2017 Red Wine Pirtle Winery

A few friends said that Missouri’s wine industry had improved these last few years. We decided to give it another try. More than a decade ago, we drank our way across the Herman Missouri wine trail, along Hwy 94. The main red varietal use was Norton grapes. On a Saturday afternoon, we drove to nearby Weston, MO. The area had added a winery we never visited: TerraVox tasting Room. I drove us there, but could not locate the tasting room. So, I had to stop & ask for help. We discovered the tasting room was located inside a Creamery, which specialized in ice cream sales. We found the Creamery, doing a brisk business. It sells local ice cream in various forms. Plus, it has a pizza shop, that microwaves in-the-box frozen pizza. There, situated in a back corner was the TerraVox tasting room. We purchased a flight of their reds, plus a flight of their whites. However, neither mixed well with strawberry, chocolate, and lemon-flavored smells off the ice cream. Those overcooked pizza orders really helped in defining the wine’s aromas. Their reds were variations on the Norton grape. The whites got lost in many Canadian bacon cheese pizzas. We have no idea how these wines actually tasted, but those ice cream Sundays and large chocolate cones really smelled good. After that tasting, we stopped by the Pirtle Winery, which we have visited on earlier trips. Their wines have improved over the past decade. I bought a single bottle of “red wine”. It isn’t a Norton, but the winemaker does not identify its grape. So, I’m guessing it is imported from a different region. It has skinny legs and a crimson ruby color. The nose is fruity: raspberry. (making it not Norton.) After more tasting, there is raspberry, black tea, and a mineral/slate light finish. Pirtle Winery kept the cost down with a lighter glass bottle & a plastic cork stopper. Any trip through Missouri wine county becomes an interesting experience.