March 16, 2012 - Weston, MO

After topping off the Subaru, my wife and I set out for Weston, Missouri about 10:30am.  We drove north on Metcalf Avenue in Overland Park, continued on as it transitioned into Interstate 635.  Traffic was moderate being a weekday, but we made good time, crossing over the Missouri River into Missouri, passing Parkville South High School and merging onto I-29.  We exited off I-635 at the State Highway 45 crossing and proceeded North.

Traffic slowed as we approached newer Parkville.  Parkville is a growing community and Highway 45 was only a single lane in both directions.  A widened Highway with additional lanes in both directions would help support the increase in businesses and residents.

Leaving the steep Parkville hills, Highway 45 flattens out on the floodplain.  Interestingly, right of the Highway, the Missouri River bluffs climb steeply.  Most homeowners have chosen to build on the hills and leave the floodplain to farmland.  Only railroad and highway stand elevated above the floodplain.  We arrived in Weston around 11:30am.  Rather than going to the wineries on an empty stomach, we opted to go to the America Bowman Restaurant.

Figure 1 -Weston Brewing Company located south of downtown Weston

Located within the Weston Brewing Company (http://westonirish.com/), the restaurant specializes in Irish fare and of course home brewed Irish-style ales and stouts as well as offering Pirtle wines.  We lucked out and were seated at a table for two with a kerosene lamp.  Soon after, a number of large groups arrived, filling the cozy restaurant.  My wife and I opted for the Fish & Chips with remoulade sauce, but she picked the house salad with poppy seed dressing and sugared walnuts and I chose the cheese and ale soup.  We enjoyed our meal and then walked across the parking lot and up the stairs at the Vineyard Restaurant over to the Pirtle Winery (http://www.pirtlewinery.com/).

Figure 2 - Pirtle Winery in Weston.  Note the staircase to enter the tasting room

Figure 3 - Inside the Tasting Room at the Pirtle Winery

If you decide to venture out to Missouri Wineries, be sure visit the website www.missouriwine.org.  The Missouri Wine & Grape board has put together a wine passport program that lets you obtain stamps from each winery you visit and depending on the number of wineries you've visited, rewards can be redeemed at participating wineries (over 90 in all).   My wife and I picked up our wine passport at Pirtle Winery and received our first stamp.

We were helped by Erin and sampled from driest to sweetest : the Chardonel, Alhambra, Chambourcin, Weston Bend Rosé, Vignoles (previously known as the Weston Bend White), Cherry Mead, Blueberry Mead, Blackberry Mead, and Mellow Red.

For us, we especially liked the Weston Bend Rose' and the Vignoles.  The last four wines starting with the Cherry Mead were sweet enough that they could be paired with fondue, cheesecake, or any other creamy desert.  Being that we typically like a glass of wine with our main dish, we selected a bottle of the Weston Bend Rose' and the Vignoles.

Figure 4 - Pirtle Wines awards

Following our tasting, we walked around downtown Weston.  We stopped in a couple of shops just window shopping to get ideas for a return trip with family and friends.  One store worth noting is the McCormick Country Store of McCormick liquor fame.  The store carries its vast line of spirits and samples are available for tasting for a quarter a piece.

We walked a little ways from downtown to admire the neighborhoods.  Some well maintained and not-so-well maintained historic homes are in Weston.  It was also a chance to enjoy the unseasonably warm weather.  The Magnolia trees must have had the same idea and were in full bloom and it was neat to be able smell their fragrant flowers from across the street.

Figure 5 - Looking North from downtown Weston

Figure 6 - A number of amazing homes still exist from the town's heyday as the jumping off point for settlers traveling on the Oregon Trail

Figure 7 - Historic Downtown Weston getting ready for St. Patrick's Day

Following our walk through Weston, we returned to the America Bowman to split a lemon and raspberry 'pye' and picked up a six pack of Leapin' Leprechaun Ale for our St. Patrick's Day meal with my in-laws the next day.  My father-in-law would appreciate the thought.

We then continued north on Hwy 45, passing the Kansas City Power & Light Iatan power plant until we arrived at our last stop, the Riverwood Winery.

Figure 8 - Riverwood Winery on Hwy 45 located 12 miles north of Weston

The Riverwood Winery (http://www.riverwoodwinery.com/) stands in a converted elementary school.  Its old multipurpose room on our visit had a big screen airing March Madness Coverage.  On other occasions, the auditorium hosts the winery's musical guests when inclement weather forces visitors back inside.  Our generous host stamped our wine passport and took us through the tastings, again sampling driest to sweetest: a Chardonel, Cayuga White, Avid Apple (apple wine from apples grown in nearby Sibley, Missouri), Chambourcin, Cynthiana Norton, Blackberry, Port White Eminence, and Chocolate Cherry Dessert wine.

We especially liked the Avid Apple.  Last summer, I'd finally cracked the code to grilling pork chops and we could easily see enjoying a refreshing glass of Avid Apple to go along with pork chops. 

We differed in our opinions on the Norton, Port White Eminence and Chocolate Cherry Dessert Wine.   Whereas most tastings have water and crackers to cleanse the palate, the Riverwood also offered semi-sweet chocolate chips.  In our brief experience tasting Nortons, the official wine grape of Missouri, most came off too strong and tart to our liking.  However, the Riverwood Norton when paired with semi-sweet chocolate chips sweetened and it's spiciness complimented the chocolate very well.  The Port White Eminence and the Chocolate Cherry Dessert wine were sweet, but a tad too strong for my wife.  I enjoyed them, but agreed that I could only have them in small amounts.  Another interesting note we noticed when drinking the Chocolate Cherry Dessert wine were elements of sweet clove.  Our host indicated he had heard from others that they too had picked up on the clove notes, but assured us that only the chocolate was added during the wine making process. 

Figure 9 - The tasting room and gift shop at Riverwood Winery

Figure 10 - Collected Riverwood Winery Corks

Figure 11 - Our selections from our visit

While we enjoyed our time in visiting Weston, we returned home with three wines we could both agree on.  As shown above, they were the Pirtle Missouri Vignoles, Pirtle Weston Bend Rosé, and Riverwood Avid Apple.