Walla Walla - a town so nice, they named it twice!

As Christmas approaches and as our trip to Walla Walla ends, I'm reminded of Pogo's famous song: "Deck us all with Boston Charlie, Walla Walla Wash and a Kalamazoo!"
We have family living in Walla Walla, Wa. and we just returned from a week's visit. Some of you may have seen my sister Sharon and brother-in-law Charlie when they've been back for harvest. They were unable to come this year so we went to see them and visit the Washington wineries.

Twenty years ago there were two wineries in Walla Walla County. Today, the winery population of this county nears 100. The Walla Walla Valley AVA is a subset of the Columbia Valley which crosses into Oregon. The AVA is bordered on the east with Blue Mountains and then the valley broadens and spreads west into Oregon. The area grows Chardonnay, Syrah, Merlot, Cabernet Sauvignon, Sangiovesse and Cabernet Franc. It was the Cabernet Franc that I especially wanted to taste and compare with Baltimore Bend's version. As always, I am reminded that you can't taste wine in the grocery store so I found tasting and buying at the winery helpful and enjoyable.

Our days were busy and passed quickly -- We walked up Mill Creek for a beautiful view of "The Blues" and the Walla Walla Valley. We played and threw to Sadie, the family's golden retriever.

We visited and tasted L'Ecole No. 41, Three Rivers Winery, Walla Walla Vintners and Dunham Cellars.We ate dinner and had a Sunday brunch with Mike and Joann Dunham, owners of Dunham Cellars. They are gracious and fun people to know - and offer as Syrah to die for!

We leisurely walked the vibrant downtown area and drove the countryside to see how quickly the area is developing. We visited Harris Park in Oregon, a favorite camping area of Sharon and Charlie's. We saw Walla Walla Community College where they have an Enology and Viticulture program. Each day as we returned to home base we sat in front of a crackling fire. We talked, read, watched the flames lick at the locust wood and shared a bottle of Walla Walla wine and Baltimore Bend wine that was carried with us.

These happy memories will help us survive the absence of our family this inter. We will also remember the explosive growth of the Walla Walla region and see a glimmer of possibility for Lafayette County's future!

Community Networking

On Monday afternoon, we were invited to a meeting of the Old Trails Regional Cuisines Project. This project is 2 years in the making for the western Missouri area with several key motivating individuals behind it.

The Missouri Regional Cuisines Project (MRCP) launched in 2003 and began with the Mississippi River Hills area (http://www.showme.net/MRH/). The project seeks to market Missouri wine and food products using distinct labels of origin based on ecological regions of the state. This approach is similar to that used in European countries to identify food and wine products based on the region in which they are produced. This allows consumer to distinguish among the unique tastes and attributes of products from different areas.

While Baltimore Bend Vineyard has been involved with meetings and wine tastings for the project in the past, this meeting was especially exciting because of the level of participation.

In the conference room at the Martin Commuity Center in Marshall, Mo. (http://www.marshall-mo.com/), there were 10 tables of 8 to 10 people each. All from different businesses, counties across the Old Trails region, with separate areas of interest in this project but with one common purpose: to create economic development and tourism opportunities in rural areas through the promotion of a network of regional businesses. (http://lexington-news.com/LN_detailheadline.asp?key=4822&itemNumber=0)

We are excited to see the enthusiasm of so many community leaders about the Old Trails region, and hope to continue to promote and develop it!

Tangled Web We Weave

I’ve been thinking a lot about the beginning of Sir Walter Scott’s famous quote “Oh what a tangled web we weave,” but I’m not thinking about lies ...but of grape vines. We are in the Cynthiana (Norton) grapes trying to get control of these “bad boys.” They grow vigorously and along with our fertile soils and the many spring rains, they have gone stark raving crazy.

They tangle, twist around themselves, reach across the rows, crisscrossing and twining to make impassable arbors. Forget trying to mow because of the tangled mess, so now we add tall weeds to the mix which makes the job even harder. We physically inch our way down the rows pulling down the vines, separating the tangles, snipping off unwanted shoots and hedging them a foot off the vineyard floor. This job becomes brutal when the temperatures and humidity is high.

What we are doing is called canopy management and it is a very important vineyard chore because getting the sun to the grapes will help ensure adquate sugar levels in the grapes and a quality crop. Somewhere on our shelves there is a book called 'Sunshine into Wine' (Richard Smart). I’ve always liked the sound and the picture that I conjure when I think of these words. So when sweat trickles down my face you can find me thinking Sir Walter Scott’s tangled web quote and picturing the beautiful sunshine that is in each glass of wine.

Memo to self when performing 'canopy management':

• Double tie shoe laces help



• Sweat rags are ok



• Pray often for breezy days



• Remember water, sunglasses, sunscreen and OFF



• Start earlier next year before the growth becomes a jungle!

A bit of Sunshine

Rifle shots and canon fire filled the air in Waverly on June 28-29 for the Civil War History Festival. We were there too, watching the hooped skirts of the ladies sway in the breeze, hearing the clomping of military boots on pavement, and watched the Union and the Confederate armies fight. Waverly is the home of General J.O. Shelby, “The Undefeated Rebel.” For the past two years Waverly has held the Civil War History Festival with re-enacters performing skirmishes, shoot outs, and drills.

We wanted to get involved with the community efforts to preserve the culture and history of Waverly. We started brainstorming back when the snow was falling and we were dreaming of warm summer days. The main event of the festival this year was to be the Confederate capture of the Union plank boat, the Sunshine. What a wonderful wine name, we thought!

As Mother Nature would have it, the rains have been heavy and frequent the past few months. On Saturday of the Festival, the Missouri River was closed to traffic thus the “Sunshine” could not reach the Port of Waverly. This part of the re-enactment was cancelled. Yes, there was disappointment but it didn’t take away from the fun and excitement of the festival.

Though the wind tried to chase us out, we stood strong at our booth on Broad Street in front of the old Warren House and gave passers-by tastes of Sunshine, our commemorative wine for the event -- a semi-dry, Vignoles-Seyval blend.

And as for us, we will be back next year to share with the public our wines and learn more of Waverly’s history.

Have you tried Sunshine? Let us know what you think of this new wine.

Bottling line in Missouri

From Italy to the bottling line in Missouri ... what a difference!

Since our return, we’ve been bottling fools. You may have noticed we had sold out of several of our varieties. Our goal has been to get our shelves stocked again!

Cirrus, Joli Vin, Last Minute, Trey Blanc and Jubilee are back in the bins. We'll also be releasing a special edition wine - Sunshine - this weekend. This wine commemorates Waverly's Founders' Day and Civil War Festival. On June 28 and 29, Waverly will be holding re-enactments and a special capture of the boat Sunshine. It should be a great weekend!

We'll be serving Sunshine at a booth in Waverly as well as at the winery. Don't miss out on this special edition wine!

Rome

Rome is magnificent and whacky all rolled into one. Cacophony of horns, squealing brakes and the roar of motorbikes careening down and around corners fills the air day and night. Rome is the political capital of Italy, capital of Catholicism and the center of the ancient world.

We arrived late afternoon by train and got situated in Hotel Borromeo. We arranged a night walking tour and planned to meet our guide at Piazza Vittorio Emanuele ll. We received directions from the hotel front desk and walked to the Piazza. We waited but the guide did not show up. We had started back to the hotel when the guide called saying he was waiting for us at Piazza Venezia – Monumento a Vittorio Emanuele ll. We were at the wrong Piazza!

On our stroll back to the hotel we passed the Santa Maria Maggiore Cathedral and wandered inside. It was built in 352 A.D. and has gold leafed paneled ceiling and a massive mosaic floor. The gold gild on the ceiling was brought back from the new world by Columbus. We ate a late supper at a restorante next to the hotel and enjoyed their house wine.

The next morning, we arranged with the same tour group to meet at St. Peters Basilica to tour the greatest church on earth and tour the Vatican Museum and Sistine Chapel.

We met Jared - the guide - and two other people in the tour and waited for Gilbert, a third member scheduled for our tour. Our guide, Jared, started telling of the columns that ring the square which were designed by the baroque architect Bernini. A gentleman joined our group and quickly three more men arrived to talk to our guide. They were the Vatican police! Apparently Jared was not a licensed guide with the city of Vatican. After much “discussion,” we noticed Jared fading into the crowd and we were left to join the thousands in line to enter the Basilica.

The impressive St. Peters Basilica and Michelangelo’s Pieta and the famed Basilica’s dome will be remembered forever. The Vatican museum has four miles of western civilization art, ending and peaking, with Michelangelo’s Sistine Chapel.
It was an exhausting day but one filled with memories to last a lifetime. Good wine, bruschetta, gnnoche (dumplings) and steak, helped to heal the sore feet and back.

Last day in Italy we opted to take a hop-on, hop-off tour bus to get an overview of ancient Rome, trevi fountain and the Spanish steps. Early flights forced us to the airport by late afternoon in a taxi ride that did not live up to the harrowing stories I had heard about. We walked several blocks to an Enoteca and bought wine and went to bed early.

We’ve seen, experienced and tasted so much these two weeks and know in our hearts we’ve barely scratched the surface of Italy. We will return!!

Tuscany and Umbria

We left Riomaggiore with regret but also with excitement to experience Tuscany and Umbria areas. We rented a car in Pisa and quickly visited The Field of Miracles (leaning tower, cathedral and baptistery).

It was impressive to see the gently rolling green hills with vineyards, carpets of green hay dotted with the bright yellow of canola fields. Along the sides of the highways grew red poppies punctuating the Tuscan beauty. Large villas sat atop the rolling hills crowning this Italian experience.

Enotecas (wine bars) held wonderful examples of Tuscan wine. We found that asking at trattorias or pizzerias to sample their vino da casa (house wine) was inexpensive and really quite good. There are many hill towns of central Italy that retain their medieval charms and their atmosphere is a slower pace than the larger cities. We chose to stay in Volterra which sits high above the farmlands. It’s a city that was started by the Etruscan civilization 2000 years ago.

We stayed at a hotel that is an ancient stone structure but with modern rooms. Lisa and Giuseppina were our hosts. It’s standard procedure in Italy to give your passports to the desk on check-in and they are returned within an hour or two. This time our passports were returned with a small ice cream birthday cake with one candle. It was a perfect way to spend a birthday! It was interesting to talk to Lisa and Giuseppina and even more interesting that they knew about the Democratic race for the U.S. presidency and gave their opinions of the candidates.

The second night we stayed in Orvieto, a wonderful Umbria hill town known for its white wine, ceramics and cathedral. The old town sits majestically a thousand feet above the valley floor. We stayed at Hotel Picchio which is a family run hotel near the train station and drop off spot for the car. The owner was working in her garden just outside our room. When we opened our shutters she came around and offered us the first two ripe strawberries from her garden.