Hello Email Mailing List,

Typing this as I enjoy a glass of our new Chardonel 2010 in one of the Turtle Run Winery's giant hand blown and etched stemware, supplied by ProLogo.  Where they found these glasses, I'll never know, but the wine really sizzles with flavor from this glass.  The shape of the glass definitely affects the flavor of the wine as the 1500 natural chemical compounds in wine have a chance to key all of the taste and smell sensors in my consumption experience.  We designed the chardonel 2010 with a clean, refreshing taste in mind.  I get this burst of complex apple, pineapple, peach and slight pear, with ever so slight toastiness from the barrel aging.  I'm amazed at how clean and refreshing this vintage is, even though that was the style I craved for our 2010 vintage.  I guess you could say I get bored with consistency, and for 2008 and 2009 we strived for big and bold.  For 2010, we wanted clean and subtle.  Bingo!  By the way, if you want a bottle of the 08 or 09, just ask, as the wines are still available for sale.  By the way, it's just a lot of fun to mold these grapes into the wine we seek.  I'm humbly amazed that I can simply take grapes, decide on a style of wine I want to achieve, and then go make it.  

Additionally, give our White Chambourcin 2010 a try next to the 2009.  Bottled mid-October, just like the aformentioned (word du jour) chardonel, the white chambourcin 2010 really comes at you with nice, clean fruit, with vivid flavors of strawberry, zesty cherry and soft cranberry notes.  On the red side, we bottled more of our Tennessee oaked 2009 Cabernet Sauvignon.  Now in my glass as I type this, the swirl releases a cherry, Pixie Stix / Trix cereal / Jolly Rancher (Catherine or Max!  Did some of your Halloween candy make it into this bottle????) with an unbelievable hint of vanilla and light maple note.  The flavor is pure decadence, with boundless complexity and savory cherry, berry notes but alas, no Pixi Stix fruit flavors.

Now in the glass is our newest Syrah 2010.  Wow, are the aromas mesmerizing!  Rich spice notes of...what is that?  Dang, I know that one...I just cooked with it...hmmm...spin again, sniff....Halloween on the brain.  Anyway, it's complex with a rich aroma of maple, vanilla, plum, and a spice to be identified later.  What is that?!?!!?  Ugh! The fruit is tight, upfront, elegant and smooth, with rich blueberry and cherry notes abounding.  A delicious chocolate cherry note rounds out this wonderful mid-palate, intense red.

Upcoming events:
Our 11th annual Bonfire, Hayride, Concert, Cookout, and Astronomy Day occurs this Saturday.  Bring your entire family out for a day and evening of fun at Turtle Run Winery!  The Vinyl Kings start this festive day with Rock-N-Roll from 2:00 to 6:00.  At 3:00 or so, (or basically, if asked earlier), we'll have hayrides.  At 4:30 to 5:00, we'll fire up the woodfired grill, which is located in the Medieval Pit at the back of the parking lot.  At 6:00 or so, we'll fire up the bonfire.  At dusk look and learn plenty from above with Troy.  BYObrats, steaks, chicken and whatever you want for the woodfired grill, but no beer please as we do not want an errant beer to cost us our winery license.  It should be a great time by all, so come early and stay late.  Children are always welcome as many of our events are kid friendly.  The event goes until everyone leaves so hopefully before Midnight.  It is relaxing as can be to see the stars, relaxing by a nice, warm bonfire, with a nice glass of Pop's Port.  Additionally the back parking area will be blocked early in the day due to a tour bus stopping by.  Please freely park in our front yard and the area near the driveway in front of the barn.

Join us November 17th through the 20th on the Indiana Uplands Wine Trail as we launch our very first Nouveaux Day event.  We'll be releasing Blue My Mind, our Indiana Steuben, our traminette 2011, and perhaps another wine!  Butler Winery is introducing black current, Winzerwald will pour both Sugar Plum and Federwesser, Best has a Chambourcin / Muscat blend, titled, "Nouveaux" and Huber's will promote their ever popular "Pop's Reserve".  Expect Oliver Winery, French Lick Winery, Carousel, and Brown County wineries to tempt your taste buds with some other equally fresh wine too!

More new wines from Turtle Run: Christine, Kristi and I will be bottling tomorrow either our Chambourcin NV or our Chambourcin 2010.  I can tell you we are excited about whichever one we go with.  The "NV" stands for "non-vintage" and will be an even year blend of 2006, 2008, and 2010, with the 2006 hitting 5 years in the barrel this week.  The complexity of aged chamboucin from 2006 will simply weaken your knees.  The 2010 is one of our best yet with massive fruit.  Additionally, for November, we will be releasing our Merlot 2010, Blue My Mind, Traminette, and our Catherine's Blend 2011.  On Saturday after Thanksgiving, our annual tradition continues as we get snookered and dazed as we blend and  bottle our next Pop's Port.  This has become an event in and of itself.  At 9:00 in the morning, with the wives still asleep from their jaunts through the malls the day before, us guys take to carefully blending, then sampling, then blending some more, and sampling more, Port, Port and more Port.  By the time we get to bottling this fine vintage, we will have enjoyed an adequate amount of port.  If you are interested, please let me know beforehand.  This has become an event in and of itself.  If you are interested in coming out, please, please let me know.  We can only handle a very limited amount of folks for this winemaking event, so please contact me through email or telephone.

Interesting thought of the day.  As many of you know, no human pathogen can live in wine.  For centuries and centuries people added wine to water to make it potable.  They also drank beer as a methodology to gain liquids without sickening themselves (dysentery issues, essentially).  And they drank their alcohol responsibly.  If you want to have fun, timeline safe city water (tap water) and it's availablity (today, nearly every city in the US has safe drinking water) and Prohibition.  Could the availability of safe drinking water in a high percentage of cities played a role in Prohibition's enactment?  Hmmm....Obviously, over-consumption of alcohol did, but without safe drinking water could the demonization of all alcoholic beverages have ever occurred?  Hmmm...I better stop.
History books simply do not take into account the safe role that alcohol consumption in moderation has played in allowing the growth of cities and therefore nations, when, without alcohol, no one would have been able to even immigrate to the US via the sailboats of the 1800's and earlier.  I told myself to stop, but alas, the caffeine from the English Breakfast Tea kicked in.

Last, but not least, Laura, the kids, and I appreciate your support of Turtle Run Winery.  Without you, we wouldn't be able to type this email, so again, from the bottom of my heart, thank you!

Cheers,