City Girl's Wine Journal: Stone Cliff Cabernet

As many of you know, the state of Iowa is becoming quite an exciting wine region in the US. About 300 vineyards are in Iowa and nearly 100 wineries, the majority of which use Iowa-grown grapes such as Vignoles, Brianna, and many others, but some also bring in grapes that cannot survive our cold climate, like Cabernet and Chardonnay. The grapes may not be grown here but the vintner's expertise still shows in the finished wines.

Stone Cliff Winery in Dubuque is a family-owned winery and vineyards. The vines were planted in 1996, and the first bottles were released in 2001. The vineyard is in the country but the winery and tasting room are in Dubuque in the historic Star Brewing Building, along Dubuque's trendy Riverfront district.

Spending a quiet evening at home with a bottle of wine on Saturday night is just about as perfect an evening as I can imagine. While I have not been able to visit the Stone Cliff Winery yet, I am very lucky that our local small town grocery store carries a good selection of Iowa wines. Cabernet was the wine in my glass tonight as yes, I broke several of "the rules."

First of all, I did chill my bottle. Not ice cold like a soda, but just enough to make it cooler than room temperature. I'm a firm believer in throwing the rules out the window. Drink what you like, however you like. If you like your Chardonnay at room temperature, go for it. Likewise, if you like your red wine on the cool side, or even well chilled, do it! The important thing is that you enjoy your wine. Second, I drank my Cabernet without a meal. It's not really considered a "sipping" wine but instead a big, bold red best suited to pairing with hearty beef dishes, pastas and other foods. I just wanted a bottle to open, and enjoy in the cool spring air.

Stone Cliff's Cabernet is a very well crafted wine that can go head to head with any California Cabernet. It's deep and rich, with big grape aromas. Lots of tannins make this one a great wine for aging, plus they use natural cork to seal the bottle, which allows the wine to continue to breathe and age. The color is deep, dark purple, very grape jammy and lush. I wish I'd had some sharp cheese to nibble on. This wine would be an awesome pairing with cheeses and even dark chocolate. It also is big enough in flavor to make it an excellent choice for cooking, especially Julia Child's Bouef Bourguingon. I'd even make a sangria out of it.

While I'd like to see an Iowa winery use locally grown grapes for winemaking, Stone Cliff does a very good job with the wines they do craft. I hope to visit the tasting room and historic location very very soon.

A Day in the Danish Countryside

It was a fabulous spring day in Iowa! Of course any day that you get to spend some time in a winery is a good day. Iowa has become a very productive wine region in the US, with over 70 operating wineries and many more vineyards just growing grapes a farmers. Anyone who knows me knows how much I love visiting wineries. Rather than standing in the aisle at a mega grocery store liquor department looking at shelf after shelf of unfamiliar bottles with flavors and questionable quality you can taste the wine right there and know exactly what you're taking home!

In west central Iowa there are several wineries and yes, I have been to just about all of them. At each winery I purchase a glass with their logo on it and have acquired quite a collection. 

Today I visited the Danish Countryside Vines and Wines, outside of Exira, in Audubon County in western Iowa. The winery and tasting room are located in an updated barn built in 1913. The barn is BEAUTIFUL! The tasting room features a central bar made from wine barrels and gift shop loaded with wine-themed gifts. Step up to the bar and try some of nearly 30 different wines, all made from grapes grown on the farm. They are all outstanding. Shelves around the room display the many awards the wines have won at competitions. Well deserved awards I might add!

At the winery today I sampled several wines. Sugar and Spice, which is a dessert-style wine made with St. Pepin grapes, was sweet and delicious. Maid of the Harbor, named after the Hans Christian Andersen story of the mermaid, made with Edelweiss grapes- it's so much like a Riesling I just fell in love. Next up was Pretty Belle Peach wine, made from fresh peaches, it's a great companion to a cheese plate (as a dessert course, European style!) or just as a nice sipping wine to enjoy in the summer. Crimson and Clover came next, a red blend of several Iowa grapes and a touch of clover flower. This wine goes great with cheese and it equally good chilled or at room temperature. Mill House Cranberry was tart and sweet at the same time with an undeniable cranberry flavor- perfect for the holidays! My brain immediately thought "hmmm........I could make cranberry sauce or jam with this.....". Berryessa wrapped up the tasting for me with bright blackberry flavor and desserty sweetness. Loren, who was pouring in the tasting room, handed me a chocolate Kiss and joked that now I can tell everyone I got a kiss at the winery.

And speaking of Loren, not only is he the sales manager, he also pours in the tasting room, works with the vines, AND performs live every last Thursday of each month during the winery's season. Today he showed us the entire winemaking area- from the fermenting tanks to the bottling process. And to cap off the visit, he demonstrated how to prune the vines.

It was a great visit and I brought a couple bottles home to enjoy, and that, my friends, is exactly what I am doing!!