, Lovers Leap Vineyard and Winery, and Smith-Berry Vineyard and Winery, will be there, as well as some artisans.
I’ll be there signing my book, hope to see you there.
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