Press Releae – 32nd Annual Michigan Wine & Spirits Competition

28 07 2009

From a Kellogg Center Press Release…..

KELLOGG HOTEL & CONFERENCE CENTER HOSTS 32ND ANNUAL MICHIGAN WINE AND
SPIRITS COMPETITION
Public Invited to “Taste the Winners” at August 6 Reception

East Lansing, Mich. – The Kellogg Hotel & Conference Center will host
the 32nd Annual Michigan Wine and Spirits Competition and a public Gold
Medal Reception unveiling Michigan’s top wines on Thursday, August 6.

This year marks Kellogg’s ninth year hosting the competition, which
will bring together several wine experts to judge their way through 350
Michigan wine entries. The public is invited to the Gold Medal Reception
on August 6, from 5 p.m. to 8 p.m., to taste the winning wines paired
with foods prepared by Kellogg Center chefs. Selected Best of Class
wines will also be featured at Kellogg’s State Room Restaurant.

“It’s a pleasure to once again host the competition and serve the
best of Michigan wines,” said Geoff Parkerson, general manager for the
Kellogg Hotel & Conference Center. “Between the great wines and our
award-winning chefs’ creations, attendees are in for a treat.”

The Gold Medal Reception is expected to bring out an audience of 350
supportive consumers, industry members and industry associates. Winning
winemakers and owners will be on hand to discuss their wines and share a
glass with attendees. Special guest authors, Lorri Hathaway and Sharon
Kegerreis will also be signing copies of their book, “From the Vine:
Exploring Michigan Wineries” at the event.

Tickets for the Michigan Wine and Spirits Competition Gold Medal
Reception are $40 and are available through the Kellogg Center at
517-432-4000.

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Press Release – Michigan Wine Month Celebration

12 03 2009

From a Pioneer Wine Trail press release…

Jackson, MI – Celebrate Michigan Wine Month at the SE Michigan Pioneer Wine Trail’s “Michigan Wine Celebration” on Saturday, April 18 and Sunday, April 19!

Tickets are $25 per person for this self-driven tour of the wineries of south-east Michigan.

Each winery along the trail will feature an appetizer or dessert prepared by a local chef and paired with their featured wine. The ticket price also includes one tasting glass. A recipe card with the featured recipe will be given out to ticket holders at each winery.

Some of planned the food and wine pairings include Vegetable Beef Stew served with Pinot Noir at Burgdorf’s Winery, BBQ Chicken Kabobs with Chipotle Cranberry Sauceserved with Summer Breeze (semi-sweet white) at Cherry Creek Cellars (Parma), Roasted Pears with Herbed Goat Cheese served with Rivera Rose’ at Cherry Creek Cellars (Cement City), Chicken Ballotine Stuffed with Proscuitto, Boursin Cheese, and Roasted Red Peppers or Florentine Ravioli with Alfredo Sauce served with Morningstar (dry white) at Pentamere Winery, Decadent Chocolate Brownie with infused Raspberry Topping served with St. Julian Raspberry Spumante at St. Julian’s Dundee location, Sun-Dried Tomato Baskets paired with Braganini Sauvignon Blanc at St. Julian’s Parma location, and Brie with Maple-Glazed Walnuts and Mill Pond Bread served with Sugar Snow (maple dessert wine) at Sandhill Crane Vineyards.

The wineries included in this event are: Burgdorf’s Winery (Hazlett) – Saturday only (until 5:00 pm), Cherry Creek Cellars (Parma & Cement City), Lone Oak Vineyard Estate (Grass Lake), Pentamere Winery (Tecumseh), Sandhill Crane Vineyards (Jackson), and St. Julian Winery (Dundee & Parma).

Ticket holders are welcome to visit each location over the two-day event, or they may choose to limit their visits (as time permits). The Wine Trail encourages ticket holders to bring a designated driver.

Hours of the event are Saturday, April 18 from 11 am to 6 pm and Sunday, April 19 from noon to 6 pm. Tickets are available online at www.PioneerWineTrail.com or from any Pioneer Wine Trail winery. There are a limited number of tickets available, ticket sales will end on Thursday, April 16 at midnight, and ticket will not be available the day of the event.

For more information call (517) 531-3080.





Press Release – Grand Rapids International Wine & Food Festival

21 11 2008

From a Van Andel Arena newsletter…


Friday, Nov. 21: 2:00 PM- 9:00 PM
Saturday, Nov. 22: Noon-9:00 PM
Sunday, Nov. 23: Noon- 5:00 PM
DeVos Place®

 Designed to be Michigan’s premier wine and food experience, this festival will bring together wineries from around the world along with culinary experts of West Michigan.

For more information please visit GRWineFestival.com .

 FEATURES!

  • More than 500 wines from as many as 100 wineries around the world
  • Appearance by nationally syndicated PBS chef Eric Villegas
  • More than 100 Michigan-made beers, wines, ciders, and spirits
  • Grand Rapid’s top restaurants like Tre-Cugini, six-one-six, Cygnus, Louis Benton, and The Monkey Bar inside The BOB 

 Click Here to purchase tickets
Tickets are also available at the DeVos Place box office, Ticketmaster ticket centers and charge by phone: 616.456.3333
Sampling tickets will be available at the door and can be redeemed at wine and food booths.
*No one under the age of 21 will be permited.





Press Release – Michigan Wine and Spirits Competition

22 07 2008

From a press release.

Wine Experts to Gather in East Lansing for
Michigan Wine and Spirits Competition

Who:    Respected judges from around the country and across the state

What:   31st Annual Michigan Wine and Spirits Competition and
        Gold Medal Reception

When:   Competition – Tuesday, August 5, 2008 – 9 a.m.-3 p.m.
        Gold Medal Reception – Thursday, August 7, 2008 – 5-8 p.m.
       
Where:  Kellogg Hotel and Conference Center, East Lansing Read the rest of this entry »





What Temperature is Your Drink?

16 07 2008

Remind me if I ever meet this guy to punch him in the nose.

His friends may call him a snob, and waitresses may give him odd looks, but David Turley isn’t about to drink a beer with chunks of ice floating in it.

But that’s what can happen at restaurants that insist on serving his favorite beverage in icy mugs. And so Turley has no qualms about insisting upon another, unfrosted, glass.

“I’m pretty passionate about it,” says Turley, a 50-year-old information technology worker from Fredericksburg, Va. “The first thing I look at in a restaurant is the beer menu. I consider it a food.”

No, you’re a douchebag and you shouldn’t be allowed to leave your house.  Besides this example of douchery, the article has some interesting insights on what temperature your drinks should be served at.  It reinforces why I don’t like dark beers.  No beer should be served at 50 degrees. Read the rest of this entry »





Dusty’s Tap Room

11 05 2008
  • 1839 W. Grand River Ave.Dusty's Tap Room
  • Okemos, MI 48864
  • (517) 349-5150
  • Website
  • Menu

Dusty’s Tap Room is part of a larger Dusty’s Cellar complex.  My girlfriend’s parents were in town one weekend and we wanted to go to Meridian Mall to go to Caruso’s (reviews HERE).  After a 3 1/2 hour drive, they were hungry, so we needed a place for lunch first.  I did a search for restaurants in Okemos and Dusty’s came up.  Just another reason why restaurantuers need to have a website.

The Tap Room is located in a strip mall just down from Dusty’s Cellar.  The Tap Room is a really comfortable bar with high pub tables, low lighting, dark wood and of course TV’s in front of the bar.  There was one other guy in there with his two daughters when we stopped in.  We took a table near the back of the bar.  The waiter came over with menu and to get drinks.  The menu was a lot of sandwiches, wraps, salads, and hot dogs.  Our waiter, Joel, came back with drinks, but didn’t ask if we were ready to order.  He just dropped them of and left.

So, five mintues later, Joel comes back and we order.  My girlfriend ordered the smoked turkey pretzel sandwich and her mom got the Dusty’s chicken sandwich.  They cut each sandwich in half and gave it to the other.  The smoked turkety pretzel sandwich is turkey, bacon, and provolone on a pretzel roll.  It came with a side of honey mustard and your choice of fries.  All four of us ordered the beer battered fries which good and salty.  You could really taste the sea salt…that’s not a bad thing..it’s not like iodized salt which is overpowering when you get too much of it.  Back to the sandwich, the pretzel roll is the reason she ordered the sandwich and it didn’t disappoint.  The grilled chicken sandwich came with a mixture of spinach, sun-dried tomatos, and a garlich-herb cheese spread on top of a pretty good size chicken breast. Both ladies liked both sandwiches, but I think the pretzel roll won.

Myself and my girlfriends step dad went pretty boring and got the Classic Burger.  I really wanted a Black and Bleu burger, but they mix the bleu cheese with a black olive mayo and that didn’t really sound appetizing, so I backed off.  The burger is a 1/2 angus burger.  I got mine with cheddar…her stepdad got it without cheese.  The burger comes on a square seasme seed bun.  I had mine cooked medium  which left it juicy and just a little pink in the middle.  It was good, but it was just a burger.

It took Joel a long time again to come back to refill drinks and quite a while to come back with the check.  We sat there for a while with empty plates waiting for the bill. Once it finally did come, the total for four people was about $45. 

After we ate lunch, we decided to walk down to Dusty’s Cellar.  There’s another restaurant there…a little more fancier and an upscale grocery store with wine, a deli, baked goods, and some gourmet items.  They even had my girlfriends favorite salsa which we can’t find anywhere (Sable and Rosenfeld’s).  The Tap Room has a great ambience and pretty good food.  The whole complex is a great place to spend a Saturday afternoon.  There’s private dining on top of the two dining rooms and at the Wine Cellar, there’s an outdoor patio.  I don’t know if we would try the Tap Room again as it doesn’t really stand out, but I am looking forward to trying lunch at the Cellar.  It was good and the experience is good. I would recommend it to someone looking for a place in Okemos…just not sure if I’d go back.