Whoa! Something is happening in the winery!
We sure did sneak this one up on you didn’t we? Our floors needed a facelift, really badly. Maybe you didn’t notice, but anytime we spilled wine (or you did, you silly goose!) it left a mark, especially those reds! Well, we were getting sick of it. SO! We had a brand new floor put in!
Think epoxy style floors, but glossier and classier. I mean, LOOK AT IT!
first, we had to completely empty the room
We move pretty quickly when we want to 🙂 Thanks to everyone who pitched in to help us move everything out!
next, they scuffed the floor up a bit…
…so the new floor would stick well.
then, the new floor was applied
Oooooooooohhhhhhh, so glossy!
last, we let the floor dry.
This stuff is durable.
So bring your heels. Bring your boots. We don’t mind, you can’t hurt this stuff. It’s amazing! You know when you should come check it out? This Friday from 6-8PM for The Matchsellers: an internationally touring band!
keep your eyes peeled
…for more updates! They are on the horizon!
With midbest love,
Meg
pruning!
It’s that time of year, ladies & gentlemen, we are spending hours on end, in this unseasonably warm weather, trimming the vines back.
Perhaps you remember my comments in earlier posts about how vigorous our Iowa vines are. Well, this leads us to do a lot of trimming in the springtime…for a few reasons:
- So we don’t have a jungle instead of a vineyard.
- To help the vines have a manageable crop load.
- We cut the vines down to only a few buds to help with reducing vigor.
- Because it looks nice 🙂
Lately, we’ve been giving it a “haircut”, just a rough pruning, so we can get most of last year’s growth off. Then, it’s easier to fine prune down to the specific number of buds we want later in the spring.
Before haircut
After haircut
what does pruning have to do with my wine, meg?
Well, actually, I’m glad you asked. Not only are we hoping to reduce vigor, we are hoping to reduce the Nitrogen in the grapes– which, in turn, reduces the acid levels in your wine.
Reducing the acid levels means less tart flavors in the wines, and hopefully higher tannins (that dry-your-mouth-out feel that is usually so desireable in dry wines).
Pruning also helps lower the number of grape clusters on the vine. This is important because it will help the plant contribute more resources (think vitamins & minerals!) to the fewer clusters on the vine. Ideally, this would help create beautiful flavors in the grapes that are translated into the wine.
and, now, you know!
So, with that, my avid blog readers/Soldier Creek-ians– you are armed with more knowledge! Now, go forth, and spread the knowledge so that we may all know. Or…just share this blog with your friends 🙂
with midbest love,
Meg
Hey guys (and gals, I know you’re reading this too) it’s {nearly} valentine’s day.
Whoever is in charge for the planning, here is some advice! Whoever isn’t in charge of planning, pass these helpful hints on to your significant other 😉
this isn’t a post about flowers…or how you should be acting.
You should already know that! I’m here to help you on your quest for the perfect wine pairing– be it with chocolates or dinner. And, I’ll even make it easy. With lots of pictures. Because that’s what I would want.
Now, i know you’ve waited until the last minute. but, lucky for you
Most places in America are perfectly willing to cater to you, the procrastinator! And, luckier yet, a lot of those places carry our wine! So, let’s get started:
food and {our} wine pairings:
dry whites
La Crescent: our driest white wine (1.5% residual sugar). Citrus, honey, and orange blossom. SIMPLY: it’s citrusy, tart, and dry! Best served chilled. Try it with either of these recipes (click the photos for the recipes):
Fish Tacos
Photo via epicurious.com
Eggplant Parmesan
Photo via epicurious.com
St. Pepin: Our second driest wine (2.25% residual sugar). Crisp and refreshing, very fruit forward– grapefruit flavors, jasmine aromas. SIMPLY: Citrusy, an “easy” dry wine to drink. Try it with this recipe (click on the photo for the recipe):
One-Pot Thai Curry
photo via epicurious.com
dry red wines
Maréchal Foch: I often say this wine is a bit like a Merlot, super fruity and light with flavors of strawberry, apple, & plum. It is dry, but pretty palatable as far as a dry wine goes. SIMPLY: this is a great fruity, yet dry wine. Pair with this recipe (click on the photo for the recipe):
photo via eat good 4 life
Marquette: This is the quintessential dry red wine of Iowa. Earthy aromas with bold dried fruit flavors and just a touch of nutmeg. SIMPLY: For the dry red wine drinker, this is your wine. Pair with this recipe (click the photo for the recipe):
photo via epicurious.com
Frontenac: For the oak lover, this is your wine. Full of red berry, vanilla, and toasted oak flavors! SIMPLY: light, yet oaky. Pair with this recipe (click on the photo for the recipe):
photo via hello fresh
Geneva Red: This is our most flavorful dry red wine, ranging from pepper and black cherry to spice. SIMPLY: super flavorful, but it can pair with simple meals. Pair with this recipe (click on photo to see recipe):
semi-sweet wines
Frontenac Gris Rosé: A perfect “middle-ground”– not too sweet, not to dry. Noteable apricot flavor up front, peach aromas. SIMPLY: Another easy drinker, fruity and delicious! Chocolate pairings:
Milk Chocolate
Fruit-filled Truffles
St. Croix: A red wine that we prefer chilled– another great “middle-ground” wine. You will find red berry, cherry, and vanilla flavors in this wine, and it’s so versatile! Pair this with so many foods:
Your (or your significant other’s) favorite meat/protein AND this new spin on sweet potato fries
photo via epicurious.com
sweet wines
Brianna: A unique sweet wine with flavors of tropical fruit and honey. SIMPLY: If you like pineapples, you will love the tropical fruit vibe from this wine. Try with this dessert (click on the photo for the recipe):
photo via wine enthusiast
Marquette Rosé: Sweet and fruity– hints of cranberry and strawberry aromas. SIMPLY: a little bit naturally tart, but mostly sweet, a fabulous dessert wine! Try with this dessert recipe (click on the photo for the recipe):
photo via The New York Times
Paragon Pink: Our sweetest wine! Flavors of grape jelly and strawberry jam. SIMPLY: It’s pink. It’s sweet. This is a sure fire win for dessert, at the very least. Try this as a dessert all on it’s own, or with white chocolate.
so there you have it, ladies and gentlemen. valentine’s day made simple.
All you have to do is pick one and go for it! Happy Sweetheart’s Day <3
with midbest love,
Meg
join the paragon wine club!
but, more importantly, why?
I mean, if you’re any kind of Soldier Creek Wine lover… at all… you should certainly be in the wine club. Merely on that reason alone– you’re a Soldier Creek Wine lover.
However, here are some more reasons!
paragon wine club, a subscription service
Our wine club works just like any other subscription service– you are obligated to buy 4 bottles per quarter (every 3 months: January, April, July, October) and we automatically charge your card at the beginning of those months. We will announce this via email a week before we charge your card. Sometimes that email can get stuck in your “Spam” folder, so be sure to check your Spam box for our email and mark us as “Not Spam” so you never miss an announcement! This email is also how we send you your coupon for a free glass of wine for your birthday month… so, you really don’t want to miss that 🙂
At the beginning of your subscription you will be asked to select the 4 wines for each of your quarterly pick-ups. If you decide you would like something different in your box, no problem! Just reply to that email that we send out a week before your pick-up and tell us what you would like instead.
you have all the tools
Oh, dear blog reader, I’ve given you all the tools you need to be a great Iowa wine drinker in the past weeks. We’ve talked about how to buy Iowa wine, what’s so great about screw caps, and why Soldier Creek Winery is pretty amazing (twice). And, now, you are equipped to get yourself signed up for a SUPER wine club!
So, what are you waiting for? Experience the many flavors of Soldier Creek Winery via our Paragon Wine Club!
with midbest love,
Meg
Maybe you’ve noticed
I have. A lot of wineries are switching to screw caps for their wine.
Why?
What ever happened to the good old days of the cork?
Aren’t you missing something without the *pop* of the cork when you open the bottle?
Many wine enthusiasts and purists will tell you they will not buy a bottle of wine with a screw cap. No matter the Wine Spectator score. BUT, the tides are turning people! Upon a quick Google search to find said nay-sayers of the screw cap, I actually found many articles about why you should buy screw cap bottles. (And got completely distracted.) The nay-sayers are there, but they are being drowned out by the people who are more than happy to use screw caps! Which thrills me to no end!
choosing the alternatives
First, what are the alternatives? Well, I’ve created this handy list for you!
- Synthetic corks
- Boxed wine
- Canned wine (Seriously! Look!)
- PET (polyethylene teraphthalate) bottles (plastic)
Why would wineries choose to use these methods? For many reasons, but a lot comes down to cost and sustainability. Synthetic corks are cheaper than the alternative cork– especially if it’s a high quality cork. To back up though, a lot of wineries began to look into alternatives in the 1980s due to decreased cork quality leading to TCA cork taint. Plus, these alternatives have proved to be just as good for aging, more affordable, and easier to open!
I found this to be a surprising fact: wineries in Australia and New Zealand switched completely to screw caps after the TCA cork taint of the 1980s because it was already so expensive and environmentally bad. Now, you could visit either place and be hard-pressed to find a winery that uses cork!
why we use screw caps
Screw caps appealed to us for many reasons (and some critics might say it’s because we are millenials), but it really came down 8 reasons:
- Screw caps are fairly eco friendly* compared to cork.
- The statistically high percentage of cork taint was just unacceptable.
- Screw caps provide a perfect seal– doesn’t dry out like cork if not stored correctly.
- Cork purists prefer corks because they believe the small amount of air that is exchanged with a cork is necessary for wines. But due to the low amount of tannins in our wines this is completely unnecessary and can be problematic.
- Screw caps are easy to open! And close if you don’t finish the bottle all at once.
- Easy to take your favorite Soldier Creek wine on an adventure… and it’s okay if your forget your corkscrew!
- Screw caps were a more cost effective alternative to cork, enabling us to pass on a better price to our loyal SCW wine lovers!
- The studies on long-term aging with screw caps (10, 20, 30 years) is limited, but our wines don’t require long aging (because of low tannin) so this point is moot for us.
The wine climate is changing, and we hopped right on board! Wineries are moving towards more sustainable and user friendly wine containers and closures; from boxed wines to screw caps.
We are not at all against changing with the times, and we are happy to offer our wine lovers a superior product in a container that’s easy to open, easy to store, easy to close, and easy to drink 🙂
so, settle down with your favorite bottle of soldier creek wine and rejoice in the fact that you’ve chosen correctly, you savvy wine purist you.
With Midbest love,
Meg
*Some may argue that the eco-friendliness of the screw cap is equal to cork. But, let us consider these things: where cork is a renewable resource (albeit limited) aluminum caps can be recycled (cork cannot), creating cork doesn’t take any extra water than is provided by the environment where aluminum caps take quite a bit of water to product, BUT cork is only produced in a few locations around the world and therefore has a large carbon footprint when it comes to shipping to the wineries… aluminum caps can be produced all around the world and have a much smaller carbon footprint in comparison. There are many things to consider and the point could be argued at length, but we believe– overall– that aluminum caps are more green than corks or synthetic corks.
