Summertime means warm weather, beach fun, and of course – the Connecticut Wine Festival. The CT Wine Festival attracts wine lovers from across the Nutmeg state with the promise of plentiful wine tastings, unique food, and the all-important stamp on the Connecticut Wine Passport. While the tastings are the main attraction, the festival has something for everyone.
A Connecticut vineyard is a great place to take your engagement photos. With so many beautiful vineyards across the state, there is definitely one within a short distance from you. Whether you love wine or not, the scenery at our local wineries is vast and stunning. From the vines themselves, to luscious trees, rustic buildings and sometimes ponds, picnic areas, gardens, and flower fields you’ll have a wide variety of backdrops to choose from.
In this edition of “Winemaker Profile,” George Motel Jr. talks about his dual experiences as a viticulturist and winemaker. George is second generation in the family business and proves that hard work in the vineyard translates to delicious wines in the tasting room.
Every year Sunset Meadow Vineyard in Goshen holds a “Meet the Grapes” event which allows attendees to get up close and personal with their vines, winemakers, and winery story. The 90-minute tour features a tractor ride throughout most of their 38 planted acres, a Q&A session with the winemakers accompanied by a glass of wine, and a tour of their winemaking areas. Typically hosted in late summer, this is an event you should definitely attend to not only learn about their vineyard and practices, but about winemaking in Connecticut in general.
Christina Musto shares a great recipe for a refreshing Rosé Spritzer. It starts with a bottle of Summer Bouquet Rosé from Rosedale Farms & Vineyards, and ends with a refreshing “Ahhhh.”
Whether you’re planning a romantic afternoon with your significant other, bringing the whole family, or meeting up with friends packing a picnic lunch or appetizer spread is a very fun way to take on the Connecticut Wine Trail. While you enjoy the beautiful grounds & wine our vineyards have to offer you can munch on some great foods too.
13 day and weekend trips, hundreds of glasses of wine, and countless new wino friends later, the people of the CT Wine Trail have spoken. The five vineyards that earned the voters choice as having the “Best Atmosphere” on the Connecticut Wine Trail are…
13 day and weekend trips, hundreds of glasses of wine, and countless new wino friends later, the people of the CT Wine Trail have spoken. According to Trail-goers, the five vineyards with the “Best Wine” on the Connecticut Wine Trail are…
Looking back to 2014, taken from the East Coast Wineries archive:
Hopkins Vineyard in Warren, CT, continues to be a favorite of mine. Recently, I tried their Hopkins Vineyard Apple Cider Off-Dry Cider. This relatively still apple wine is made from locally grown apples. Lots of beautiful fruit up front. Nice middle, with bright acidity and lovely mouthfeel. Very pretty. A little different because it is mostly still.
Looking back to 2012, this is a piece pulled out of the East Coast Wineries archives:
“When I was a college student and just in the few years after my graduation, one of the first wineries I visited (among those in Connecticut and New Jersey) was Digrazia Vineyards. As a young wine drinker, despite the finer wines my family drank (Nebbiolos, Bordeauxs and Burgundies) I did enjoy the lighter and brighter whites of some of the east coast wineries. And I liked semi-sweet whites. Once of my favorites was Autumn Spice, a pumpkin wine, which I later recommended in the mid-2000’s. It made for a great Thanksgiving Wine. Back in the 1980s there were few wineries, and Dr.Digrazia was one of the pioneers of east coast winemaking, certainly in New England, let alone Connecticut.”
