Sep 25thNorthern Kentucky Wine Festival

On Saturday, October 20th, from 3 to 10, wine lovers will have the opportunity to taste wines from seventeen of Kentucky’s wineries. Party Town will sponsor the Seventh Annual Northern Kentucky Wine Festival at the MainStrasse Village in Covington. For a $10 admission, visitors can sample four wines and enjoy live entertainment. Extra tickets for tastings and glasses of wine can be purchased separately.  Artisans and local food vendors will be there to add to the enjoyment of the day.

Visitors can taste wines from Northern Kentucky wineries: Elk Creek Vineyards, Stonebrook Winery, Atwood Hill, Generation Hill Winery, Baker- Bird Winery, Seven Wells Vineyard & Winery, Redman’s Farm Winery, Rose Hill Farm Winery, and Serendipity Winery will have booths. Chrisman Mill Vineyards, Lovers Leap Vineyards Winery, and Black Barn Winery from the Bluegrass Region; Horseshoe Bend Vineyards, WhiteMoon Winery, and Old 502 Winery from the Derby Region; Purple Toad Winery from the Western Region; and Cedar Creek Vineyards from the Southeastern Region of the state will also offer wines for tasting and buying.

The MainStrasse Village and the Northern Kentucky Vintner & Grape Growers Association have joined together to give visitors an experience that has grown into one of the best wine festivals in the state. The location on the Sixth Street Promenade at the Goose Girl Fountain provides a historic ambiance for wine lovers to wile away the late afternoon and evening while enjoying Kentucky wines. 

I will be signing and selling copies of A Wine Lover’s Odyssey Across Kentucky at the festival. I hope to see you there.

Sep 8thKenton County Farm Harvest Tour

Kenton County is putting its agricultural heritage on tour on September 15, from 9 to 5. The tour has among its stops beef and dairy cattle, horses, and pumpkins, but wine lovers also have a chance to taste wines produced in the county.

Visitors can visit Atwood Hill Winery on Spillman Road and Redman’s Farm and Winery on Decoursey Pike.

Atwood Hill is offering wagon rides through the vineyard and views from the patio along with a glass of wine.

Redmans is offering hayrides and the chance to learn about grapes from the vine to wine.

Visitors can pick up their maps at the Kenton County Extension Outdoor Education Center, on Marshall Road, and spend the day touring farms in Kenton County.

Jun 10thWine and Vine Fest

Kentucky’s official wine festival at Nicholasville was a big success. We went late in the day on Saturday and the wine tent was crowded with people who were enjoying tastes of Kentucky’s wine as well as wine offered from domestic and international wines. Everyone seemed to be enjoying themselves.

Chrisman Mill Vineyards, Prodigy Vineyards & Winery, Generation Hill Winery, Talon Winery and Vineyard, StoneBrook Winery, Rose Hill Farm Winery, as well as, Best Vineyards Winery and Indian Creek Winery from Indiana had booths and were offering tastes of their wines. Visitors who were expecting Wight-Meyer Vineyard & Winery and Purple Toad Winery were disappointed because they were unable to be at the festival.

Since the first year, the festival has grown and is becoming one of the most popular in the state. It is a really good time, start planning for next year’s fest.

May 16thMonticello Wine Festival

Have you ever heard of an event that you thought would be unbelieveably great to attend, but you didn’t think you would ever have the chance? For me that was a wine festival on the grounds of Thomas Jefferson’s Monticello. On May 12th, Monticello hosted the event. This was not the first wine festival held there, but our schedules did not allow us to attend in the past. My husband and I had the opportunity to be there this year and it more than lived up to our expectations. We had a nice surprise when looking around; we noticed we were not the only Kentuckians at the festival.  The tip off was a UK lawn chair.  It was great to meet some other Wildcat fans there.

Central Virginia’s wineries were represented by their most established ones, such as Barboursville Vineyards as well as newcomers such as Stinson Vineyards. There were fifteen wineries there altogether. Visitors were also invited to take a walking tour through the house.

As Jefferson fans, my husband and I have shared many visits at Monticello. This one was exceptional. The pictures say it all.

May 16thWine and Vine Fest

Don’t forget. Saturday is the day for the Wine & Vine Fest at Nicholasville.  According their website; Kentucky wineries: Wight-Meyer Vineyard & Winery, Rose Hill Farm Winery, Purple Toad Winery, Chrisman Mill Vineyards, Prodigy Vineyards & Winery, Generation Hill Winery, Talon Winery and Vineyard, StoneBrook Winery, as well as, Best Vineyards Winery and Indian Creek Winery from Indiana will all be pouring tastes.

Hope to see you there.

Apr 22ndKentucky Wine and Vine Fest

If you’re looking for a way to spend a Saturday in May, plan to attend the Kentucky Wine and Vine Fest in Nicholasville. For the ninth year, on May 19, the festival is once again spotlighting Kentucky wineries as well as domestic and international wines. Along with the wine tent, visitors will have the opportunity to buy Kentucky arts, crafts, and gourmet foods.  Entertainment, a Merlot run, and a grape stomp are also scheduled throughout the day.

The festival gets underway on Friday with an amateur wine competition, a wine country bus tour and a wine gala.

I’ve attended in the past and recommend giving it a try.  Maybe I’ll see you there.

Oct 16thThe Northern Kentucky Wine Festival

Saturday’s weather was perfect for an outdoor festival. Fall foliage and Kentucky wines were an excellent combination for visitors to MainStrasse yesterday. Whether strolling down the Sixth Street Promanade from wine booth to wine booth or sitting enjoying a glass of wine, it was a great way to relax and enjoy the day. Fifteen of Kentucky’s wineries provided wine for tasting and  purchase, artisans displayed crafts from jewelry to artwork, and food vendors were available with a wide choice of treats.

Several of the wineries were well-known to wine lovers in Northern Kentucky. StoneBrook Winery, Atwood Hill Winery, Seven Wells Winery, and Baker-Bird Winery are all well-established local wineries. Many visitors have enjoyed the Back Woods Wine Tour featuring stops at each. Elk Creek Vineyards and Winery also has a local presence at the vineyards in Owenton, as well as the shops at Florence Mall, Crestview Towne Center and Rabbit Hash. Redman’s Farm Winery has been open for a year and has had a booth at several festivals locally. Others were also known to festival goers, such as, Chrisman Mill Vineyards and Winery, Lovers Leap Vineyards and Winery, Horseshoe Bend Vineyards and Winery, Wildside Winery and Vineyard, Generation Hill Winery, and Black Barn Winery.

Some wineries might have been a bit of a surprise to local visitors. Though one of Kentucky’s most popular wineries,  Smith-Berry Vineyard and Winery, from New Castle, made its first appearance at the wine festival. Purple Toad Winery also made a somewhat rare appearance in this region. Western Kentucky wine lovers have been familiar with this Paducah winery for quite some time. A new winery, Rose Hill Farm Winery in Pendleton County, made its first appearance at the festival offering wines not yet available for tasting at their winery.

Whether enjoying new wines from an old favorite, such as StoneBrook’s Black Knight, or trying wines from wineries new to the festival such as Smith-Berry’s Brother John, visitors were enthusiastic about their tasting experience. We got there early and the crowds were already gathering. When we left after a couple of hours of tastings, relaxing with a glass of wine and a brick oven pizza, it was getting crowded. The Sixth Annual Northern Kentucky Wine Festival was a success and a perfect way to spend a fall afternoon.

Oct 16thKentucky Proud Incredible Food Show

The third annual show was just as good as the previous two. The food booths provided visitors with a wide array of Kentucky products. From the artisan cheese made by Boone Creek Creamery, to sweets from the Karamel Kreations, to Browning’s Hams, visitors were not disappointed.

The wineries offered some of Kentucky’s best for tasting and purchase. Each winery provided more than just wine for the visitors. For instance, Chrisman Mill offered wine gifts; Elk Creek served excellent barbecue; and Lovers Leap provided Peach Bellinis. The wineries attracted many of those who chose to spend their Saturday at the Kentucky Proud Incredible Food Show.

Each year Kentucky has more to offer. You might want to start planning now to have a free weekend in October, for next year’s show.

Sep 18thKenton County Farm Tour

Kenton County Cooperative Extension Services sponsored its first farm tour on September 17, 2011. Hundreds of visitors were welcomed at the farms and invited to look around and enjoy learning about the farm products, from pumpkins to shrimp to Angus and Simmental cattle. Two of the fourteen farms visited were wineries. Kenton County’s two wineries are Atwood Hill Winery and Redman’s Farm and Winery. 

Atwood Hill Winery has been around for several years and is well-known to the community.  The wines are good; the tasting room and grounds are lovely and provide visitors with a relaxing experience.  During the tour, there were antique tractors, special foods, craft booths, and, of course, wine.  Though the grapevines were covered to protect the harvest, no one seemed to mind.  While we were there, everyone seemed to be enjoying themselves and partaking of all of the offerings.

Redman’s Farm and Winery is relatively new as a winery, but not as a family farm.  The family took visitors on tours through the farm, provided food, and had flowers available for purchasing.  Visitors could taste the apple and blackberry wines or purchase produce during their time at the farm.

Sep 12thKentucky Wine on Display

The second annual Vintage KY Wine Festival was held over Labor Day Weekend at Ashland, the home of Kentucky’s Henry Clay.  Visitors were treated to tastings from Chrisman Mill Vineyards and Winery, Elk Creek Vineyards and Winery, Purple Toad Winery, Generations Hill Winery, Prodigy Vineyards and Winery. and Horseshoe Bend Vineyards and Winery.  Each winery brought selections from their wine lists, with wines ranging from Chrisman Mill’s dry, red, full-bodied Norton, to Elk Creek’s light-bodied, fruity Pinot Grigio, to Purple Toad’s Paducah Peach.

While the weather turned bad and kept the attendance lower than last year’s festival, around 250 people enjoyed the wine, food, and entertainment.  The venue of the festival provides a beautiful setting for relaxing and enjoying Kentucky wine.  Many visitors also enjoyed touring Ashland and the grounds.

I attended the festival both years and am already looking forward to next year’s. The food choices were excellent, the tour of the historic home and the grounds were well worth it, and the wine was great. What else would you need for a good time?