Happy Halloween!

In our neighborhood that means we all go to the party at Judy and Jay’s house. The adults eat, drink and the kids get scary! In the spirit of Halloween and adult celebrations, we’re thrilled to have had the opportunity to review a winery in nearby Northern Kentucky with surprising wines we didn’t know could come from this region!

Why are these Halloween wines? Well, Elk Creek Vineyards has a wide range of whites and reds like most vineyards. However, they love Halloween so much that they create three ’spirited’ spirits just for this season. Each has wonderfully fun graphics so we totally love their marketing* and website. We had the opportunity to taste and review:

• Ghostly White Chardonnay – This was our first Elk Creek wine to sample and we were stunned that this came from Kentucky. Nothing against Kentucky, I’ve called it home (but not my ‘old, Kentucky home!’), I just would expect this to be a popular, albeit ’snobby,’ California wine. I thought it was tart but smooth. It wasn’t too tart – it reminded me of a Braeburn apple that I’d had the day before. We both loved the ‘nose’ (aroma). Loved it. My husband had a funny reaction. He had a nostalgic response to the bouquet – something in it reminded him of childhood, possibly a slight “Elmer’s Glue” smell (but in a good way!). (Again, he’s funny!) We both thought it mellowed well and was something we would order in a restaurant or drink at home. Retails for $19.99.
• Ghostly White Sweet Mellow - Tasting wine is difficult because it’s so subjective. I like, and sometimes quite a bit, certain wines – often oaky Chardonnays and deep, rich Cab Sav’s. I’ve developed these tastes from my introduction to wines back in the days of Sutter Home White Zinfandel. Since then, my taste for sweet wine is limited to dessert wines. Elk Creek’s Ghostly White Sweet Mellow definitely is mellow and sweet. It carries fruity notes of peach and melon. I’m not a big sweet wine drinker (nor is my husband who only got a little of taste since he was traveling) but it was very smooth and I’m sure would be favored by sweeter wine fans. Retail price: $9.99.
• Bone Dry Red Cabernet - This one won – BIG time. It was definitely scary good and shocked us with the ‘expensive’ taste and quality of this deep ‘bone dry’ red. Both of us loved it (and had to be very fair to split the bottle evenly!) It  says ‘bone dry’ but I didn’t think it was too dry. There was no ‘pucker’ effect to it -just smooth, wonderful, luscious red wine. It had a GREAT nose – we just kept smelling it! (That alone could be bottled and sold.) This wine is aged in small oak barrels for two years to establish (as they write in their brochure) “a soft balance while adding richness and character. This Cabernet has ripe cherry, red berry, chocolate and hints of spice.” VERY NICE! Retail price: $19.99

Based on these three bottles, I’m not scared to recommend Elk Creek Vineyards wines. Their offering ranges from Sweet Chambourcin ($11.99),  Sweet Owen Red ($12.99), Petite Syrah ($39.99) and Barrel-Select Reserve Syrah ($39.99). I look forward to trying these and other Elk Creek wines!

For Cincinnati residents, Elk Creek wines are available at Jungle Jim’s, Kroger Liquor Stores in Kentucky, Montgomery Inn, Outback Steakhouse and Party Town. Wines are available for purchase on the Elk Creek Vineyards website also.

* Another impressive example of their savvy marketing (and confident wines) are the events and offerings at the Vineyard. From concerts to cooking classes, to a “Cast and Blast” (including fly fishing and clay shooting) to raise money for the I Have Wings Breast Cancer Foundation, Elk Creek Vineyards is involved in their community. They have a Ghostly Gala on Halloween Evening (8pm to midnight) and a lodge that also offers massage services on Fridays and Saturdays. I look forward to a trip to Owenton, Kentucy to explore this wonderful winery. Thanks Elk Creek Vineyards for sharing these wines!

In the spirit of full disclosure, Girlfriendology received these three wines at no cost. We were not required to submit a review nor alter our opinion in any way. As is our guidelines here at Girlfriendology, we only share the honest information that we would share with a girlfriend.

Tags: Chardonnay, cincinnati, Kroger, review, Wine, Winery

This entry was posted on Friday, October 30th, 2009 at 5:23 pm and is filed under FOODIES Fab Friends who love FOOD, Girlfriend Advice and Reviews. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.