These days there's a holiday for everything, but the way we see it is... why not? Even if a holiday may seem a bit silly, we'll take the excuse to raise a glass of Missouri wine and celebrate. Will you join us this year? 

January: Norton Month 

February: 18- Drink Wine Day, 24- Open That Bottle Night

March: 3- Mulled Wine Day 

April: Chardonel Month 

May: 9- Moscato Day, 25- National Wine Day 

June: Vidal Blanc Month, 9- Rose Day 

July: Concord Month 

August: Vignoles Month 

September: Missouri Wine Month 

October: Create your own MO wine celebration! 

November: Chambourcin Month 

December: 5- Repeal Day, 20- Sangria Day, 31- Sparkling Wine Day 

Tis the season for celebrations with family and friends and a great time to pair excellent conversations with sparkling Missouri wines. Watch this video and learn how the fizz gets into your favorite bottle of bubbly.

www.youtube.com/watch?v=e3bTWT7xZbQ

Harvest is arguably the most visible time of the year for grape-growing and winemaking, but the work doesn’t stop after the excitement of crush is complete. Important aspects of winemaking go on during the cold winter months as well. Here are some of the things happening behind the scenes in Missouri wine country according to local winemakers. Whether it’s filtering, stabilizing, oak aging or looking for ways to continually improve, making great wine takes a lot of time and dedication. Luckily for us, Missouri winemakers know that some things are worth the work!

Brandon Dixon – Noboleis Vineyards in Augusta

“The winter is actually a very busy time for us. It is the time when we are taking our newly fermented wines and getting them ready for bottling. For the majority of our wines, that means stabilizing the proteins and tartaric acid in the wines. We do this purely for cosmetic reasons. If a wine has excess protein, the proteins can denature and come out of solution at warmer temperatures. This can cause the wine to look cloudy. Conversely, if the wine experiences cold temperatures, the tartaric acid salts can crystallize and come out of solution. If you've ever noticed small, sand-like crystals in the bottom of your bottle, or stuck to the side of the bottle, you've experienced tartaric acid crystals. Neither one of these things would affect the wine's aroma or flavor, but customers don't like to see anything but brilliantly clear wine in their bottle. Once the wines are stable, we filter them to prepare them for bottling. 

We are also pumping some of our wines into oak barrels at this time. Some of our wines benefit from slow, controlled oxidation that the barrels provide. We also gain additional layers of aromas and flavors from the caramelized sugars in the wood that are produced when the barrel staves are toasted at the cooperage. The amount of oxidation and barrel flavors we want will determine how long we leave the wine in the barrel. The average time frame for barrel aging at Noboleis is 4-18 months; although we do have some wines resting in barrels that we expect will be in there for 7 years or more!”

Chris West – Cave Hollow West Winery in Hannibal and West Winery in Macon

“[Throughout the winter] we are working on racking, filtering, blending trials and new labels for new wines. We are also thinking about the next year and what will help us make better wine through equipment improvements and reviewing prior year notes on cellar aging and processes that were done with each wine.”

Susie Johnson – Cave Winery in Ste. Genevieve

“In addition to our usual deep cleaning and pruning, this winter we are experimenting with oak alternatives and micro-oxygenation. We will also be getting out of the winery some as we are working on getting our distillery up and running. Norton makes great brandy!”

Whitney Schmidt – Vox Vineyards in Kansas City and Weston

“During the winter months the wine is in a stage that the French call “elevage”. This word means ‘to raise’ or ‘to bring up’. At this point the wines are all finished with primary fermentation and are undergoing slower more subtle changes. You might say, they’re developing their personalities and revealing their essence… I view my responsibility to the wine at this point like I do being a parent. I’m monitoring the changes that the wines are going through and guiding them gently toward becoming a well-adapted grown-up that’s ready for the… bottle.

What this means is I’m making filtration decisions, gathering basic chemistry information and watching for changes over the course of several months. Also, I’m looking at the chemical changes from the juice before fermentation compared to the finished wine. This gives me a lot to ponder, like what was good about my harvest timing decision and what should I try to do different next time. I’m also doing sensory evaluation of each of the wines. Which ones can stand on their own as single varietal wines and which would be better wines if they were blended. Winter is also an important time to reflect on the past year and find ways to educate and evaluate myself. It’s important to never settle for good enough. Always striving to be better! We attend conferences, read new books, and enter our wine in competitions.”

There you have it! Winter might seem like a less busy time of the year in Missouri wine country, but there is still so much being done to craft the next vintage of delicious, award-worthy wines. Perhaps next time you’re out at a local winery, you could take a tour to see some of these efforts for yourself. 

Get into the holiday spirit and use some of those corks and empty bottles you’ve been saving with these DIY projects. Have fun making crafts and decorate your home or office with holiday cheer!  

1- Wine Cork Snowman Ornaments

These ornaments take only a few supplies (most of which you probably already have) and are easy to make… plus they are about as cute as can be!

Full tutorial @ growingupgabel.com

2- Pinecone and Wine Cork Christmas Trees

Making Christmas trees from wine corks and pinecones may sound a little cheesy, but the end result is adorable and perfect for decorating this holiday season!

Full tutorial @ babble.com

3- Santa’s Wine Glasses

Hand-painted glasses make a great decoration or gift! These are simple to make and full of holiday spirit (and hopefully they’ll be full of Missouri wine as well).

Full tutorial @mandysmoney.worpress.com

4- Stemware Snow Globes

If you have extra wine glasses lying around or love things in miniature, this craft is for you! Simple, inexpensive and fun, making these snow globes could be a great way to relax and enjoy some holiday cheer.

Full tutorial @ cfabbridesigns.com

5- The Grinch Wine Bottles

Do you play “How the Grinch Stole Christmas” on repeat this time of year? If so, this DIY project is the perfect way to celebrate! Empty wine bottles, paint and a santa hat and you’re on your way to some adorable holiday decorations.

Full tutorial @ leapoffaithcrafting.com

6- Wine Cork Wreaths

If you have been collecting corks from your favorite Missouri wines for some time and have a pretty hefty stash, then why not make a wine cork wreath?

Full tutorial @ deavita.net

Cheers to a wonderful holiday season full of good times and great wines!

Holidays often bring the opportunity to toast those you cherish most. Glasses are raised to recognize special occasions, achievements and give thanks for health and happiness. So let’s raise our glasses to toast as we celebrate the holiday season... But first let’s look at how the tradition of making toasts began. How has it evolved over the centuries? What is customary in other countries?

Let’s start with the name; to “toast” originated from a tradition of adding bits of toasted bread to the wine to improve the taste. While the exact origin of the action may never be known, records show it was a custom across many cultures throughout history. Legend has it the Roman Senate required citizens to toast to the health of Emperor Augustus at each and every meal. While the Greeks may have poured from the same pitcher and had all raise their glasses together as a sign that the beverage was not poisoned. Kings throughout Europe also made toasting a requirement at their courts.

In many nations it was customary to finish one’s glass for each toast offered throughout the meal and there was never just one toast. In addition, women were often forbidden from participating. We’re sure glad that tradition has gone by the wayside. However, in 1791, The Royal Toastmaster book was published outlining acceptable toasts and setting a new tone for the tradition. In later years some newspapers even kept an official Toast Editor on staff and held regular toast competitions.

As the custom of offering a toast spread around the world many created their own formalities. Here are a few tips for the world traveler:

• For Brazilian celebrations toast to your health with saude!
• In China its custom to clink your glass lower than the host as a sign of respect while saying gan bei or bottoms up!
• Costa Ricans often raise their glass to pure life with pura vida!
• When in Germany and toasting with wine, join in by saying zum whol but be sure you make eye contact as you clink everyone’s glasses.
• Italians can choose between salute, cin cin or use the phrase cent’ anni which roughly translates to “may you live one hundred years”.  
• For proposing a toast in Japan use kanpai (dry the glass) after pouring a glass for everyone in attendance but do not pour your own.
• Spanish cultures often toast to good health using salud!
• Frequent toasts are common in Ukraine and everyone at the table is expected to propose at least one during dinner – Bud-mo!

No matter which tradition you favor, we hope you have the opportunity to toast friends and family this holiday season with a glass of Missouri wine! Cheers!

Gift baskets are festive and can look really impressive if they’re done well. Give everyone gift envy by building the best gift baskets using these six tips.

1.You have to start somewhere.

Gathering items for gift baskets can quickly get out of hand if you don’t have a solid idea of what you want the end product to be. Pick a foundation item or theme and that will help you identify the rest of what you need. So, if you know you want to gift a bottle of Missouri Norton, start there and build up around that with dark chocolate that pairs well with the varietal or make a red wine hot chocolate basket with mugs, chocolate mix and all the fixins.

2.Know your audience.

The more personal you can make a gift, the better. If you know the person receiving this gift loves the beach and tropical vacations, theme it towards that preference. A bottle of Missouri Vignoles, dried tropical fruit, a beach themed wine glass or tumbler, and a thematic movie. Maybe even present it in a sand bucket.

3.Think outside the box. (Literally)

There are so many different types of containers you can use as the base of your gift basket. The traditional basket works well, but some other options include beverage tubs, mixing bowls, Champagne buckets, plastic totes and much more. The most important things to look for in a container are size and sturdiness. It needs to be big enough to hold all your items, but not so big that it looks empty unless you go crazy on the fillings. It also needs to be sturdy to avoid any potential accidents or breakage.

4.Fill it up.

The last thing you want is for a gift basket to look empty and sad. If your container is fairly deep, use foam, crumpled paper or a towel as a riser so your items don’t sink to the bottom. Be sure to cover the

 items you use as a riser with shredded paper or the like. You don’t have to break the bank filling up your basket. After you’ve selected those key items, maybe the bottle of Missouri wine and a pair of glasses, you can fill in with less expensive supporting items.

5.Size Matters

Just as not all the items need to be pricey, they also can’t be all the same size. You’ll need a variation in sizes to fill the container and create texture and balance in the finished gift basket. It’s also great to add in small, handmade pieces like a cork craft, bottle stopper or a set of wine glass charms.

6.Keep it contained.

You can arrange the most appealing and eye-catching gift basket, but if everything shifts as soon as it’s picked up, it will all be for naught. Cellophane wrapped around and gathered at the top is a classic way to secure a gift basket. Other options are the shrink-wrap bags you can get online or craft stores. Additionally, a large and well placed ribbon can sometimes do the trick. Also, you can consi

der getting a “basket” that doesn’t require extra containment… a clear beverage dispenser is one example.

However you decide to build your best gift basket, we hope you include a delicious, award-winning bottle of Missouri wine. After all, who doesn’t love wine?! 

This decadent cheesecake incorporates a mouthwatering mulled wine sauce to create the perfect holiday dessert. It is delicious and festive! Whether you make this recipe for a carry-in at the office or your family’s holiday feast, it is sure to be a huge hit. Cheesecake and wine… it’s a win, win!  

Mulled Wine Cheesecake Recipe

Time: Active- 2 hours, Chill 6 hours or overnight  |  Yield: 10-12 servings

Ingredients:

For the crust-

1 cup- Crushed chocolate cookies (Chocolate graham crackers work well)

2 tbsp- Cocoa powder

1 tbsp- Brown sugar

1 tbsp- Sugar

3 tbsp- Melted butter

For the sauce-

1 cup- Missouri Red Wine (We used Chambourcin. If you use a sweeter wine, adjust the sugar added according to taste.)

½ cup- Cranberries (frozen are fine)

½ cup- Brown sugar

4-5 strips- Orange peel (the peel from approximately ½ of a medium orange)

1 tsp- Allspice

¼ tsp- Ground ginger

For the filling-

(4) 8oz packages- Cream cheese

1 cup- Sugar

4- Eggs

3 tbsp- All Purpose flour

1 cup- Heavy cream

2 tsp- Vanilla extract

Directions:

Preheat oven to 325 degrees Fahrenheit. Prepare a 9-inch springform pan by wrapping the bottom and sides in a double layer of foil.

To make the crust, pulse chocolate cookies in a food processor until crushed thoroughly. Add cocoa powder, sugars and melted butter and pulse a few times until incorporated. (If not using a food processor, crush cookies by placing in a plastic bag and pressing with a rolling pin until they are all crushed. In a medium bowl, add cookie crumbs, cocoa powder and sugars. Stir in the melted butter until combined.) Press the mixture into the bottom of the 9-inch springform pan. Bake for 10 minutes. Remove from the oven and cool on a baking rack while you make the sauce and filling.

To make the sauce, add wine, cranberries, sugars, orange peel and spices to a small saucepan over medium-high heat. Bring to a boil then reduce heat and cook for an additional 5-7 minutes until reduced by approximately half. Remove from heat and set aside. When cool, remove orange peel and blend or process until smooth.

To make the cheesecake filling, cream together the sugar and cream cheese with a mixer until smooth. Add eggs one at a time until just combined; try not to overmix. Add remaining ingredients slowly until all is combined.

Pour the filling on top of the crust. Drop the sauce by the teaspoon on top. Using a skewer or toothpick, swirl the sauce into the filling. Keep remaining sauce to serve with the finished cheesecake.

Place the cheesecake in a shallow roasting dish and put it in the oven on the center rack. Carefully pour or ladle boiling water (Pro-tip: Using a kettle is an easy way to do this!) until water comes halfway up the sides of the pan. Bake at 325 degrees for 70-75 minutes on the center rack in the oven. It’s done when the cake is set around the edges but still slightly wobbly in the center. Carefully remove from the oven. Take the springform pan out of the roasting pan and cool on a baking rack for 10 minutes; run a knife or icing palette around the edges of the pan to loosen the cheesecake’s sides. Allow the cheesecake to cool on the baking rack in the pan for an additional hour. Refrigerate the cheesecake, uncovered, for 6 hours or overnight.

When you are ready to serve, remove cheesecake from springform pan, slice and enjoy! We recommend putting the extra sauce on the plate as a garnish with each piece of cheesecake. It’s delicious!

*This recipe is adapted from a winning recipe from the MO Wines: Just Desserts Cooking Contest at the 2017 Missouri State Fair. 

December 5^th is Repeal Day and the Missouri wine industry has a lot of reasons to celebrate. Prior to Prohibition the Missouri wine industry was thriving. There were hundreds of wineries producing millions of gallons of wine. Wines that were garnering international attention.

With the passing of the 18^th amendment, however, the industry was brought to a sudden and devastating halt. Grapevines were ripped from the ground, barrels of wine spilled in the street, and massive underground cellars converted to grow mushrooms. December 5, 1933 saw the 21^st amendment ratified, repealing the 18^th.

This meant Missouri wine industry could start its slow road to recovery. There are now 130+ wineries in the state, making 1.25 million gallons of wine every year, and once again garnering international awards. Raise a glass of your favorite Missouri wine and join us in celebrating. Cheers to Repeal Day!