OHIO WINE COUNTRY: Any recommendations?

WINE TALK
21

Or try to time it so you can attend one of Loren Sonkin’s tasting dinners.

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22

Don’t know anything about the wine scene, but two other breweries that are great are R Sheas in Akron and my favorite near Columbus is Hoof Hearted. Agree with Pretentious for sours. Zaftig makes really good barrel aged stouts

Bob

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23

Hope you report back with your findings after the trip, will be interested to see what you think! I’ve had a few Ohio wines here and there and have been interested in following its development.

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24

I usually post my tasting notes on here after a trip like this. I have added Erie Pennsylvania to the trip as well, since it is so close. I have found about 12-14 wineries that sound interesting. Quite a few have Gruner Veltliner planted, even found some Teroldego and Zweigelt being offered. And I am interested in seeing what everyone does with Riesling here (since I am such a big fan of Finger Lakes Riesling).

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So PAOH wines, or OHPA? [cheers.gif]

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If you haven’t booked a place yet, instead of Erie, I would recommend staying in Chautauqua.

27

Or if you want some weird “Freethinkers”, there is always Lily Dale:

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I saw that Josh - but Erie is as far as I want to go - and I have found a couple of farmhouses on Air B&B just south of Erie that look cool -

29

We have this booked for mid-September, so anxious to hear what you find:
https://www.vrbo.com/4978180ha

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Are you another central Ohio Berserker? My neighbor in Italian Village is a Bob Martin.

31

Did you make the trip yet? A late addition that I liked was Cask 307; good food and the unoaked 2017 estate Chardonnay was better than I expected:

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32

Hit the breweries. Why put yourself through this torture. You are a MN guy so you know how bad our wines are.

33

I ended up changing my plans and going to North Carolina wine country instead. Just couldn’t find enough “serious” wineries in Ohio to make the visit. But North Carolina was a sleeper, with some surprising wines. I had surgery on my left hand the week I got back (and I am left handed), so am just getting to be able to type again. I am publishing my North Carolina notes in a day or two -

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34

Honestly, I think the best winery is M Cellars–and they don’t hand pick anything. I think there are places in Ohio that could make world class wine in good years–but it isn’t there yet. I probably will only go to the Grand River area if I’m driving through it to somewhere else; at least right now. It will be interesting if this year is a sign of things to come, as we had a perfect year for wine. If I had the inclination to grow grapes in Ohio, I would try to buy as much of the south-east facing sides of the Serpent Mound Crater (not the Grand River Valley).

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35

There are definitely some nice wineries in Ohio. M Cellars as was said above is about the best. They make very nice whites and dessert wines. Vidal Blanc makes some quite good dessert wines. I remember 20 years ago, at a dinner with a bunch of winemakers out in Willamette and they were stunned with some late harvest Vidal Blancs which stole the show that night. Of course, the Ohio Pinot was half full at the end of the night.
Reds, about one vintage a decade is good due to early frosts, late frosts, etc. If you decide to make the trip, let me know and I can give you some more recs. I don’t post much here any more, but let me know if you are in town and I would be glad to open some Ohio and non-Ohio wines with you!