It’s the perfect time of year to try new things. If you have friends with an interest in wine, why not start your very own wine tasting club. A wine tasting club (not to be confused with a wine club, which is a membership with different benefits offered at many wineries) is a lot like a book club, but the focus is on wine. There are lots of ways you could go about organizing your wine tasting club. There is no singular “right” way, but here are some suggestions to get your started. 

Host the 1st Meeting: 

• Decide on the guest list. Inviting 6-10 people to start with is a good number. The group will most likely grow naturally as it progresses. So, you don’t want to start too big. (Remember: The more people, the more wine, food, glassware, and space needed.) 
• Send an invitation with all the details for the 1st gathering. Depending on your group’s preference, this can be a traditional or digital invitation. Focus on fun and education in the invite. You want to avoid intimidating anyone. (Tip: Ask the guests to bring their calendars to help when planning future events.) 
• Use the first meeting to get organized: 
  • Decide on a schedule. Do you want to meet monthly/bi-monthly? Consider alternating the hosting responsibility/privilege. Once you’ve decided on a schedule, setting up an online calendar that all members can access is a great way to stay on the same page. Another option is to set an automatic date such as the 2nd Thursday each month. 
  • Choose how you’d like to purchase the wines. Would your group prefer to have the host purchase a flight of wines to taste and reimburse at the event? Or would each member prefer to select and bring a bottle according to a previously chosen theme? (Tip: Set a price limit on the wines to keep everything as fair and affordable as possible.)
  • Brainstorm what types of wine you’d like to taste. The wine world is vast. Brainstorming ideas for themes of future meetings will allow each member the opportunity to explore something they in which they are particularly interested. (Examples of themes: Sweet Red, Dry White, Varietals, Areas, Wines Under $10… )
  • Select the scoring method. One of the most fun aspects of a wine tasting club is getting to discuss the wines you’ve tasted. This is made a great deal easier if everyone is using a streamlined method of evaluating them. You can create your own score cards as serious or as silly as you’d like, or check out these free printable options. (If your group decides to bring in the wines individually, it can be a fun component to see who has the “winning” wine of the evening.) 
  • Don’t forget the food! Wine and food go together. Whether your group wants to approach the food pot-luck style or have the host provide the nosh, keep in mind what wines you will be tasting. (Here’s a handy Missouri wine and food pairing guide to get you started, but the whole idea of a wine tasting club is to experiment. So, have fun with it!). *There are Wine Tasting Kits available to make hosting and organizing a wine tasting club even easier, such as this one from a local Missouri company called Belle Bash, or this one available on Amazon.

A wine tasting club is a great way to have fun with friends and learn about wine while you’re at it. There are no rules. Your club can be as serious or as casual as you’d prefer. Make it your own and have fun. 

Missouri wine pairs well with good times and great friends! 

Missouri wineries like to do things a little differently. With more than 125 wineries, you’re sure to find wines as unique and authentic as the people making them. The grapes we grow aren’t mainstream, but they sure are delicious. Many wineries in the state go a few steps farther from the beaten path making a variety of fruit wines and meads. Mead, often called honey-wine, is a beverage created by fermenting honey with water, and frequently fruits, spices, or grains. There are countless different types and styles of mead, but the defining characteristic is that the majority of the fermentable sugar comes from honey. Mead can be still or sparkling and ranges from dry to sweet and everything in between, even spicy!

Mead can be dated as far back as 2000 BC and is considered to be the ancestor of all fermented drinks. While descriptions and evidence of mead can be found in the history of numerous cultures, it gained much of its fame due to its popularity in central Europe. Mead is featured in numerous Germanic myths and stories about the Viking era from which many popular authors such as Tolkien, George R.R. Martin and Neil Gaiman have drawn inspiration. In Gaiman’s acclaimed novel, American Gods, mead is referred to as the drink of the gods.

Modern mead made by Missouri wineries holds up to the lore, winning national and international awards. Several wineries have made their mark offering a variety of styles and flavors of mead and a winery opened recently with the sole focus of making mead, called The Leaky Roof Meadery in Buffalo, offering four unique meads that are slightly carbonated and intended to be enjoyed by the pint.

Pirtle Winery in Weston boasts a plethora of awards for their Mead, Effervescent Mead, Blackberry Mead, and Raspberry Mead. Pirtle’s Mead pairs beautifully with cheesecake and spiced pears while their Raspberry Mead is the perfect addition to brunch.

7Cs Winery in Walnut Grove offers seven different kinds of mead ranging from the traditional Clover to After Burn featuring a surprising kick from jalapeño peppers. They also offer seasonal favorites such as pumpkin. 7Cs hosts a Mead Fest and Renaissance Fair every Fall to celebrate the beverage and the era that made it famous.

Windy Wine Company in Osborn produces several styles of mead: Wildflower (made with 100% raw Missouri wildflower honey), Campfire, Chipotle, Sparkling Hopped, Golden Griffin (made with Missouri clover honey), and Gingerbread Mead (made with Missouri dark honey).

Seasonally, Wenwood Farm Winery offers a Legacy Mead, made with a fragrant, sweet white grape and honey blend. Legacy is their Spring seasonal wine and is released the last Saturday in April at their Redbud Fest.

Honey is a celebration of springtime’s arrival. Toast the warmer weather and new season with a glass of Missouri mead.

Missouri mead pairs well with Spring!

Chambourcin (sham-bor-san). If you haven’t tried it yet, now is the time! Often called Missouri’s gateway red, it is a deliciously smooth red wine varietal that has soft tannins and an unmistakable earthiness. These characteristics coupled with a fruity quality make it perfect to pair with many foods. The flavor palate of fall favorites in particular is a great match for this medium to full-bodied red wine.

November is Chambourcin Month, and we can’t think of a better way to celebrate than by pairing your favorite dishes of the season with a glass of Chambourcin today.

Here are some foods that pair especially well with wine made from this French-American hybrid grape:

Cheeses: brie, camembert

Meats: pork loin, short ribs, sausage, hamburger

Seafood: swordfish

Vegetables and Fruit: mushroom, strawberries, figs,

Sauces: red-sauce, mushroom gravy, applesauce

Spices: nutmeg, clove, cinnamon

Sweets: berry cobbler, chocolate cake

… just to name a few! Mix and match to find your best pairing.

Missouri Chambourcin pairs well with a long list of delicious food!

Hosting holiday meals can be stressful, but this guide is a great way to take some of the headache out of holiday meal planning! Find the perfect wine pairings for the type of Thanksgiving meal you and your loved ones prefer. 

The holidays are a great time for us to show our loved ones how much we care. What better way than with a handmade gift?! Here are some great DIY gift ideas for the wine lovers on your list. 

Make your own mulling spice sachets and give them in a pair or set of wine glasses with a bottle of your fave Missouri wine for mulling (Chambourcin works exceptionally well). Instructions here from HappyHourProjects.com. 

DIY wine bottle stoppers are an easy inexpensive gift option, and so easy to customize! Stay festive by using ornaments or think outside of the box with decorative door knobs or painted figurines. The possibilities are limitless. Instructions here from PartiesforPennies.com. 

Glam up some wine glasses. Champagne flutes are especially fun for this project, but you could use any glass that strikes your fancy. Instructions here from SomethingTurquoise.com. (They’re even dishwasher safe!) 

Whip up a set of wine glass coasters to eliminate the dreaded red-wine-ring and identify which glass belongs to whom. This is an easy sewing project that is super easy to customize for the recipient’s tastes. Instructions here from Muslinandmerlot.blogspot.com. 

It’s true, wine glasses are beautiful. If you’re an ambitious DIY-er looking for a project that will really make an impression, consider this gorgeous wine glass chandelier. Instructions here from Marc&Mandy.

Does someone on your list like to entertain? This wine barrel inspired tray or lazy Susan will be the perfect DIY gift for them. Instructions from LilBlueBoo.com. 

Customized wine tote by simply sewing a seam down the middle of a basic tote bag… viola! You have a two bottle tote bag. This tutorial from InfarrantlyCreative.com includes customizing the bags with a silhouette cutting machine, but if you don’t have one, try making stamps out of corks and customizing the totes that way. Or simply use a pencil eraser for a pixilated, ombré look like this one shown on VandCO.

Missouri wine pairs well with DIY gifts from the heart (and hands)! 

Much like wine, high quality chocolate is something to be savored and appreciated. The fermentation of grapes for wine and cacao seeds for chocolate is what gives both their complex flavors. Some dark chocolate is even aged like wine to bring out more of its delicious qualities. With so many similarities, it is no surprise that wine and chocolate are a lovely pairing.

Chocolate is a common flavor profile found in wines aged in oak barrels. Some Missouri wineries, such as Ladoga Ridge, Pirtle, Riverwood, Mount Pleasant and Westphalia, produce chocolate flavored wines great for sipping. These wines are often seasonal, so don’t wait or you might miss them!

A general rule for enjoying wine and chocolate together is that the wine should be as sweet or sweeter than the chocolate. A raspberry or cherry fruit wine would go well with white and milk chocolates. Dry reds enhance the taste of dark, bittersweet chocolate. As we all know, rules are sometimes meant to be broken, so experiment with what sounds good to you.

Missouri-made, high-quality chocolates compliment Missouri wines. Here are some pairings to try:

• Askinosie Chocolate (Springfield, Mo.): A sweet sparkling wine is the perfect match for their rich, buttery Davao White Chocolate Bars.
• Bissinger's Handcrafted Chocolatier (St. Louis, Mo.): Their dark chocolate cranberry pecan bark is a customer favorite. Indulge in these treats after dinner with a glass of full-bodied Norton.
• Christopher Elbow Artisanal Chocolates (Kansas City, Mo.): Sip a fruity Vignoles with the tropical retreat for you taste buds that is Christopher Elbow's passion fruit caramels. *Bonus* There’s a winery right next door, KC Wineworks.
• Kakao Chocolate (St. Louis, Mo.): Pair the intense grape aroma of Concord with Kakao's hand-dipped truffles made from fresh cream, real butter and vanilla bean seeds.
• Patric Chocolate (Columbia, Mo.): The flavors of plum and butter-hazlenut toffee in Patric Chocolate's 67% Madagascar dark chocolate bar pair well with port-style wines.
• The Candy Factory (Columbia, Mo.): Their signature chocolate covered potato chips sound odd, but are magnificent, especially paired with a Missouri Chambourcin wine.

When the right wine and chocolate come together, there is no denying their chemistry.

Missouri Wines pair well with chocolate!

Fall kicks off the busy baking season. Adding wine to your cakes, cookies, and other baked goods can amp up the flavor and richness. Take your Fall and holiday baking to the next level with Missouri wines!

Missouri wine country is calling. Are you listening? It’s a great time to take a trip to visit new wineries and long-time favorites. When you’re planning your next excursion to wine country, consider taking the train as a fun addition to your adventure.

Amtrak’s Missouri River Runner travels from Kansas City to St. Louis daily with many exciting stops along the way. With more than 125 wineries in the state, there are lots of options for fun-filled trips on the train. The Missouri River Runner stops at these stations four times a day, 2 eastbound and 2 westbound:

Once you’ve arrived at your desired destination, you’re ready for the next stage of your adventure… walking, biking, shuttles, trolleys… whichever you prefer, you’re sure to have a good time. Each area offers its own unique combination of wineries, restaurants, shops, and more.

At missouriwine.org you’ll find a listing and interactive map of all the wineries in Missouri. You’ll find the largest concentrations of wineries near the Kansas City, Hermann, and Washington stops. Contact their local CVBs or Chambers for expert and up to date recommendations on must-see attractions and the best ways to get around once your train has arrived.

Missouri wine pairs well with taking the train!