I've been thinking about going to Ireland next year (no, I am not Irish, I just really like redheads ;)). Of course, I cannot visit someplace without checking out their wineries. Ireland is, of course, famous for its Mead, but it also has a burgeoning wine industry. Ironically, the Irish vineyards are clustered around Cork.

My son, Bruce, and I went out to Milwaukee to visit friends over the weekend. Of course, I cannot travel to a state without checking out at least one winery. Fortunately, Wisconsin has 34 to choose from. I dragged my friends, and their kids, to Cedar Creek Winery.

Cedar Creek is an urban winery in downtown Cedarsburg. They have a surprising variety of wines, a total of 15 whites and reds. Some of the highlights:

My favorite, by far, was Uncle Pierre's Beaujolais. The grapes for this wine are grown in France, the wine is also made there. It is a light Beaujolais with an almost fruity taste and almost no tannins. The Old Mill Red was also good. It is an Italian-style wine made from the Fochs grape. It is steel aged and meant to be drunk quickly.

A good summer wine is the Strawberry Blush. It is 90% Seyval Blanc and 10% Strawberry Juice. The strawberry juice adds a nice flavor to the Seyval Blanc, which is a wine I normally find bland.

I highly recommend checking out this winery if you are in the area...there is no tasting fee.

On Tuesday the wine club met at Eat Bar for happy hour.



The special this week was a flight of Zinfandels from the Paslo Robles region. The three wines were Quivira Vineyards Zinfandel, Alexander Valley's Sin Zin, and Four Vine's Maverick Zinfandel.

Unlike Leah, I liked the Maverick Zinfandel, but the Sin Zin was absolutely my favorite.

I also got to try Blenheim's Cabernet Franc. For those of you who do not know, Blenheim is owned by Dave Matthews. The wine is 80% Cabernet Franc and 20% Merlot. It was a good wine with hints of cranberry and pepper and a strong finish.

If you have an extra $3,000 (plus airfare) and really love wine you can go to a weekend wine camp in Sonoma. The camp is sponsored by the Sonoma County Winegrape Commission and looks like fun.

if you don't have $3,000, you can do a wine camp at Veramar for about $375 per couple.

Wine: 2006 Lake James Cellars White Merlot



Review: Last year, when I had my wine and BBQ party, I really wanted to get some wine from North Carolina. Unfortunately, North Carolina wineries cannot ship to Virginia.

About a month ago a friend of mine was in North Carolina and stopped by a wine festival. She bought me back a bottle of Lake James Cellars Turkey Trail Red, a white Merlot. Not only was this my first North Carolina wine, it was my first white Merlot. The wine is made by separating the juice from the skins early in the process leaving the wine a Salmon color.

It was a light wine with strong fruit flavors. It is a smooth wine, light on the palette and very refreshing. Overall, an excellent wine.

Price: $12

Grade: 95

Post-Veramar Leah and I went to dinner at Ray's the Steaks steakhouse. The atmosphere was sparse, but the food was excellent.

We started with a bottle of Pinot Grigio, keeping up the trend of white wines for the day. The wine was fresh and light, which was good because the food was plentiful and filling. the steaks were absolutely mouth-watering well-marinated and cooked perfectly and the sides were a good match.

To top it off, I had my first DC-area celebrity siting -- Chris Wallace was eating only a few tables from us :).

A good way to top off a great day.

The wine club went to Veramar on Sunday. I was bummed that they were completely out of their Cabernet Franc, but i did enjoy their Pink Chicken -- a light rose perfect for sipping out on their patio.

Their D'Ora was also an excellent dessert wine, a late harvest Viongier; very sweet with hints of pineapple and citrus flavors.

Their Red Chicken was a good Bordeaux-style wine, comprised of Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot and Cabernet Franc grapes. It was a medium body blend with a taste of brown sugar and a smoot finish.

On Tuesday the wine club met for happy hour at Tavern on the Lake which overlooks Lake Anne in Reston. As always it was a fun time, the food was basic, but good and there was a wide variety of Tapas.

There was a good selection of wines, including some excellent Pinot Noirs and a good Beaujolais. They also had a small selection of Virginia wines. Unfortunately for us, we found out too late that Monday is half-priced bottle night.

Bottles and Tapas are reasonably priced and it has a great atmosphere and good service.

Wine: 2003 Baron de Brane Bordeaux



Review: This is a double review. Last Wednesday the wine club met up at Dino's for their Wine Wednesday. Dino's is one of the wine bars that i have wanted to visit and I was really looking forward to it. As always, Leah has a great recap.

The wine flight that night was Rosso di Montalcino, Toscana all very good, light wines that were obviously designed to be paired with food. The bar was cozy and relaxed as was the upstairs dining area. Overall, a fantastic experience, and I cannot wait to go back.

One of the best features of Dino's Wine Wednesday is the fact that there is no corkage fee. Most members of the wine club brought bottle of wine. My choice for the evening was a bottle of Baron de Brane. If the label looks familiar it is probably because you asre familiar with its more famous cousin: Brane Cantentenac.

Baron de Brane is the second growth of the Brane Cantenac winery. It is a blend of 65% Cabernet Sauvignon, 30% Merlot and 5% Cabernet Franc. Unlike Brane Cantenac this wine is aged for 12 months, rather than 18. Don't let that dissuade you though, this is a good wine.

This is a very intense wine with strong aromas of chocolate and plums. its a very balanced, fully-bodied wine with strong tannins and a smooth finish. It was probably a little soon to open it, but just barely and it definitely was better as the evening progressed and it had a chance to decant.

Price: $26

Grade: 90

Wine: 2002 Chateau Dauzac Bordeaux



Review: Chateau Dauzac is one of the Andre Lurton vineyards, it is classified as a 5th growth in the Margaux region. The wine is a blend of 58% Cabernet Sauvignon, 37% Merlot and 5% Cabernet Franc.

This wine has a rich purple color and very floral aromas. The wine has a medium body with hints of blackberry and a strong finish with smooth tannins.

Price: $35

Grade: 90

Wine: 2004 Madison of Virginia Merlot



Review: First, if you are looking for this wine let me warn you that you should not Google the phrase "Madison Merlot". This is a dry, light Merlot with hints of blackberry and vanilla and an almost chocolatey finish. It was bottled by the great folks at Prince Michel and makes for a good everyday wine.

Price: $14

Grade: 85