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2B ♦ WEDNESDAY, AUGUST 23, 2006 American varietals: Can they compete? I was talking with anoth er writer and he asked me, “Do you think wines made from American grapes will ever be able to compete with traditional European wines?” There it was. The question was out there. How would I answer? Honestly, of course. But would I take the dip- loma t i c approach? Would I be blunt and sound like a snob? Or would I answer in the affir mative, perhaps the most shocking thought Brian Goodall The Wine Guy Morris News Service of all? There are two main barriers to this happening. One is the legal aspect of producing and selling wine in the United States. I won’t go into all of the details of interstate com merce laws and Supreme Court decisions, but suffice it to say that it is very dif ficult for small wineries in most states to get their prod ucts to market beyond the winery itself or a very small geographical area nearby. Without a distributor, tourism, local restaurants, and the Internet are the primary avenues of income. Second - and this is where it gets a bit dicey - American grapes are not included among the noble variet ies because they are of a different family of grapes. They simply do not produce wine on the same level. The major players in wine Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot, Pinot Noir, Riesling, Chardonnay, and so on, are all grapes of the vitis vinif era species. American grapes hail from the species’ of vitis labrusca, vitis riparia, and vitis rotundifolia. The difference is more than just Latin. So you have three levels, or categories, of grapes that are being grown for the purpose of making wine. The above mentioned vitis vinifera grapes, American natives, such as the Concord or Muscadine, and hybrids, cross breeds of various types and species. Case in point. In and around Hermann, Missouri, are seven wineries that make up the Hermann Wine Trail. They all produce wines from local varietals and hybrids. No vitis vinifera grapes among them. They are growing Norton, Vignoles, Seyval, Vidal, Chambourcin, and the like. These are the grapes that are well suited to the climate and soil of the area. And some of the wine is fairly good. Some of it is rather regrettable. See WINE, page jfl Kitchen Gallery Drop By And Sign Up For Our NEW Summer Cooking Classes! NEW SCHEDULES NOW AVAILABLE! WEDI^ AUjty. 3joiTH| AtilOamj The 3 Southern Sisters will be sharing some of their favorite party foods some of these they never shared before. See Our Sale Ad In This Section 00036893 ’■** 504 Russell Parkway Warner Robins , GA 31088 Sunset Plaza • 923-0090 From sea to shining sea i r Ups. f ft JS “ i " : i \ *’ iVw ■ jy■-•••• iir» : utenf" 1 1 L * t Ojjmrn ■ yiiLP,, r. ~T- ■- J v h * flam am m .jpWH m Maryland Annapolis, Md. is famous for its history and its sailing. It is also the home of the U.S. Naval Academy. Memories: chinquapins and broken hearts By Audrey Batchelor Journal Guest Writer During a recent visit to Perry to attend a family reunion, I was delighted to be invited to an open house. The hosts, whom I had never met, welcomed me into their beautiful new home just as if I were fam ily. Both the food and the company were delicious. This is when I met that rascal, Charlotte Perkins. A friendship bloomed and I thoroughly enjoyed her col orful stories. Each time I encounter such true southern hospi tality, I’m delighted. I recall my grandparents’ home dur ing my childhood, and, as I do, it makes my heart sing. Grandma had three broth ers, who like my grandfather were Southern Maryland tobacco farmers. Two never married. There were stories about Uncle Joe having had a love affair when he was young. We children knew her name - Sally. She broke his heart by running away with another. She “done him wrong.” It was said that he swore he’d never let anyone break his heart again. However, I suspect never loving again, or hav ing a special someone in his life really broke his heart. And there was Uncle George, who was so loving yet so scary. Uncle George was the exact image of the Hunchback of Notre Dame. I’ve never met or seen any one quite like him again. Uncle George never left the farm except to attend Sunday Mass, he wouldn’t even go to the wonderful church suppers. I spent every summer on the farm (heaven on earth!) with my grandpar ents. I recall wonderfully lazy days, a deliciously chilly stream with wild vio lets on the banks, picking Lady Slippers in the woods, catching fireflies at twilight, and only wearing shoes for church. I read lots of books, espe cially “Nancy Drew.” Grandma prepared gour met meals: fried green tomatoes, fried apples with onions, hot biscuits with homemade apple butter and fresh sour cream, liver and onions, cuumber sandwich es, chicken and dumplings. On Sundays it was fried chicken, mashed pota toes and gravy, or potato IraL rm Ho 0 /. DISCOUNT STUDENTS ON THE DAY I.OF COOKING CLASSES!. FOOD salad, and I do mean every Sunday. We picked blueberries, boysenberries, raspberries, dewberries and chinquapins (an absolutely delectable tiny nut.) Grandma made elderberry wine. On sum mer Sundays, family and guests gathered on the lawn for serious croquet competi tions. Grandma served each one a cheese glass of wine, no more, no less. Since I was from out of town for the family reunion, I wasn’t able to prepare any thing to bring. So, I went to the grocers and bought love ly, buttery croissants and party trays of fresh fruit and caramel dip. This was fine. But, if I’d been home, I would have made a couple of my favorites. Broccoli Salad 2 medium purple onions 2 (16-oz.) packages fresh broccoli florets 2 (3.75 oz.) packages sunflower kernels 2 cups golden raisins 2 cups mayonnaise 8 bacon slices, cooked and crumbled 6 tablespoons red wine vinegar Chop onion and broccoli florets. Stir together onion, Mennonite Owned m I Wenger I HOURS: Mon - Fri 11am - 2pm Thurs & Fri Nights spm - Bpm broccoli and remaining ingredients. Chill at least two hours. Serves 12 to 15. Grandma’s Excellent Potato Salad 12 medium red pota toes, cooked and cut up Blend together: 1/2 cup vinegar 1/2 cup oil Salt and pepper 4 stalks celery, chopped 1/2 red pepper, chopped 2 medium Vidalia onions, chopped 5 tablespoons mustard 5 tablespoons mayon naise Mix all ingredients. Best if made the day before. Simply Simple Delicious Vegetable Salad 1 family-size package frozen vegetables (corn, peas, string beans, limas, carrots) 1 medium can red kid ney beans, drained 1/2 cup chopped onion 1/2 cup chopped celery 1/2 cup chopped green pepper [LUNCH L A. A. - .A. A 1 Meat + 2 Vegetables + Bread + Tea $6.25 EVENINGS - Thur& Fri spm-Bpm Roast Beef Dinner $7.50 Qil 626 Courtney Hodges Blvd. • Perry, GA 478-988-2643 00036399 HOUSTON DAILY JOURNAL Yikitaimapolis.org 1/2 cup chopped red pepper Mix together: 3/4 cup vin egar, 1 cup sugar, a dash of salt. Cook veggies a little less than prescribed time. When cool add remaining ingredients. Mix and chill. Marinate at least 24 hours. Refrigerated, this keeps indefinitely. Until next time ... Editor’s note: This is the sixth in the Journal’s series on food from the 50 states. Our guest writer lives in Annapolis, but has close ties in Perry. Note to our readers The “Sea to Shining Sea” series has, now covered Idaho, Pennsylvania, Texas, Hawaii and Maryland, which means we’ve got 45 to go! If your home state has a special food you’d like to see fea tured, or if you have childhood memories of great food, like Audrey Batchelor, we welcome suggestions and guest writers. Home Cooked Meals i