20
Sep
2005
Paul Tabor and his wife Martha officially opened Tabor Home Vineyards & Winery in 1996, but Paul, a professor of microbiology at the time, was growing and experimenting with grapes for five years before that. When he managed to get his harvest to survive the harsh Iowa winters, he knew he was ready for business and quit his day job.
Since then this family-run business in Baldwin, Iowa - located north of the Quad Cities between Maquoketa and Anamosa off Route 64 - has become a successful wine producer in the Upper Mississippi River Valley region. Tabor Home is so successful that its sales and production grow between 25 percent and 40 percent annually. "We're hiring someone outside of the family as director of sales and marketing and someone to work in the tasting room," Paul Tabor told me when I visited him at the vineyard on Labor Day.
Another, newer winery in the Quad Cities region is the Lavender Crest Winery on U.S. Highway 6 in Colona, Illinois. Although Lavender Crest produces wine, its marketing thrust is renting out its banquet facilities and catering special events. Owned and operated by W.E. Rittmueller, Martha Bazik-Rittmueller, and Greg and Gina Backes, Lavender Crest has been in business for 10 months.
A Scientist at Heart
To demonstrate the fine quality of Iowa grapes, the Tabors currently grow five kinds of grapes on their grounds: Marechal Foch and St. Croix, which are red grapes used for their red wines; LaCrosse and Seyval Blanc, which are white grapes used for their white wines; and the native white Catawba grape, which is used for their Steamboat Blush wine. For their First Bloom white, they bring in freshly pressed juice of the Vidal Blanc grape from Lake Erie.
Paul, a scientist at heart, is always experimenting with new grape varieties. Currently he is testing two dozen to evaluate how well they grow in Iowa weather. "We're trying grapes from as far away as the Ukraine, Romania, and Hungary," said Paul. These eastern European countries are known for their fine wines and for growing hardy varietals that survive their severe climates.
A project that Paul and Warren Johnson, coordinator for the Mississippi Valley Grape Growers Association, have undertaken is applying to have the Upper Mississippi River Valley designated as a federally Approved Viticulture Area (AVA) like the Napa Valley or Sonoma County in California. Getting this approval will give vineyards in this region nationally recognized distinction. "We're trying to establish a regional identity for the grapes grown here," Paul said. "Iowa needs wines that are different, that are distinctive, to make the industry sustainable. We don't want our wines [at Tabor] to taste like cabernets or merlots. There is not a market for that. Californians [and other connoisseurs of wine] are actually looking outside of their region for different wines."
While some wine snobs might be skeptical of the quality of Iowa grapes, I have personally sampled just about every wine Tabor Home has to offer. They are consistently very good. Indeed, the Tabors have won more than 150 medals - 30 of them gold - in international wine competitions over the years.
On average, between 2,000 and 3,000 wines are entered into these competitions, and the fact that Tabor vineyard has won silver and gold medals says they're "doing a good job," according to Tabor. For instance, the Marechal Foch grape is also grown in Oregon and in upstate New York. Consequently, Tabor wines compete with wines from both these regions. "If we're winning gold medals," said Tabor, "then we're beating them [Oregon and New York] in the competitions."
Paul likes to experiment with the wines as well as the grapes. Although the Iowa LaCrosse is one of Tabor's most popular white wines, Paul said, "We've changed the LaCrosse significantly." When asked how he creates a new "formula" for his wines, he said that he harvests the grapes at different times for different flavors. Also, "the yeast you use for whites makes a difference," he said. He compared using different yeasts in wines to using different spices in cooking.
I think the LaCrosse is perfect the way it is; light, soft, and slightly fruity, it is very smooth going down. However, I don't know if I was tasting last year's or this year's batch. Another popular Tabor white is the crisp, dry "Moonlight White," made from Seyval Blanc grapes. I noticed a citrus-y undertone in this one. Martha Tabor compared it to a Sauvignon Blanc.
The Iowa Marechal Foch Reserve is known as the Tabor Home "flagship wine." A rich, dry red, this wine has no sulfites in it. Sulfites are added primarily to white wines, sometimes to reds, to help stabilize the color. If white wine contained no sulfites, it would turn brown. However, too high a percentage of sulfites can cause headaches for some wine drinkers (myself included).
For a lighter red wine similar to, but not the same as, a Pinot Noir, there is JackSon Red. The Tabors informed me that the body of a red wine depends on the length of time the grape juice has been in contact with the grape skins while fermenting. The longer the skins are in the fermenting juice, the more full-bodied the wine will be.
Known not only for the quality of their wines but also for their hospitality, the Tabors have a loyal following that comes to their special events such as the free "Summer Blues in the Vineyard." On the second and fourth Sundays of the month from June through September, the Tabors hire blues bands to play for the public from 2 to 5 p.m. The last concert of the season, featuring Bob Dorr & the Blue Band, will be on September 24 - a Saturday.
This concert series began because of the huge turnout last summer for the Tabors' end-of-season party. They hired Bob Dorr & the Blue Band to play while they cooked barbecued pork and served wine samples. "Between 60 and 120 people show up [to these Sunday concerts] and stock up on wine," said Tabor. I was told that what the Tabors spend on the bands, they make up for in wine sales, as customers often buy cases at a time.
Part of the charm of these events is the setting itself. Set on six acres of rolling Iowa farmland, the vineyard has a lovely old red barn that overlooks the property. The barn's "veranda," as Paul likes to call it, is furnished with tables and chairs for those bringing their lunch, and picnic tables are scattered about the grassy area near where the grapes grow. The Tabors enjoy having customers picnic while they visit the winery. Recently, a couple held their wedding reception on the vineyard grounds and served Tabor wines.
During grape-harvesting season, the Tabors recruit volunteers to gather their grapes. Helpers are given food and wine! The Future Farmers of America always sends 12 to 20 students over to help harvest. The students are paid, and the winery gives their chapter a donation to do with as they please.
A tasty upcoming event is the Nouveau Wine Festival & Dinner at Potter's Mill restaurant in Bellevue, Iowa, on Saturday, November 19. The Potter's Mill chefs create special dishes to pair with the newly released Tabor Nouveau wine. Tabor's Iowa Marechal Foch Nouveau won a Gold Medal and Best of Class in the 2001 New World International Wine Competition.
There are five other wineries in the Upper Mississippi River Valley, and they are included on the "Iowa Wine Trail," another project begun last year by Paul and his fellow winemakers. Participants may purchase tickets and, on November 5 and 6, they can follow a wine-trail map to take them from Lisbon all the way north to Marquette and Decorah to sample native Iowa wines and holiday foods at Iowa wineries.
Paul said he is pleased with the response to the wine trail. "People aren't waiting for the wine-trail events," he said. "They're doing it on their own, which we hoped they would."
From Dancing to Red-Hat Groups
Colona's Lavender Crest has an in-house caterer and a banquet caterer who handles wedding parties. It also boasts a bistro that serves homemade soups, sandwiches, and salads that can be consumed on its outdoor patio. When asked how the winery is doing, Martha Bazik-Rittmueller said, "It's going fantastic. We're doing very well, thank you."
Martha's favorite evening is Friday, when Lavender Crest hosts "wind-down" night. "It's kind of like a night club: We have a DJ. Sometimes we get between 200 and 250 people in for dancing," said Martha. Saturday nights are reserved for catering events at the winery's banquet facility.
Apparently, the winery is also a favorite destination for "red hat" groups (those feisty women over age 50 wearing purple T-shirts and red hats), who like to socialize and play cards. Although Lavender Crest entertains guests of all ages, Martha is currently developing a campaign that would target a greater number of the twenty- and thirty-somethings.
As for Lavender Crest wines, the winery does not grow its own grapes, but it does have a "show" vineyard.
The vineyard is for more than just looks, however. "It's also a demonstration vineyard for new growers," Martha said. Local growers who would like to produce grapes for the winery can come to the vineyard to see what a "proper," healthy vineyard should look like. "We already have three growers in this area, and we've had people come to see us who are interested in growing" their own grapes, said Martha.
Local growers aside, Lavender Crest actually gets most of its grapes at this time from the Southern Illinois AVA, including literally tons of the Seyval grape. The winery uses the Seyval to make their popular Colona White wine. Apparently the Colona White sells so fast that the winery has to work quickly to keep up with the demand. "The Colona White takes six weeks to make and it needs to be consumed within a year of being made," Martha said. The other popular Lavender Crest wine is the Colona Red, a blended merlot. "We've got a lot of repeat business," she said. "We have a lot of good wines."
For more information on Tabor Home Vineyards & Winery, visit (http://www.taborwines.com) or call (877)673-3131. You can visit Lavender Crest Winery online at (http://www.lavendercrest.com) or call (309)949-2565 for more information. Details about the Iowa Wine Trail can be found at (http://www.iowawinetrail.com).
Since then this family-run business in Baldwin, Iowa - located north of the Quad Cities between Maquoketa and Anamosa off Route 64 - has become a successful wine producer in the Upper Mississippi River Valley region. Tabor Home is so successful that its sales and production grow between 25 percent and 40 percent annually. "We're hiring someone outside of the family as director of sales and marketing and someone to work in the tasting room," Paul Tabor told me when I visited him at the vineyard on Labor Day.
Another, newer winery in the Quad Cities region is the Lavender Crest Winery on U.S. Highway 6 in Colona, Illinois. Although Lavender Crest produces wine, its marketing thrust is renting out its banquet facilities and catering special events. Owned and operated by W.E. Rittmueller, Martha Bazik-Rittmueller, and Greg and Gina Backes, Lavender Crest has been in business for 10 months.
A Scientist at Heart
To demonstrate the fine quality of Iowa grapes, the Tabors currently grow five kinds of grapes on their grounds: Marechal Foch and St. Croix, which are red grapes used for their red wines; LaCrosse and Seyval Blanc, which are white grapes used for their white wines; and the native white Catawba grape, which is used for their Steamboat Blush wine. For their First Bloom white, they bring in freshly pressed juice of the Vidal Blanc grape from Lake Erie.
Paul, a scientist at heart, is always experimenting with new grape varieties. Currently he is testing two dozen to evaluate how well they grow in Iowa weather. "We're trying grapes from as far away as the Ukraine, Romania, and Hungary," said Paul. These eastern European countries are known for their fine wines and for growing hardy varietals that survive their severe climates.
A project that Paul and Warren Johnson, coordinator for the Mississippi Valley Grape Growers Association, have undertaken is applying to have the Upper Mississippi River Valley designated as a federally Approved Viticulture Area (AVA) like the Napa Valley or Sonoma County in California. Getting this approval will give vineyards in this region nationally recognized distinction. "We're trying to establish a regional identity for the grapes grown here," Paul said. "Iowa needs wines that are different, that are distinctive, to make the industry sustainable. We don't want our wines [at Tabor] to taste like cabernets or merlots. There is not a market for that. Californians [and other connoisseurs of wine] are actually looking outside of their region for different wines."
While some wine snobs might be skeptical of the quality of Iowa grapes, I have personally sampled just about every wine Tabor Home has to offer. They are consistently very good. Indeed, the Tabors have won more than 150 medals - 30 of them gold - in international wine competitions over the years.
On average, between 2,000 and 3,000 wines are entered into these competitions, and the fact that Tabor vineyard has won silver and gold medals says they're "doing a good job," according to Tabor. For instance, the Marechal Foch grape is also grown in Oregon and in upstate New York. Consequently, Tabor wines compete with wines from both these regions. "If we're winning gold medals," said Tabor, "then we're beating them [Oregon and New York] in the competitions."
Paul likes to experiment with the wines as well as the grapes. Although the Iowa LaCrosse is one of Tabor's most popular white wines, Paul said, "We've changed the LaCrosse significantly." When asked how he creates a new "formula" for his wines, he said that he harvests the grapes at different times for different flavors. Also, "the yeast you use for whites makes a difference," he said. He compared using different yeasts in wines to using different spices in cooking.
I think the LaCrosse is perfect the way it is; light, soft, and slightly fruity, it is very smooth going down. However, I don't know if I was tasting last year's or this year's batch. Another popular Tabor white is the crisp, dry "Moonlight White," made from Seyval Blanc grapes. I noticed a citrus-y undertone in this one. Martha Tabor compared it to a Sauvignon Blanc.
The Iowa Marechal Foch Reserve is known as the Tabor Home "flagship wine." A rich, dry red, this wine has no sulfites in it. Sulfites are added primarily to white wines, sometimes to reds, to help stabilize the color. If white wine contained no sulfites, it would turn brown. However, too high a percentage of sulfites can cause headaches for some wine drinkers (myself included).
For a lighter red wine similar to, but not the same as, a Pinot Noir, there is JackSon Red. The Tabors informed me that the body of a red wine depends on the length of time the grape juice has been in contact with the grape skins while fermenting. The longer the skins are in the fermenting juice, the more full-bodied the wine will be.
Known not only for the quality of their wines but also for their hospitality, the Tabors have a loyal following that comes to their special events such as the free "Summer Blues in the Vineyard." On the second and fourth Sundays of the month from June through September, the Tabors hire blues bands to play for the public from 2 to 5 p.m. The last concert of the season, featuring Bob Dorr & the Blue Band, will be on September 24 - a Saturday.
This concert series began because of the huge turnout last summer for the Tabors' end-of-season party. They hired Bob Dorr & the Blue Band to play while they cooked barbecued pork and served wine samples. "Between 60 and 120 people show up [to these Sunday concerts] and stock up on wine," said Tabor. I was told that what the Tabors spend on the bands, they make up for in wine sales, as customers often buy cases at a time.
Part of the charm of these events is the setting itself. Set on six acres of rolling Iowa farmland, the vineyard has a lovely old red barn that overlooks the property. The barn's "veranda," as Paul likes to call it, is furnished with tables and chairs for those bringing their lunch, and picnic tables are scattered about the grassy area near where the grapes grow. The Tabors enjoy having customers picnic while they visit the winery. Recently, a couple held their wedding reception on the vineyard grounds and served Tabor wines.
During grape-harvesting season, the Tabors recruit volunteers to gather their grapes. Helpers are given food and wine! The Future Farmers of America always sends 12 to 20 students over to help harvest. The students are paid, and the winery gives their chapter a donation to do with as they please.
A tasty upcoming event is the Nouveau Wine Festival & Dinner at Potter's Mill restaurant in Bellevue, Iowa, on Saturday, November 19. The Potter's Mill chefs create special dishes to pair with the newly released Tabor Nouveau wine. Tabor's Iowa Marechal Foch Nouveau won a Gold Medal and Best of Class in the 2001 New World International Wine Competition.
There are five other wineries in the Upper Mississippi River Valley, and they are included on the "Iowa Wine Trail," another project begun last year by Paul and his fellow winemakers. Participants may purchase tickets and, on November 5 and 6, they can follow a wine-trail map to take them from Lisbon all the way north to Marquette and Decorah to sample native Iowa wines and holiday foods at Iowa wineries.
Paul said he is pleased with the response to the wine trail. "People aren't waiting for the wine-trail events," he said. "They're doing it on their own, which we hoped they would."
From Dancing to Red-Hat Groups
Colona's Lavender Crest has an in-house caterer and a banquet caterer who handles wedding parties. It also boasts a bistro that serves homemade soups, sandwiches, and salads that can be consumed on its outdoor patio. When asked how the winery is doing, Martha Bazik-Rittmueller said, "It's going fantastic. We're doing very well, thank you."
Martha's favorite evening is Friday, when Lavender Crest hosts "wind-down" night. "It's kind of like a night club: We have a DJ. Sometimes we get between 200 and 250 people in for dancing," said Martha. Saturday nights are reserved for catering events at the winery's banquet facility.
Apparently, the winery is also a favorite destination for "red hat" groups (those feisty women over age 50 wearing purple T-shirts and red hats), who like to socialize and play cards. Although Lavender Crest entertains guests of all ages, Martha is currently developing a campaign that would target a greater number of the twenty- and thirty-somethings.
As for Lavender Crest wines, the winery does not grow its own grapes, but it does have a "show" vineyard.
The vineyard is for more than just looks, however. "It's also a demonstration vineyard for new growers," Martha said. Local growers who would like to produce grapes for the winery can come to the vineyard to see what a "proper," healthy vineyard should look like. "We already have three growers in this area, and we've had people come to see us who are interested in growing" their own grapes, said Martha.
Local growers aside, Lavender Crest actually gets most of its grapes at this time from the Southern Illinois AVA, including literally tons of the Seyval grape. The winery uses the Seyval to make their popular Colona White wine. Apparently the Colona White sells so fast that the winery has to work quickly to keep up with the demand. "The Colona White takes six weeks to make and it needs to be consumed within a year of being made," Martha said. The other popular Lavender Crest wine is the Colona Red, a blended merlot. "We've got a lot of repeat business," she said. "We have a lot of good wines."
For more information on Tabor Home Vineyards & Winery, visit (http://www.taborwines.com) or call (877)673-3131. You can visit Lavender Crest Winery online at (http://www.lavendercrest.com) or call (309)949-2565 for more information. Details about the Iowa Wine Trail can be found at (http://www.iowawinetrail.com).
