"What though youth gave love and roses age still leaves us friends and wine."
-Thomas Moore |
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New Releases
Old Vine Red Zinfandel, 2007
Coming Soon:
Chambourcin, 2008 |
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Almost Gone
DeChaunac, 2008
Merlot, 2007 |
Group Tours and Tastings
If you have a group of 10 or more that plans to visit Satek Winery, we'd love to show you around! Please call to give us a heads-up so we can be sure to have enough space for group tasting and staff available to give you a tour. Note that due to the wine production schedule, we may not be able to give tours certain days. Also, we regret that we cannot allow strollers, wheelchairs, canes or walkers into the production room for safety reasons.
If your group would like to schedule a visit, please call us at
(260) 495-WINE.
Thinking to warmer days ahead, we will have the picnic tables and tents back up in late Spring. Its a great place to plan to bring a picnic lunch and enjoy a glass of wine with your favorite friends! |
W.I.N.O.S. series
set for Spring
Grab your friends for a fun Girls Night Out!
Thanks to the popularity of our first-ever W.I.N.O.S. event (Women In Need Of Shopping), we're planning to continue this event for the Spring. Dates are set for the 3rd Thursday of each month here at Satek Winery. Our Spring events will be March 18, April 15, and May 20. We'll have a similar format to last fall's event, with several fun vendors to indulge your need for shopping, wine tasting, and mingling with friends; but we're adding catered munchies and a secondary wine tasting area to help with crowding. We're also asking for reservations so look for an email in the near future so you can reserve your tickets for this very popular event! | |
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Greetings! ,
 Happy Valentines Day! Yes, I know its actually Groundhog Day, but really-- who wants to celebrate that we are going to have 6 more weeks of this bone-chilling winter? I'd rather focus on days to look forward to-- days closer to Spring! And if you do plan to celebrate Valentine's Day, consider stopping by Satek Winery to pick up a Raspberry-Chocolate gift basket for your true love. This $50 basket includes two signature wine glasses, a bottle of Raspberry Wine, a jar of our decadent Old Vine Red Zinfandel Chocolate Fudge sauce, a pockette corksrew, and two wine charms. Sure to be a gift you'll both enjoy sharing!
-Chrissie |
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 Less is More: A short course in wine reductions
by Jason Satek
Wine tastes pretty good. If you're reading this, then you are already a believer, but you may not have thought about all the applications wine can have. Cooking with wine, specifically as a wine sauce reduction, is a fairly easy way to accentuate a meal and break new ground in utilizing an already familiar character at meal times. I will illustrate with an example, Satek Winery Mango Mania, that I took for a test drive recently.
Into a sauce pan, place around a cup of wine and turn the burner to medium-high heat; you can use more or less, but the times will have to be adjusted accordingly. Place a lid or screen over the pan, as 1) the liquid may spatter while heating and 2) the process will go much faster if the pan is covered. (In my first attempt with Mango, the cooking time was about twenty minutes uncovered, and the liquid reduced to 1/4 cup, but never thickened. In my second, successful attempt, the covered liquid reduced in about half time, reduced further (2 Tablespoons) and thickened wonderfully). This process will take a few minutes, leaving you free to start any other parts of the meal. Occasionally stir the liquid, keeping in mind that condensation will accumulate on the lid. To counteract this development, lift one side slowly, angling the other side back into the pan, and remember, it may get hot. Caution is the word.
When the liquid has visibly lost volume, find a clean spoon and dip it into the liquid. When the wine reduction begins to cling to the spoon instead of beading off, you are about there. Turn off the burner and remove the pan to a safe area to cool; Waiting will further congeal the reduction. If, for some reason, the resulting product is too thick, becoming paste-like, you can add small amounts of water and whisk it back to liquidity (I've done it). When ready, place your confection over your intended dish and serve. For an interesting comparison, try some of the unreduced wine along side of the wine reduction; the flavors, while (hopefully) similar will be altered and distinct. The reduction should have less alcohol flavor but a more intense core taste. I have found varying levels of success with a good selection of our wines, with Blackberry served over a pork chop probably still the best version, yet my Mango over Angola's own Harger's Meat's ham steak was a very worthy endeavor. The whole field is open to you and your palate. One note: Mango did not cook down as succinctly as had others before it (Blackberry, Raspberry, Port and Foch, notably); perhaps this is due to the nature of the fruit itself (hence the two attempts), but with a little care, the result was the same-- a delicious dinner. Experimentation is good. Wine is good, and wine pared with a little science can be fun and tasty-- just don't tell my Dad I said that. |
Wine 101: The way you store your wine really does matter
by Chrissie Koher
We are frequently asked by our customers for advice on how to store the wines they purchase. If you plan to consume your wine immediately or within a few days of purchase, room temperature is fine for reds, and the refrigerator is fine for whites and fruit wines. Just don't leave your wine out in your car in the summer for a few hours-you will likely kick-start oxidation, which isn't so tasty. And if you put a bottle in the freezer to rapid-chill your wine, and accidentally leave it there it may explode if the wine is left to freeze. Don't ask me how I know this. But if you plan to keep your wine around for a few weeks or months, or even age them a few years, how you store them really does matter. Since most of us aren't fortunate enough to have our own custom-built wine cellar, following these guidelines will help ensure that your wine quality is preserved and that the natural chemical reactions that contribute to the proper aging are not impeded.
There are really 6 factors you want to control when storing wine:
1) Storage angle. Keep your bottle horizontal, or even tilted downwards. The idea is to keep the cork moist. If the cork dries out, air can enter the bottle and cause oxidation.
2) Light level. Many wine bottles are made of colored glass, which does help to minimize light exposure. Ultraviolet light degrades the organic compounds in wine, so wine stored in a dark environment is best.
3) Humidity. Too dry of an environment will cause the cork to become brittle, and air can, again, enter the bottle. Ideally, 60-70% relative humidity is best.
4) Vibration. Do you have your wine rack on the top of your fridge? Even the vibration from the motor is enough to stir up sediment and interfere with aging. Find a location with minimal to no vibration.
5) Ventilation. Natural corks are porous, and cooking aromas and cleaning product fumes can seep into the bottle via the cork. Store wine away from areas where it would be exposed to strong odors.
6) Temperature stability. The consensus among wine experts seems to be 50-55 degrees F for long-term red wine storage temperature (45-50 degrees for whites). More importantly, though, is keeping your wine at a consistent temperature. Fluctuations can trigger chemical reactions in the wine resulting in undesirable flavors and bouquet.
With all that being said, remember that your sweet wines and fruit wines-101 Lakes Red and White, Steuben, Blackberry, Blueberry, Mango Mania, Raspberry and ice wines- ideally should be consumed within a year of purchase. Dry whites can age well 3-5 years, and most dry reds mellow well aged 5-10 years. Ports can age the longest-even decades-if stored properly. |
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