Beef Stew & Wine all local

Yesterday I made a beef stew. It was fantastic and I thought I'd share it with you. It was made with local grass fed beef from Kiernan Farms and wine from Whitecliff Vineyards. I used a 2004 Cabernet Franc which we also drank with the stew. The wine was wonderful and worked very well with the dinner. I also used leeks and parsley from my garden.

Here's the recipe.

3 pounds beef cubes
Flour
9 tbs butter
6 tbs olive oil
1/4 cup cognac, warmed
1/2 lb bacon diced
3 cloves garlic, chopped
2 carrots, chopped
2 leeks, chopped
3 cups onions, chopped
chopped parsley
1 bay leef
1 tsp thyme
3/4 bottle of red wine
water
10 whole small onions
sugar
8 mushroom caps
juice of 1/2 lemon

1. Roll beef cubes in flour and brown them on all sides in a skillet over high heat in 4tbs oil, and 4tbs butter.
2. Sprinkle meat with salt and pepper, pour the cognac over it and ignite. When flame dies, transfer meat to a three-quart casserole dish.
3. Preheat oven to 350
4. To skillet add bacon, garlic, carrots, leeks, onion, and 2 tbs chopped parsley. Cook, stirring until the bacon is crisp and the veggies are lightly browned. Transfer to casserole with meat and add bay leaf, thyme and wine enough to barely cover the meat. Cover and bake 1 1/2 hours.
5. blend 1 tbs butter with 1tbs flour. After casserole cooks 1 1/2 hours stir this mixture into the casserole and return to the oven. Continue cooking 2 1/2 hours
6. Meanwhile brown small onions in 2 tbs buttter with a dash of sugar and a little water. Cover and cook until onions start to brown and are tender. Set aside in a bowl
7. Saute the mushrooms in the same pan as the onions. Add oil or butter if needed. Brown mushrooms and sprnkle with lemon juice. Add to bowl with onions
8. Add onions and mushrooms to stew when there is 1 hour left to cook. You might also need to add a little water and wine to the casserole as well. Use your judgement.

I served this with blue cheese stuffed potatoes, salad and molten lava chocolate cake for dessert.

Ripening and Rain

Oh no...the forecast calls for lots of rain the end of the week. You might think it's a good thing the rain...but for grape growers in the area it can be a problem.

For grapes to ripen we need warm days, cool nights and no rain. The warm days allows the sugar content to rise and the ideal picking is when the brix reach 23.

Rain..what the rain does to ripening grapes is allows the grapes to take on water. One might think, that's great, big fat juicy grapes. NOT..what it does is dilute the sugar content in the grapes, and this will effect the taste of the wine. It will not only ruin the sugar content, but the flavor.

Think of it as diluting your toddlers grape juice, 1/2 water 1/2 juice. It's fine for the toddler, but not for the adult.

Let's just hope the storm named Kyle that is looming in the Caribbean doesn't head North and slam into us.

Picking Pinot Noir

If you are traveling around the valley today, Whitecliff Vineyards & Winery will be picking Pinot Noir. Stop by their tasting room and you will be able to see what goes on during harvest. From picking in the fields to the de-stemmer to the crusher.

Rich History in the Hudson Valley

I just read another article about Mark Miller, previous owner of Benmarl Winery. You can find the article here - http://tinyurl.com/4pzwoa

Living in the Hudson Valley the majority of my life, you never think of what is in your own back yard. Take a look at the amount of history and beauty that surrounds us. It's quite amazing.

Mark Miller's story is very interesting. As I said before, I had the opportunity to meet him and have him give me a tour of his winery and art work. It wasn't until I got very involved in the local wine industry did I realize his importance.

When you travel through the valley and stop in a local tasting room, the person serving you is very likely to be the owner, or winemaker. You just never know. They are full of information and enjoy sharing it. Don't be afraid to ask questions.

Red Wine & Flu

I just read this story and though it was interesting as we head into flu season:

A new scientific study offers good news for both athletes and wine fans. Researchers at the University of South Carolina say a chemical found abundantly in red wine, apples and onions helps protect against influenza, especially after a rigorous respiratory workout when the body is more susceptible to infection. The chemical, quercetin, is a known anti-inflammatory found in the skins of fruit and vegetables.

So what a better time to go apple picking in the valley and combine it with some wine tasting. There are some wonderful "pick your own" orchards throughout the Hudson Valley Wine Country. Spend a day and protect yourself from the flu.

The start of Harvest 2008

Today started the 2008 harvest season with many vineyards starting to harvest Seyval, with Pinot Noir in the not so distant futur.

This time of year is a wonderful time to visit the local wineries in the Hudson Valley. As you visit the wineries you will hear the de-stemmers and wine presses working at full speed. You will smell the aromas of fermenting wine. Harvest will run from now until possibily the first week in November.

Driving up to a winery as they are harvesting is like walkin off the train at Grand Central Station. The rush and the excitement will put a smile on your face.

Passing of Mark Miller

A winery pioneer who established Marlboro's Benmarl Vineyards is being remembered as a man dedicated to his craft, who brought the Hudson Valley into prominence among the vineyard circuit.

Mark Miller, 89, died Tuesday in Wilmington, N.C.

"He saw life as an adventure, and he saw himself at the helm of a ship, and he was just sailing through life," said Mark Miller's son, Eric Miller, in a telephone interview Friday.

Mark Miller was born in Oklahoma in 1919. He became an artist, but in 1951 started making wine as a hobby. Miller and his wife, Dene, bought the land in Marlboro in 1957 that would become Benmarl Vineyards.

Miller went to Europe and spent several years there as an artist while he learned about wine production before he returned to Marlboro.

Benmarl was granted New York state's first farm winery license in 1976, allowing it to produce and sell its wine directly to the public. At the time, there were 19 wineries in New York state, compared to about 250 today.

hough his most significant local impact may have been the winery, Miller was also a well-known artist and was an established illustrator for the Saturday Evening Post and other major publications.

Eric Miller, who also entered the vineyard business and owns a winery in Chadds Ford, Pa., described his father's view from his home at the edge of a cliff at the vineyard, overlooking the Hudson River and Dutchess County.

"He loved that view; he woke up to it every day and was charged every day," he said.

I had the opportunity about 6 or so years ago to be given a tour of Benmarl by Mark Miller. The end of the tour he allowed us to view his artwork. His vision at the time was to build an art museum to hold his artwork on the property. He was an amazing illustrator!

Greek wine at Greek festival

Last night I stopped at the Greek Fest for a Gyro. It was quite busy for a Thursday evening. When we visit the Greek Fest, we usually hit the beer truck but tonight I decided to try the Greek Wine.

I had a glass of Sitia Creta Cretan Red Wine. Well....it was light and grapey with a dry finish. Is it something I would purchase or drink again...I don't think so. Did it pair well with the gyro? The jury is still out,but I think the beer goes better.

No whining at wine festival

There was no whining at the Hudson Valley Wine Fest this past weekend. I attended both days. Saturday was questionable with Hanna looming in the horizon. Hanna held off until late afternoon and by that time the rain was welcomed. It was hot and sticky. White wines were the wines of the day nicely chilled. Sunday was the nicest day with beautiful weather. Since the festival is indoors weather shouldn't really be an issue.

I decided to taste mostly Gewurztraminer and Rieslings. Just like anywhere, depending on your palate, there is the good and bad. Keuka Springs Winery had a very good Gewurztraminer and Riesling as did Thirsty Owl Winery. McGregor Winery had a wonderful Traminette.

I got in introduced to a new grape varietal this weekend called "Diamond." It is one of the oldest grapes grown in the Finger Lakes. I was told that Fulkerson Winery had a good Diamond, unfortunately they didn't bring it. I did taste a few...very grapey on the smell and taste. The ones I did taste were sweet, a bit to sweet for palate. When I find the one Diamond in the rough, I will report.

Congratulations Fox Run Vineyards

Congratulations to Finger Lakes Winery Fox Run Vineyards - Scott Osborne - for being named in the top 100 wineries in the WORLD by Wine & Spirits Magazine. Scott you are going to be missed this weekend at the Hudson Valley Wine Fest! I will miss being able to taste your wines today.

Wine & Spirits editor and publisher Joshua Greene noted that the magazine staff tastes over 9,000 wines a year, with the top 100 wineries selected on the basis of a range of wines that score at the top of their categories. For years, Fox Run has been widely recognized as one of the top quality producers in the Finger Lakes and New York overall, with the hallmark of quality across a broad range of wines. Being in Wine & Spirits’ top 100 is not only a major achievement for Fox Run, but also a great reflection on both the Finger Lakes and New York overall.

Congratulations Scott and everyone at Fox Run Vineyards!!!

Hudson Valley Vintners and Wineries launch HudsonValleyWineCountry.org

I am proud to say that the Hudson Valley Wine Country is receiving the recognition it deserves. The Hudson Valley Vintners and Wineries just launched HudsonValleyWineCountry.org – The Roots of American Wine.

This is a very exciting time for the Hudson Valley! This website is a wonderful tool, and has a trip planner that will give you point to point directions for your wine touring, history of the wine region, descriptions of the grape varieties grown in the region, pictures, videos and more.

You can read all about it here.

Hudson Valley Wine Fest this weekend

The Hudson Valley Wine Festival is this weekend at the Dutchess County Fairgrounds. This is a fantastic event and not only showcases Hudson Valley Wine, but wine from the other wine regions in New York. Wineries from the Finger Lakes and Long Island attend this event as well.

Attending this event for the first time is Applewood Winery in Warwick, NY. They have wonderful wine and their hard cider won a gold at the Hudson Valley Wine Competition. Other Hudson Valley Wineries in attendance are Baldwin Vineyards, Brotherhood Winery, Benmarl Winery, Cascade Mountain Winery, Clinton Vineyards, El Paso Winery, Hudson Chatham Winery, Millbrook Winery, Pazdar Winery, Silver Stream Winery, Warwick Valley Winery and Whitecliff Winery.

As well as the wonderful wine produced here in the Hudson Valley, there are some great wines from the Finger Lakes. On of my favorites, McGregor Vineyards will be back. John McGregor has some wonderful wines. The Rob Roy Red and Black Russian Red are two of my favorites, as well as his Cab Franc. Another one of my favorites is Sheldrake Point. Many of the Rieslings from the Finger Lakes are wonderful and worth tasting. They range from dry to sweet.

I will be at the festival both days. If you see me say hi.