Tour The Vermont Wine Trail! Nationally Award-Winning Wines In Vermont

Vermont has been garnering national attention for it's fantastic microbrews, but it's also home to an incredible (and growing) wine industry. Award-winning grape varieties such as Marquette, Frontenac, and La Crescent all thrive in Vermont's four-season climate, and they're regularly producing champion wines.

Wines typically reflect the flavors of their surroundings - and with a region rich in apple and fruit growers, bee-keepers and cider-makers, our wines are bursting with flavor!

Vermont is one of a few rare regions in the entire country that is producing two specialty dessert wines - ice wine, made from grapes that are left on the vine until they freeze in winter conditions, and ice cider, made by allowing vats of apple cider to freeze in winter conditions. 

 

Real winters aren't just good for a warm, cozy fire - they're also integral to making some of the most delicious  beverages in the nation!

If you ever dreamed of having your own vineyard, Vermont is an ideal paradise to retreat to - the Vermont Grape & Wine Council (http://www.vermontgrapeandwinecouncil.com)  has heaps of resources, one of which is a schedule of conferences for those seriously interested in joining a booming, beautiful, and beneficial industry. 

 

If you'd like to just sit back and enjoy the wine, well, that's even easier! The Vermont Grape & Wine Council offers a deluxe 2014 Passport Map to wine tasters coming in from around the globe, here just to sample Vermont wines. The incredible tour is all summer long - June 27th through August 2nd, 2014!

The Artesano Meadery, Boyden Valley Winery, Champlain Orchards, Charlotte Village Winery, Due North Vineyard, Eden Ice Cider Company, Fresh Tracks Farm Vineyard & Winery, Grand View Winery, Hall Home Place Ice Cider, Lincoln Peak Vineyard, Montcalm Vineyards, Neshobe River Winery & Brewery, North Branch Vineyards, Shelburne Vineyard, Snow Farm Vineyard, Sugarbush Vineyard, and Whaleback Vineyards are all on the Vermont Grape & Wine Council's 2014 Passport Map. 

 

Each time you tour a winery, your passport is stamped. When you've collected at least ten varieties, you can mail your completed passport to the Vermont Grape & Wine Coucil at 79 Stone Mill Dam Road, Brandon Vermont. The Grand Prize is a two-night getaway for two at the Crescent Bay Bed & Breakfast, situated on South Hero, one of Vermont's Lake Champlain Islands! Second prize is a case of Vermont wine, valued at $200 - and third prize is a basket of Vermont products, valued at $100.

We can't think of a better win-win situation - touring some of the best wineries in the nation is the least outcome, while staying on a Lake Champlain island just for tasting award-winning wine is the best!

Great contests and deluxe wine passports aside, we're just happy to have some of the best vineyards and breweries in one of the most beautiful, pristine parts of the nation. It's a thing to celebrate, and not just in the summer! Without our winters, our absolutely stunning and fascinating ice wines couldn't be here. We're thrilled with our four seasons and all the possibilities they create!

We'll see you in the vineyards!