Sunday marked the Third Annual Corks & Caps event for Ankeny's SummerFest celebration, an Ankeny Chamber four-day production. Corks & Caps features local Iowa wineries and breweries pouring their well-crafted beverages for some 500 people attending.
Skies were blue, temperatures soared, but summer breezes and plenty of canopies, kept it all comfortable.
I was able to sneak away from my welcoming duties to schmooze with some of our participating vendors. Here I am in the company of local brewing giants; Ken Broadhead, part-owner/brewer from Confluence Brewing Company (confluencebrewing.com), Matt Sims, owner/brewer from Number 7 Brewing Company (number7brewing.com), and Dan Heiderscheit, owner/brewer of our newest Ankeny brewery, Firetrucker Brewery, (firetrucker.com) coming next Spring!
Corks and Caps was an awesome opportunity for event-goers to taste the brews of these and many other dedicated brewers, as well as many wines crafted from regional grapes that truly reflect the terroir of our Iowa landscape.
My shade-dappled patio looked so welcoming to my hot-and-exhausted-self when Corks & Caps was completed! A cooling refreshing wine was in order. Octave Vinho Verde was my choice.
Vinho Verde, literally "green wine", is an appellation in Portugal's northwest corner where the soils are fertile, granite and the vegetation is lush and green. "Green" also refers to the fresh, youthful style of these wines.
In this Octave offering, I found pear and mineral aromas. On the palate, a lively, slightly fizzy body prickles the tongue. Flavors are fresh and zingy with pear, mineral and lemon and a finish hinting of tropical fruits. Serve this wine well-chilled--heck, throw in a lemon slice too! The unpretentious charm of this wine won't mind at all.
The Octave, like most Vinho Verde's is low in alcohol and low in price, making it great for gulping while cooling off and relaxing on a warm summer evening!
