After a Long Hiatus

It's been over a year since the last post - or a decade in the news industry time - Rest assured, though my ambition of hitting the blog world went into hibernate mode, my pallet for sipping the delectable wines offered in the heart of the Midwest has only sprouted.

Most recently I ventured to the quaint Amana Colonies. To say quaint is an understatement. It's like a look back to the turn of the century but with a modern twist full of hummers and blackberries that standout among the many sheds offering crafts, homemade goods, and everything stereotypically Iowan.

But with one added pleasure - wine. Yes, wine. Iowa may be a state where you can indeed get Bush beer dressed in camouflage (seriously), a state where black and gold "fan cans" are a delicacy and one where boxed wine in chugged in a gas station parking at a 6 a.m. tailgate. Low and behold, something classy still exists. .

The Amana Colonies has dozens of wineries in the nearby area, each offering their own signature touch. But don't get excited too yet

While recognizing my own cliché, I would say the juice was worth the squeeze. But with one stint.

Maybe it's snobby to expect more, but I just can't get over into a winery that's as cute as a story tale cottage, and serves it in a small plastic cup - similar to ones found laced with jello shots at a kegger. I know it's a touristy spot, and washing out glasses would be a dreadful task, but its like sitting in the nosebleed section at a game. You weren't really part of the game.

To say the least, the tasting experience was tainted by the residue each wine left for the next. It became impossible to distinguish one from another. It was like the wine samples at your Hy-Vee grocery store. Maybe I just went on the wrong day, but this adventurer was disappointed.

In the end the wines were good, good enough to buy a few bottles, but the experience wasn't as full as hoped. In my other travels to the wine country in Southern Illinois and ever other spots in Iowa, I got the true sampling as wine as the wine gods would have wanted. from dry to sweet, and white to red. All with a story in between. The true tasting experience.

I think many of the wineries in the main Amana Colonies have gotten caught up in offering a cute little tourist experience for those swinging by the area and trying to offer a bit of culture in the middle of a state that only get's on the map for football, hogs, and a unique presidential caucus every four years.

Maybe someday the wineries can really get Iowa on the map.

I'm no wine expert by any means, and I still enjoy my occasional $4.99 bottle. (a $2.99 bottle was a bargain I lost when seeking a good wine that cost less than milk) But I like my wine in a glass.

Till next glass...