Time, Grape News, and Bread?

Can you believe its almost summer? When someone starts talking about how times flies, they are almost always over 40. When we are young time seems to drag, but as we age and minutes/days/hours become a smaller part of our life experience, time seems to speed up. As far as the winery goes, time is about going back to our seven-day-a-week schedule, beginning June 1. From then until December 31, we will only be closed national holidays, no longer do we have be closed on Election Day due to a recent change in the law.

A bit of good/bad news from a nearby winery, the New Day Meadery has closed their Elwood tasting room, with plans to open a downtown Indianapolis tasting room in the very near future. Apparently they will keep the Elwood location as a production facility, but not offer tasting their. I think this is a good move for Brett & Tia, their honey-based wines (mead) are very good and deserve a wider customer base that will appreciate the craftsmanship they bring to their products.

While the early warming trend this year has made a lot of people very happy to shed their winter clothes, the early bud-break on the grape vines around the state have led to some frost damage that will affect the available crop in the fall. The good news is the damage in most vineyards is not massive, but many lost some fruit. One vineyard in the northern part of the state reported a majority of their vines damaged, while southern vines were less hurt. This is not a surprise, but I thought the vineyard owner’s comment that, “…this was the worst damage in 17 years…” was worth noting. Hopefully the damage will not impact fruit prices too badly!

We are pleased to announce the annual Bread Baking Contest will be held Saturday, June 12 from 1-6 PM at the winery. This is a fun event that allows both professional and amateur bread-makers to showcase their skills. The professionally made breads will be taste tasted by everyone who visits the winery that day and the winner will be chosen by popular vote. The amateur bakers’ loaves will be judged by a panel of “expert” bread tasters who will chose the winner. Its fun, its free, and watch this spot for more information about more fun & free events at the Oak Hill Winery!