(Eastern Pennsylvania) Looking for a special activity to experience with your sweetheart for Valentines Day? Spend the day exploring the wineries along the Berks County Wine Trail. This is a sweet opportunity to discover and enjoy Pennsylvania hand-crafted wines paired with the seasonal favorite food: chocolate.
Saturday February 13th and Sunday February 14th from Noon to 5 PM both days is a great weekend to get sweet on your sweetie during the Berks County Wine Trail’s Annual "Chocolate & Wine Pairing Event Weekend." Visit any or all of the eight Berks County Wine Trail wineries during this event weekend to sample fabulous locally produced wines cleverly paired with assorted chocolate-y creations!
This event pairing is free and no reservations or tickets are required. Please note that some wineries may charge a nominal fee for tastings from their regular wine list.
Chocolate & Wine Pairing Weekend is a "self-guided tour" of the Berks County Wine Trail. Plan your delicious weekend by selecting which wineries you'd like to visit and plan your day accordingly. Or you can simply plan your trip by picking out which wineries are nearest to your location. For a new adventure, select the ones furthest from you. To help you plan, maps and directions are available on the wine trail's website. Additional directions are available on the individual wineries websites as well.
The Berks County Wine Trail and its participating wineries are sprawled across beautiful Pennsylvania countryside. Situated near the Greater Reading area, the wine trail’s location in the Berks County region is an easy destination: North of Philadelphia , just southwest of the Lehigh Valley, or due West of Manhattan area.
Last year, the wine trail welcomed record crowds to this particular event. Not only is this event is an easy way to start learning about award-winning Pennsylvania wine and wine pairings, but chocolate paired with wine seems to make even the most wine-timid person feel adventurous about trying new wines.
Just to give a taste of what is to come, the complete pairing menu of chocolates and featured wines is:
Cuddle up with your sweetheart at Long Trout Winery with their own homemade wine-infused Chex® Mixes paired with an ever-so-pleasing assortment of Long Trout's signature array of Chocolate Wines (yes, “chocolate” wine!). Curl up with chocolate-y varietals including: 'Instant "O" My Gods,' 'Heavy Breather Orange U Glads' or 'Berried In Choc - Sock It To Meees.'
Chocolate lovers can indulge themselves with ambrosial Raspberry Dessert Wine paired with an enticing Chocolate Torte while visiting Kog Hill Winery.
Ready for Wine, Romance and Chocolate? Pinnacle Ridge Winery will be serving classic French Crepes filled with strawberries, drizzled with decadent bittersweet chocolate sauce and dusted with confectioner's sugar and chocolate shavings. Our homemade crepes will be paired with Pinnacle Ridge's decadent red wine: Sweet Seduction.
Blair Vineyards is giving away kisses! Enjoy Mocha French Kiss, which is a coffee chocolate truffle kiss styled sweet dessert. Those kissed will enjoy pairing with Blair's Lower Block Pinot Noir. And get ready to say good-bye to Blair's location in Mertztown - they will aim to have their new location in Kutztown open in April for the wine trail's spring event.
Back by popular demand - dip into a fountain of chocolate at Bashore & Stoudt Country Winery. Enjoy dipping fresh fruit and baked goodies into a dreamy cascade of melted chocolate and sampling such temptation with featured fruit wines.
Un cioccolato con amore per te! In English: A chocolate with love for you! Celebrate the sweetest holiday around with wine and chocolate. Clover Hill Winery will be sampling a Cannoli rolled in mini chocolate chips paired with the beautiful white wine, Vignoles (one of the medal winning wines!). Bring your sweetheart and celebrate the love!
Calvaresi will be the choco-holics haven as they pair their Cayuga White with chocolate-covered Mango; their 2009 Concord with triple chocolate malted-milk balls, and their Sherry with a chocolate-covered red raspberries.
Manatawny Creek will be serving up an ultra-chic Chocolate Cabernet Cake topped with whipped-cream and paired with their Cabernet Sauvignon and their Port.
This event will also be a fantastic opportunity to taste medal winning wines from the 2010 PA Farm Show. Berks County Wine Trail wineries collectively brought home over twenty medals this year including four Gold Medals and a Best in Show! The complete list of medal winning wines is listed on the wine trail's website. Not all of these winning wines are featured as part of the event’s wine pairings, but visitors are encouraged to seek them out on each winery’s regular tasting menu.
For more information: www.berkscountywinetrail.com or email: berks_county_wine_trail@yahoo.com
Please click on the links below to download hi-rez photos. Photo credit: Berks County Wine Trail.