Wine the Experience: Five Years of Cheers!

We're back on the blogging. We've had a very busy September planning for our huge 5th anniversary party. Five years and still going! We blocked off the entire Kilohana Square, invited outside vendors such as Jessica's Traveling Boutique and Le Crepe Cafe, had some live music, and invited all of our winemakers, friends, and the community to join us as we threw our thank you event!
Scroll down for a sample of the fun. A HUGE mahalo to Dave Miyamoto and Company for shooting all the photos! There are more at his blog.

Mahalo to the entire WTX crew and volunteers -- this wouldn't have happened without you!

Mahalo to everyone who shared their food with us. We're sure NO ONE went home hungry!
Winemakers and friends in a festive winery!

Need a glass? Come say hi to our pourers!


Outside, the band starts to play...

A few thank yous and raffle time!

Mahalo to Ma'o for the tents!!

Getting some (henna) ink done.

Mahalo to everyone that came down to help us celebrate. We hope everyone had a blast!!! (Cause we sure did!)

Mind Your Bottle (size)!

Ever wonder if you could bottle your wine in a bigger bottle than the standard 750mL? Did you know that the larger bottles have specific names? Below is your handy-dandy guide to larger bottle sizes! (we carry magnums, if you're interested. ;))

Standard (.75 liters) 1 bottle
Magnum (1.5 liters) 2 bottles
Jeroboam (3 liters) 4 bottles
Rehoboam (4.5 liters) 6 bottles
Methuselah (6 liters) 8 bottles
Salmanazar (9 liters) 12 bottles
Balthazar (12 liters) 16 bottles
Nebuchadnezzar (15 liters) 20 bottles

Imagine that! Your entire barrel of wine could be put into approximately 2 Balthazar bottles! That'd be an easy bottling party huh?

Mmmm... I'd like a Salmanazar bottle of New Zealand Pinot Noir please....... :)

Betcha Didn't Know...

1) Wine Toast - The word "toast," meaning a wish of good health, started in ancient Rome, where a piece of toasted bread was dropped into wine.

2) The Oldest Wine - The wreck of the TITANIC holds the oldest wine cellar in the world and despite the depth and wreckage, the bottles are still intact.

3) Wine in a Box - Australia developed wine in a box in the ‘70s. The wine inside of the box is stored in a bladder that is not exposed to air. This means that the wine may last up to a few weeks compared to a few days.

4) Celebrity Wine - Celebrities who own vineyards include Francis Ford Coppola, Cliff Richard, Mick Hucknall, Victoria Beckham, Joe Montana, Sting, Gerard Depardieu.

5) Lizard Wine?? - Chameleons are not afraid of harvesting machines.They often end up being picked off the vines and crushed along with the grapes.


A little bit of trivia for your weekend! Enjoy, share with friends!!!

Cool Down with a glass of....

It's summer time! With all the backyard barbeques and beachside picnics, don't forget to bring something to cool you down. Here's a quick and easy recipe for a refreshing Pomegranate Spritzer!

3/4 part Pomegranate Zinfandel
1/4 part Club Soda or Lemon-Lime soda
Ice Cubes

Fill a glass with ice cubes, then fill 3/4 with the Pom Zin and top up the rest of the way with Club Soda.

Garnish with a few pomegranate seeds and a wedge of lemon. Enjoy!

"Wine experts are of two kinds, gastronomic and intellectual, distinguishable according to whether, on the sight of a bottle they reach for their glass or their glasses."

~~ Thomas McKeown

We know we're definitely the gastronomic type. ;) How about you?

Happy 4th of July!

Hope everyone had a great beach-bbq picnic weekend. Mahalo to all who attended our complimentary wine tasting last Wednesday and picked up bottles for your barbeque! Hope everything was deeeelish!!!

For those of you that missed out, here's what we poured that day, as well as some food pairing suggestions... perfect for any barbeque party:

Italian Pinot Grigio - Dry, crisp, almond, lemon-lime, bright citrus
Great with salty seafood, mac salad, fried calamari, grilled mahi, poke - anykine

Pacific Chardonnay - Buttery, oaky, vanilla
Great with bbq chicken, grilled fish, hot dogs, fried chicken, chili, roasted corn/grilled veggie skewers

South African Pinotage - Red cherry, gamey, peppery
Great with pepper crusted steak, kalbi beef, hamburger, hot dog, veggie burger w/fixings

AU Cabernet Sauvignon - Smooth, easy, medium, dry fruit red
Great with steak - dry rubbed, short ribs, chili, roasted corn, kalua pig

Corvina - Dried fruit, raisins, dark and full-bodied
Great with bbq steak, kalbi beef, baked beans, grilled portabello mushroom burger, teriyaki everything

Pomegranate Zinfandel - Juicy, berries, refreshing
Great with fresh fruit, somethin' spicy, Korean style fried chicken, strawberry shortcake with vanilla ice cream

Hope this handy-dandy guide helps! Let us know what you think of the pairings -- did they work? Any other suggestions?

Happy grilling!

Wine and Chocolate part 2!

About two weeks ago, we featured Melanie Boudar of Sweet Paradise Chocolatier at our Wine & Chocolate event. We brought in 5 of her chocolates, as well as her self to educate our guests about the chocolate making process and her style of chocolate making. Everyone had stellar wine to pair with the chocolates. Check out some of the photos from the event below!

chocolates lined up and ready to go!

the winemaker and the chocolatier

Ms. Boudar giving her speech

Oooh the chocolates were sooo good.

Cacao pods and beans

Melanie answering some burning chocolate questions

What's next on our plate? We've got a Limiteds tasting coming up on Tuesday, June 9! Call us if you wanna sign up! Seats are filling up fast!