Norton: Dark Knight of American Wine
This is the first article of a two part profile on the Norton grape. The first article discusses the characteristics of today’s Norton and includes a report on the 2012 Norton Harvest. The next...
Category: Varietal
Offbeat European Grapes Growing Across the Midwest
Increasingly, Midwestern winemakers are defying convention by growing popular vinifera grapes like Cabernet Sauvignon or Cabernet Franc. But in recent years, a number of vineyards have planted lesser known European grapes considered offbeat for the...
Vignoles Rises Above Hybrid Stigma
From Ohio to Missouri, Vignoles is earning the praise of critics and wine drinkers who are now recognizing the quality of regional wines made from hybrid grapes. Vignoles is an especially versatile grape; it...
Frontenac Gris Grape Moves Beyond Minnesota
During 1992, a new grape variety was discovered by Peter Hemstad in the vineyard at the University of Minnesota’s Horticulture Research Center. According to Katie Cook, enology project leader at the University of Minnesota,...
Valvin Muscat is Midwest’s Hot Moscato
Moscato wine is making a comeback. According to Neilson sales data, Moscato sales doubled in both 2009 and 2010 and almost doubled again last year. A recent article in Palm Beach Illustrated also...
Brianna Grape is Midwest’s New Tropical Fruit
When Acquaviva Winery in Maple Park, Illinois petitioned the Tax and Trade Bureau during 2007 to use the name Brianna for their wine labels, they found that only one other winery had petitioned for...
Petite Amie Wine Romances Midwest Winemakers
Cuthills Vineyards owner Ed Swanson has had a girlfriend for six years, and his wife Holly knows all about it. But Swanson’s paramour is not a human; it’s a white wine grape called Petite Amie, which...