And this year, Mother Earth is wearing every shade of green accented with pinks, reds, whites, even blues and every floral color in between. Finally the rain gods have heard our prayers and dumped over 50 inches here in Fair Play. The annual spring show of wildflowers is already in progress. May is the time to visit our neighbor Blue Bird Haven Iris Gardens with hundreds of different bearded irises, thousands in all, to see and buy.

Although our Ploughman's Lunch will make every weekend in May marvelous, the glorified Ploughman's Lunch prepared for Mother's Day complete with chocolate-dipped strawberries will make Moms' Day magnificent. Moms will enjoy many specials discounted just for them including a WILD CARD to buy any current wine by the box for 40% off.

You bet Shir -azz! Our Cab-Shiraz is tasting real fine! With more than 1500 wine afficianados tasting our wines during the two El Dorado Wine Passport Weekends, our 2001 Cab/Shiraz (pardon me for using the 2002 label which hasn't even bin released) climbed to an amazing number two spot in sales second only to Zin. Wiht 85% Cabernet Sauvignon, I could have called it such but the 15% addition of Shiraz was such an amazing transformation it had to be told. So I've selected this 2001 Cab/Shiraz as a Buy The Box selection at 40% off by the case. Buy a case or two to enjoy with your friends for only $9.60 a bottle. You're going to enjoy this now; you bet Shir-azz! Our Price: $16.00 / By The Box $9.60 Learn More about By The Box

Uncork the beauty of an Irish Women! Eire Ban, meaning Irish Women or irish white, is our Sauvignon Blanc. Estate Grown and picked at golden ripeness, this Sauvignon Blanc is rich, even creamy, with hints of vanilla and warm pear. Excellent when served with creamy dishes like Pasta Primavera, our Scallops Eire Ban, ripe brie or camembert, this full bodied white can tackle even bigger fare. I've selected this too for this month's By The Box Club. That's 40 % off the regular $10.00 making each bottle only $6.00 by the case box. Our Price: $10.00 / $6.00 By The Box We make wine for you to enjoy and we're not going to let price get in the way of that!

The Power of Zin with the elegance of silk! We captured all the berry berry good flavors so cherished from this Shenandoah Valley dry-farmed vineyard but in a more elegant framework. Under appreciated by trophy hunters of monster wines, the elegance of this 2001 Zin's medium body will please the most discriminating wine buff and shine in its versatility to pair with many different food types. As you've heard me explain before, great value is the catch of the day. And with this great Zin offered this month in our By The Box Club at 40% off for only $10.20 instead of $17, you need to take advantage of this one month offer before it's too late. Our Retail Price: $17.00 / $10.20 By The Box You too can get reat values every month By The Box.

May showers will bring the wildflower show to spectacular heights - don't miss it! Three new releases join our wines available to taste: 2002 Estate Chardonnay, 2002 Estate Zinfandel and 2003 Wilde's Soul of Man (ruby port).

Friday Night Wood-Fired Oven Pizza has begun. This week was cancelled because of weather. We should be beyond that problem from here on out so come join us some Friday. Call starting Monday of the week you want to come for reservations. We've got live music nights coming up, as well as Irish dancers on June 10th.

All the Best,

Remember you can always enjoy Fitzpatrick world class wines delivered right to your door. Call us at 800-245-9166 or email or fax 530-620-6838 your order. You'll enjoy the same great values we offer in our tasting room.