cider god

Cider God Blog Takeover, June Edition

Welcome back guys and gals, its now June which means its time for another update for Harvest Ridge Winery through the eyes of Damon, the Cider God. A lot of cool happenings are going on right this minute but first let me catch you up on what’s gone on since the last update.

We had a pretty busy end to the month as we bottled like crazy. On one day alone, we knocked out 2015 Cab-Merlot and Merlot. The next week we bottled 2016 Chardonnay and the week after that we bottled Blue Line White. Blue Line White you ask? I’ll explain…

Blue Line White was a nameless white blend we made. We were unsure of a name and left it to our Facebook family– you guys– to name this blend. Submitted by Beth R. and with the honor of law enforcement in mind, Blue Line White was determined the best and most honorable name. Stay tuned for more details on when this will be dropping and how to pick it up.

With the calendar hitting June, we prepped for a release of our newest wine, Cab-Franc Rosé. We released it on June 2nd as well as kicked off our Gourmet Burger Fridays from Chesapeake Culinary Center.

This Cab-Franc Rosé has a very pronounced, floral aroma with a smooth, yet complex mid palette with a dry finish. Limited quantities of this are available so get some while you can!

Bringing it back into the production building for a minute, I’d like to share how we determine what blends will work, which ones don’t and how we reach such a determination. Our Winemaker, Jason, likes to say that if you don’t rely a bit on trial or experiment in winemaking, you’ve already lost the battle and wont make it in the industry very long. Bench research and trial is vital in winemaking. An example of the trials we do involve many barrels for reds and white wines.

Now just because we have all these in barrels, no two barrels will produce the exact same flavor, finish, etc. We use barrels with light toast, medium, and heavy toast. The heavier the toast, the more “oaky,” smoky taste you SHOULD get in your wines. Mostly true but like I said, your outcomes vary. With that being said, when its time to blend or take them out of barrel, the production team sits down and goes through every single barrel to do tastings and determine which barrels might work well with another.

With that, we turn to trials… sitting in the lab working on a small scale with our wines attempting to find what fits our style and what we think the consumer will like. We are thinking about you guys, yes. From the vines to the bottle, you are on our minds. When Jason and I pick our favorites, keeping consumer in mind, we then turn to fellow staff to try some. If the winery owner, Chuck, is dropping in, we’ll let him have a taste and see what he thinks as well as give the tasting room staff a try. We take all of it into consideration. From there we work on getting them out of barrels and into tanks for blending and preparation for bottling. There’s a full team effort here at Harvest Ridge.

Upcoming events and happenings– we kicked off our inaugural Premium Wine Tour experience on June 3rd and 4th. We would like to offer a much more immersive experience for those who want to learn more, see more, and taste more. Our Premium Wine Tour will give customers this opportunity. Before launching these tours to the public, we gave a preview to our wine club members. I attended the first class for the wine educators and I left the meeting with my head spinning, in a good way of course. There’s so much information to gain and so much fun in seeing all the happenings in the winery and vineyard. We take you from vine to bottle. Stay tuned for when we will be opening these tours up to all.

The 2nd Annual Rebel Seed Run The Vineyard 5K to benefit Operation Warm Heart of Dover AFB is June 17th. Tickets are $40 a person, come out and run or support the runners on hand and be sure to stay around afterward as there will be multiple vendors on hand as well as a couple food trucks. Muhammad’s Caribbean Cuisine and Southern Momma’s Funnel Cakes will be on-site. There are still some spots open and you may register online. 

Father’s Day is coming up. We’ll be running specials for Pops all day on the 18th. Bring Dad in and treat him to a couple glasses and hopefully leave with a couple bottles as well. Look out for details on the specials on Facebook and Instagram.

I’ve got some labeling to get back to. Let me get back to it before they have me outside power washing or something. See you next month!

— Damon, The Cider God

Cider God Blog Takeover

Damon here for Harvest Ridge Winery.  You know, some wineries may provide fans and consumers with winemaker’s notes. Well I’m here to give you the Cider God Chronicles. Who better to give you the news than someone that’s in the trenches each and everyday working to give the people what they want, right?

            April was a great month for us here at Harvest Ridge Winery. It kicked off with our illustrious Food Truck Competition to Benefit Disabled Vets and the Hero-Hunts Foundation. We shattered expectations thanks to all who provided their services and came out to support us. With all your help and fundraising we were able to purchase a new transport vehicle for the DAV. Hope to see you again for future events and thank you all again. 

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            We also received a number of awards for our wines at the Finger Lakes International Wine Competition. 2015 Cab-Sauv was awarded Silver as well as Portella and Chamfort. 2015 Chardonnay and Chambourcin were awarded Bronze medals along with our 2013 Meritage. I speak on the behalf of everyone that has put in many of hours and a lot of overtime to bring you the art that is Harvest Ridge Wine and say that we are very proud and very eager to push out an even better product each vintage for our customers.

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            You can’t really keep moving forward if you are always looking back so let me clue you in on what’s going on this month. May 3rd, we bottled our Cab-Franc Rosé (yes, I said that correctly), Cab-Merlot, and Merlot. The Rosé will be released for wine club members this month. If not a wine club member, stop in and ask a staff member in the tasting room about signing up. The release of Merlot and Cab-Merlot are on the horizon as well so check back here or on our Facebook page to see when you can grab a bottle.  These smooth and velvety reds are begging for your companionship. When you stop in, tell them I sent you.

            May 13th is our Wine Club Pick Up Party. Wine Club members know the deal. You come in, are treated to some great food and entertainment, and leave with 3 great wines for you to take home and enjoy.  

                    National Police Week kicks off May 14th and runs through the 20th. $2 off glasses of wine or cider and 20% off bottles all week. We will be honoring all law enforcement officers. Tell the brave boys and girls in blue to drop in!

 

            Wrapping up this month is another Wine and Spirits event with local medium Deanna Fitzpatrick. Tickets are $30 per person. I’ve heard stories from some of the staff members that have been on hand for this event and I’ve been told we have a little spirit friend that likes to hang around and play tricks on us. I don’t know how comfortable I am with having a little buddy around here messing with me but if you are cool with it or have someone you’d like for her to communicate to, come on in. They are a hit!

            Last but not least, don’t forget, Final Friday this month with our local star from Turnbridge Point, Chef Steve Konopelski. He will be here with free snacks. Trust me, you don’t want to miss him. (I personally love his breads that he brings in.) He usually brings a li’l bit of everything so stop by, grab a glass and live a little out at The Ridge.  

Until next time…

— Damon, the Cider God