19 wineries in 2.5 days- Day 1 Winery #1

Back in June, Aaron suggested we take a weekend and go on a wine trip. Of course, I happily agreed. We decided to head towards the Ste. Genevieve area and started looking at wineries along the way. A list was beginning to generate. St. James became our starting point.

Once we pinned a free weekend, we started checking wineries to see when they were open, if tastings were available and what wines they carried (we really prefer Missouri grape-based wines and few wineries carry California or European flairs). 30 wineries were picked. We knew we had to narrow them down somehow.

Friday, July 23rd was our start date, leaving early afternoon after work to start our trek towards St. James, MO. We wanted to take I-70 so we looked to our wine map to see what was along the way.

Our first stop was Wildlife Ridge Winery in Smithton, MO- the only one of its kind in Pettis County. We had seen WRW at a few wine walks around Kansas City and we were very impressed. Visiting them gave us a chance to try their more extensive list of wines available. The owner, Kristy, was so down-to-earth and hilarious and she took us through their list, starting with Bone Dry (white).

and it was absolutely delicious with just a hint of granny smith apple flavor. The next one was Cricket (white), semi-sweet and really good with a citrus flavor. Aaron thought it was ok but I loved it. Spring Fling (white) was served and immediately I poured it into Aaron's glass. It was a Traminette (contains notes of floral, citrus acidity, green grass). Traminette wines are not my cup of tea as it tastes like drinking floral bouquets. Aaron enjoyed it all the while laughing at me for pouring mine into his cup. Ha! Next was Roxie's Sweet Rose (white). Just a touch of Traminette, it also had the sense of a sweet strawberry and we both loved this wine. Sugar Britches (white) was one that we had before (and continuously bought) is a Moscato-like blend and very sweet. Moody Blue (white) is another bought and loved wine. An actual Moscato with just the right amount of sweet. We moved onto the reds with Sunset Red (red), it was ok. A dry red with earthy undertones, it wasn't our favorite red of the whole bunch. O Positive (red) was your classic dry red made with Norton grapes, it wasn't my favorite Norton (much too dry for my taste) and Aaron thought it was ok. Paint Brush Red (red), a semi-dry (with hints of sweet) with a cherry and currant flavor. It was another delicious wine we both loved. Deceitful Red (red) as its name lends, can be sipped either room temp or chilled. Whichever style your prefer, will give you the same flavor in a different way. We were really impressed with this wine. Sweet Pea (red), the grape used for this is always a fan favorite (and one of ours!). As a Concord wine it was simply perfect and sweet!

We gave ourselves a 30 minute time limit in each winery at the start of this journey. While we were here, the time just flew by and it was hard to leave WRW and Kristy behind. They offer Paint N Sip nights, live music and other events. You can find more information on their website at www.wildliferidgewinery.com We will absolutely be back to visit soon!