I have enjoyed a good glass of table wine many times with my meals.  Wine tasting parties have always been a favorite pastime, especially when combined with cheese.  No, I am not from Wisconsin so I do not rate a “cheese head hat”.  Recently, after a pleasant dinner party with good friends, I was introduced to a new class of wines that I had never tried before.  The dessert wine I was served turned out to be the fitting end to a fabulous evening. 

 Grapes used for dessert wines are not harvested in the same fashion and timing as your typical table wine grapes.  The goal is to increase the sugar content of the grape by mainly harvesting them later in the season.  Often in dessert wines a noble rot forms on the grapes before harvest.  In another dessert wine type named ice wine, grape harvest is delayed until the first freeze.  Some times these wines are developed by pausing the fermentation process. 

There are several types of grapes primarily used in the making of dessert wines.  Semillon grapes are commonly used in Sauternes that often smell like the wildflowers where it is grown.  Muscat grapes may remind you of orange and honey.  Fendant and Chasselas are typically found primarily in Switzerland.  Spicy Gewurztraminer wines are good tasting and seem to age well.  Fortified wines like sherry, port and Madeira are made differently than your typical dessert wine, but are also a great choice and considered in many circles to be “honorary dessert wines”.  Be aware that some wineries are making great dessert wines by “late-harvesting” table wine grapes used for Cabernet Sauvignon and Viognier. 

 When serving dessert wines, a general rule is the wine should be sweeter than the food it is served with.  Good matches include fresh sweet fruits, bakery goods and chocolate and toffee based dishes.  White dessert wines should be served chilled but not to cold, while red dessert wines are mainly served at room temperature.  Because of their sweetness, dessert wines come in smaller bottles and often are more expensive than table wines.  It is best to serve these wines in a small glass with a pour of only 2 ounces.  Dessert wine can be served without dessert, but in any case with or without, ready your body for the sugar high that will result. 

 Selecting the right dessert wine for your next entertainment event could be a little challenging.  A great suggestion is to try a “test-run” before you plan your gathering.  Get your chosen dessert prepared ahead of time.  Taste the wine you think will compliment your dessert choice and note your impressions.  Lastly, taste your wine along with your dessert.  If you find the combination pleasant to your palate, you are home free.  If the combination dulls the flavor of the wine, consider going with a less-sweet dessert or a sweeter wine. 

What I learned about dessert wines has been known for a long time by cultured Europeans.  On this continent, we have always appreciated having dessert after our meals, but have not extensively appreciated what a good accompanying wine could do to our “taste-buds”.   I have decided that having a dessert wine in my cellar to enjoy occasionally is a personal requirement.  As I always say, select your wine to fit your individual taste, store and serve it properly, and enjoy. 

Author: Ronald Senn, Vice-president, Ideal Wine Coolers, April 2010

Ideal Wine Coolers endeavors to find new and exciting products that we can present to our customers.  These new products have some unique characteristics that may be just what you need.   We have developed a new web page that will feature these new products so it will be easy for everyone to find them.  Four of the new products are described below.

Our Haier 12 Bottle Mirror Glass Door Dual Zone Thermoelectric Wine Cellar will keep your red and white wine collection at the perfect temperature. This dual zone wine cooler has dual touch screen controls with 2 LED displays that allow independent control between 45 to 54 degrees F. in the upper zone and between 52 to 64 degrees in the lower zone. Features that will improve your enjoyment of this thermoelectric wine refrigerator are 4 full-width chrome storage racks, soft interior light, vibration free operation, recessed door handle and double-pane insulated glass door with black cabinet and trim. This wine cellar is small enough to place on your kitchen counter top. Our wine cooler is a great addition to any household, apartment or condominium where space saving is an absolute essential. Look no further for superior wine storage.

FEATURES:
* Black Cabinet with Black Trim
* Ultra-Quiet Thermoelectric Cooling
* Double-Pane Insulated Glass Door
* Recessed Handle
* Adjustable Dual Zone Thermostat Controls
* 4 Chrome Wire Storage Racks
* Black Interior

CAPACTIY:
* 12 Wine Bottles

DIMENSIONS:
* Width 10 Inches x Depth 20 Inches x Height 24 Inches

Our Haier 18 Bottle Silver Steel Trim Dual Zone Thermoelectric Wine Cellar will keep your red and white wine collection at the perfect temperature. This dual zone wine cooler has dual touch screen controls with 2 LED displays that allow independent control between 45 to 54 degress F. in the upper zone and between 52 to 64 degrees in the lower zone. Features that will improve your enjoyment of this thermoelectric wine refrigerator are 5 full-width chrome storage racks, soft interior light, vibration free operation, recessed door handle, leveling legs and double-pane insulated glass door with black cabinet and virtual steel trim. This wine cellar is small enough to place on your kitchen counter top. Our wine cooler is a great addition to any household, apartment or condominium where space saving is an absolute essential. Look no further for superior wine storage.

FEATURES:
* Black Cabinet with Virtual Steel Trim
* Ultra-Quiet Thermoelectric Cooling
* Double-Pane Insulated Glass Door
* Recessed Handle
* Adjustable Dual Zone Thermostat Controls
* 5 Chrome Wire Storage Racks
* Leveling Legs
* Black Interior

CAPACTIY:
* 18 Wine Bottles

DIMENSIONS:
* Width 13 3/5 Inches x Depth 19 3/10 Inches x Height 26 Inches

Our Haier 20 Bottle 4 Wine Glass Display Window Thermoelectric Wine Cooler is a new and unique wine cellar that can store wine bottles and glasses. The door allows for hanging storage of 4 wine glass and display of 3 bottles of wine. (see HVDW32ABB for a look at a similar interior). This wine refrigerator has a classic black cabinet with stainless steel trim around the door. This thermoelectric wine cooler is energy efficient and is perfect for both red and white wines. Features that you will enjoy include soft interior light, recessed handle design, leveling legs, 3 full-width chrome shelves, LED displays and touch screen controls. Light up your wine collection today with this space-saving wine cooler. Look no further for superior wine storage.

FEATURES:
* Black Cabinet with Silver Trim
* Ultra-Quiet Thermoelectric Cooling
* Double-Pane Insulated Glass Door
* Recessed Handle
* Adjustable Touch Screen Thermostat Controls
* 3 Chrome Wire Storage Racks
* Black Interior

CAPACTIY:
* 20 Wine Bottles
* 4 Wine Glasses

DIMENSIONS:
* Width 17 Inches x Depth 23 3/13 Inches x Height 20 1/10 Inches

Our Vinotemp 4 Bottle Draw Wine Dispenser and Cooler is a unique wine storage appliance that can dispense up to 4 different wine varieties. There are two different color options: black or brown (installed brown color wine dispenser is shown). Either color option comes with stainless steel trimmed front. This wine dispenser is extremely quiet and maintains wine at proper storage and serving temperature (40 to 60 degrees F.). This wine dispenser has blue LED dispensing buttons, miniature stainless steel electronic valves, dispensing spouts and blue LED display temperature controller. The glass-door cabinet displays wines and dispenses from up to 4 opened bottles while chilling 4 additional bottles. The Wine Draw Dispenser uses a noble gas (such as nitrogen or argon) to keep open bottles fresh from oxidation for weeks. If you are an avid wine lover or own a business that serves wine, this unique wine dispenser could be just what you need. Look no further for superior wine storage.

FEATURES:
* Extremely Quiet Running
* High-output Compressor System
* Maintains Wine at Proper Storing and Serving Temperature
* Temperature Range 40 to 65 Degrees F.
* Blue LED Dispensing Buttons
* Blue LED Temperature Controller
* NSF-Approved Plastic and Sanitary Stainless Steel Spouts
* Miniature No-drip Stainless Steel Electronic Dispensing Valves
* Brown or Black Exterior Color Choices

DIMENSIONS:
* Width 19.25 Inches x Depth 19 Inches x Height 25 Inches

CAPACITY:
* 4 Wine Bottles in Dispenser
* 4 Wine Bottles in Additional Storage Space

Author: Ronald Senn, Vice-president, Ideal Wine Coolers, April 2010

Every year my wife and I try to plan a fall trip to some place we have not been before.  The choice this year was an RV trip to Branson, Missouri.  Branson is infamous for its broad range of entertainment shows that one can attend and enjoy.  We also like to find out more about a particular state’s wine industry.  For example, I did not know that the area just west of St Louis overlooking the Missouri River is officially recognized as America’s first wine district.  Missouri is also home to over 90 different wineries, comprising an industry that is on the rise. 

In the 1830’s, some of the first settlers to the Missouri River Valley were German immigrants from the Rhine River Valley.  They were looking to settle down and become crop farmers.  They were dismayed to find the plots they staked were not the optimum for accomplishing what they wanted to do.  Instead, the idea of starting vineyards and producing fine wines became the goal.  One such vineyard, Stone Hill Winery, was so successful that it won the first of eight gold medals at the Vienna World Fair in 1870.  The wine industry in Missouri was off and running and building a reputation of producing some of the best wines in the world. 

The hub of the wine industry in the eighteen hundreds became centered on the town of Hermann, Missouri, first settled in 1837.  The city of Hermann takes its name from Hermann the Cherusker, who beat back three Roman legions in the Battle of Teutoburger in 9 AD.  To Germans, he is a symbol of strength.  Historical Hermann is one of those places you visit where “time has seemed to stand still”.  It is full of quaint, red brick buildings, several personalized bed and breakfast inns and numerous other shops and museums.  The town has all the amenities to make a visit there a great experience.  Hermann is the heart of Missouri wine country with its wineries producing nearly 70,000 gallons of wine per year, 1/3 of the state total. 

Aside from the Hermann area, there are four other areas of note worth your time to visit.  In the central part of the state west of Hermann near Fulton, Missouri and accessed by Interstate 70 is the Missouri River wine area.  In the southeastern part of the state near Chaffe and Cape Vardeau is another wine growing area (Route Du Vin) that can be accessed by Interstate 55.  The wine growing area near Springfield (Ozark Mountain) in the southwestern part of the state is accessed using Interstate 44.  Finally, the area just west and adjacent to St Louis is called the Missouri Weinstrasse Tour and is located south of I-70 and north of I-44.  

There is a broad array of events often planned within these wine growing zones.  Wine tasting, winery openings, wine and dinner theatres, wine release parties, and winery anniversary celebrations abound.  I also discovered that most of these events feature “live entertainment” to make the discovery tours even more enjoyable.  As in many other places in the country, the October Fest celebrations always seem to cap off a great wine growing season, making a Missouri October wine tour extra special.  Because of Prohibition in the 1920’s, the Missouri wine industry nearly disappeared, but since the early 1960’s the industry is once again flourishing. 

In 2009, Stone Hill Winery received the Governor’s Cup Award.  That competition featured over 220 different Missouri wines.  Gold medals awarded totaled 42 with 54 Silver and 64 Bronze medals also awarded.  The most important grapes are the Norton, Chancellor Noir, Cayuga, Catawba, Niagara and Concord.  New French hybrids that are also gaining in reputation include Vidal, Seyval, Vigroles and Chardonel. 

Missouri is often affectionately called “The Show Me State”.  My investigation of Missouri’s Wine Country ended up “showing me” that they have carved out a nice niche in wine producing.  Remember, store your wine properly, serve it at the right temperature and enjoy it immensely. 

Author: Ronald Senn, Vice-president, Ideal Wine Coolers, 4/2010

For a time our son lived in Anacortes, Washington.  A summer not long ago, my wife and I traveled up Interstate 5 along the west coast to visit him.  The scenery along I-5 was like looking at a collection of mail home postcards.  Once we hit the Oregon State line, another common thread of notoriety was the vast number of wineries and vineyards we saw along the way.  We decided to slow our trip and spend time exploring and learning more about Oregon Wine Country. 

We learned that there are currently over 400 wineries and 875 vineyards in the state.  Planted acreage is over 19,000 acres, which makes the average vineyard about 20 to 25 acres.  Oregon wine growers are mostly small, family-owned operations by people with a deep love for and an enduring responsibility to care for the land.  Many of these small producers make 5,000 cases of wine or less.   What they lack in production they gain in quality by their careful attention to details.  Oregon is currently ranked third in the U.S. with regard to the number of wineries.  Oregon wine sales in 2008 were nearly 1.75 million cases and production today is approaching 2.0 million cases. 

Many of the Oregon wine grapes, especially the cool-zone grown varieties, exhibit high levels of a potent antioxidant derived from grape skins called resveratrol.  Antioxidants have been known to have positive effects on one’s health.  Wine drinking in moderation, according to recent studies, exhibited health benefits of improved heart health and decreased incident of illness.  About 65 percent of the grapes cultivated are of the red varieties, while 35 percent are of the white. 

 The top five wine varieties are cultivated on about 85 percent of the total planted acreage of 19,300 acres.  Pinot noir is the most cultivated variety on nearly 59 percent of the total planted acreage.  Pinot gris is cultivated on about 14 percent of the acreage; Chardonnay on about 5 percent; Reisling on about 4 percent and Cabernet Sauvignon on about 3 percent.  Other wine varieties you could often in counter include Syrah, Gewurztraminer, Viognier, Cabernet France, Zinfandel, Sauvignon blanc and Pinot blanc.  With close to 70 different varieties known to be cultivated, it is reasonable to assume you will easily find one to fit your taste. 

If you are considering a tour of Oregon Wine Country, plan to go in October or November.  During this time of year, you will be able to experience a collaboration of wine makers, cheese makers, brew masters, chefs, growers and producers.  The annual celebration is called Oregon Bounty, a unique Oregon event.  This unique event could very well provide you with some tips to making your next wine tasting party a favorite with your friends.  Remember to enjoy your wine to the greatest extent by storing it and serving it at just the right temperature. 

Author: Ronald Senn, Vice-president, Ideal Wine Coolers, April-2010