Dear Family and Friends, 

When we originally opened The Vineyard Wine Bar our intentions were to be able to offer a “wine related” gift section….. but unfortunately the limited space did not allow for this to initially happen. Still, we had always hoped we’d be able to bring our vision of an upscale wine gift shop to town…. and for the past few months we’ve been planning to do just that!

Imagine being able to purchase everything wine related from Cork Screws, to Insulated Wine Tote Bags, and Picnic Baskets… to Wine Racks, and Wine Refrigerators… to Bottle Chillers, and Decanters, Bottle Stoppers, and Cheese Boards… to the great Glasses that The Vineyard Wine Bar uses, to wine art and wine jewlery, and just about everything else you can think of that helps to enhance the pleasure of drinking wine?

Well you will soon be able to purchase these, and many, many more wine related gifts at the largest Wine Gift Shop in Maryland.

Whether it’s a gift for you, or for a friend or loved one, or just something to enhance your enjoyment of wine…. We will have it.

We are very happy to announce our plans to open “The Vineyard Wine Bar Gift Shop”.

The Vineyard Wine Bar Gift Shop will be conveniently located right across the street from The Vineyard Wine Bar, at 200 North Washington Street in Historic Downtown Havre de Grace, (on the opposite corner of The Vineyard Wine Bar.)

Stay tuned as we build out, and get ready to open, the Coolest, Friendliest, Trendiest, most Wine Accessory-est, “Ultimate Destination for Wine Gift Lovers” Gift Shop.

Opening is set for early November.

More to follow………

Stay tuned as we get ready to post our Fall Schedule of Events.

Please note that we will be closed for Labor Day, Monday, September 6^th, and will reopen on Wednesday, September 8^th.

(As Tuesday is our normal day to be closed.)

Thank you and have a safe and enjoyable holiday.

Presented by The Vineyard Wine Bar and Laurrapin Grille

Sunday, August 29, 2010

4:00 PM to 7:00 PM

$45.00 per person

Location: The Vineyard Wine Bar, and Laurrapin Grille

Limited to 150 tickets

Indulge yourself in an evening of wine and food from around the globe without leaving Havre de Grace!

Taste your way through some of the world’s great wine producing regions; including Northern California, Italy, France, Spain, Australia, Argentina, and Chile.

Food and wine experts from Laurrapin Grille, and The Vineyard Wine Bar will lead your palate on a delicious culinary tour of premium wines and international cuisine as you visit wine and food stations set up at The Vineyard Wine Bar, and Laurrapin Grille. 

Tickets include entry fee, unlimited food sampling, and 12 wine tastes. (Extra tastes can be purchased at the event.)

Tickets available at The Vineyard Wine Bar, 443-502-2551, and Laurrapin Grille, 410-939-4956

Be sure to mark the date: Sunday, August 29, 2010

Time: 4:00 PM to 7:00 PM

The Place: The Vineyard Wine Bar, and Laurrapin Grille, Washington Street, Havre de Grace, Maryland

The event: Wines and Foods of the World

We are very close to announcing the first “Washington Street Wine and Food Festival” which will showcase wines and foods from France, Spain, Italy, Australia, California, Argentina and Chile, and will be held between The Vineyard Wine Bar, and our friends across the street at the Laurrapin Grille. Stay tuned for further information.

The Construction is now completed.

The Concrete work finished.

The Pergola is in place.

The Fireplace, Fountain, Fence, Trees, Plants, Flowers, Umbrellas and Candles are in their locations.

The paint work is done.

The Fan is in.

The Tables and Chairs are ready to accommodate their first guests.

We are pleased to announce that our

Outdoor “Tuscan Courtyard”

will open on Wednesday, June 30th.

So leave the fast pace behind and step into your own little Tuscan getaway.

Let us wine and dine you, and create a European vacation….

If only for an hour or two.

Join us in the Tuscan Courtyard on Wednesday, June 30^th, and Thursday, July 1^st, and we’ll treat you to a celebratory glass of Sparkling Wine for $1.00. (Seating is limited and this offer is only available in the Courtyard. So come early)

The Vineyard Wine Bar, Bistro and Bottle Shop……… and “Outdoor Tuscan Courtyard”

142 N Washington Street

Historic Downtown Havre de Grace, MD 20178

443-502-2551

We are very excited about next Wednesday!

Next Wednesday you have the opportunity to meet one of California’s wine-maker-stars…. Rick Davis.

California has roughly 2,900 + wineries. There are wineries that make everything from basic, uninteresting, commercial wine, to “cult” artisan winemakers that make only a few hundred cases of highly sought after, boutique, wines that are outstanding in quality.

Rick is one of those tallented winemakers. He and his winery, “Calstar”, produce some of the best California Chardonnay and Pinot Noir we’ve had….. period!

Rick is flying in from Sonoma next Wednesday to meet with us and taste 5 of his hand-crafted wines with the group. He’ll even autograph a bottle for you.
This is California wine making at its best… and if you’re a fan of California Chardonnay and Pinot Noir you don’t want to miss meeting Rick, speaking with him, and tasting his exceptional wines. (Oh, by the way… we’re going to have one of his Sauvignon Blancs, and one of his Zinfandels also… the real stuff!)

So be sure to join us next WEDNESDAY, June 23rd, for a “Meet the Winemaker”
with Rick Davis of “Calstar”,
and a showcase tasting of the exceptional wines he makes in Sonoma County California.

Our Tasting will start at 7:00 PM in the lounge and is limited to the first 20 people.
The cost is $20 per person which includes wine, cheese and crackers, and a $10 gift certificate toward the purchase of wine or food.

Please RSVP with name and phone number via email to Joe at
joelertch@gmail.com or phone 443-502-2551 to reserve your place

Hope to see you next Wednesday, June 23rd

Argentina………. One of the most trendy, ever-growing-in-popularity, countries for wine. It wasn’t but a few years ago that Argentina was considerably behind Chile in producing good quality wines, and didn’t garner much attention in the wine world…… but within the last 10 years Argentina has surged ahead to become the most popular wine producing country in South America…. Leading the way with Malbec.

 There are a number of wineries in Argentina, some producing wines that are nothing more than OK… others producing wines that are outstanding in quality, and in value. We have numerous high quality wines from Argentina in our wine bar and retail shop, but one of our most favorite wineries is Michel Torino, located in the Cafayate, (Caf-ah-jot-tay), Valley of Argentina. With over 1500 acres of vineyards planted at 5500 to 6600 feet above sea level, Michel Torino has some of the highest vineyards in the world, and is the most important winery in the Cafayate Valley.

 All of the Michel Torino wines are hand-harvested in the estate’s vineyards. They also practice sustainable, environmentally-friendly farming by minimizing the use of fertilizers and chemicals. The wines made here are elegant, full of varietal character, flavor, and ripe fruit. In a word, the wines are Delicious!

 We are very pleased to announce that our next Fireside Chat will be with Martin Lazorenco of the Michel Torino winery, and we’ll hear about, and taste, the Michel Torino Organic “Cuma” line of wines, along with the Michel Torino “Don David Reserve” wines.

Please be sure to join us next THURSDAY, June 17th, for a Fireside Chat with Martin Lazorenco of the Michel Torino winery, and a showcase tasting of the wonderful wines of Michel Torino, in the Cafayate Valley, Argentina.

Our Fireside Chat and Tasting will start at 7:00 PM in the lounge and we’ll learn about and enjoy:

“Cuma” Organic Torrentes

(If you’ve ever, or never, had GOOD, organically made wine, you’re in for a treat)

“Cuma” Organic Cabernet Sauvignon 

“Cuma” Organic Malbec

Michel Torino “Don David Reserve” Malbec

Michel Torino “Don David Reserve” Tannat

 This tasting is limited to the first 20 people and the cost is $20 per person which includes wine, cheese and crackers, and a $10 gift certificate toward the purchase of wine or food.

 Please RSVP with name and phone number via email to Joe at

 joelertch@gmail.com or phone 443-502-2551 to reserve your place

 Hope to see you next Thursday, June 17th

A Celebration is in the works!

The Vineyard Wine Bar has now been open for 7 months. Where has the time gone? It seems like just yesterday we were still in the construction phase and here we are open for 7 months. Time has flown by, and we’ve met some really great customers along the way… as a matter of fact we are approaching our 10-thousanth customer! That’s right, we’ve had almost 10,000 customers eat, drink, and enjoy themselves since we opened 7 months ago.

Thank you all very much for your support!

Now….. what we’ve decided to do is celebrate this milestone…. so we’re going to do just that!

According to our projection it looks like our 10,000^th guest will walk through the door this Friday, May 28th. When they do there will be a “Celebration” for everyone who’s at The Vineyard Wine Bar.

Our 10,000^th guest will receive a bottle of our best Champagne, (for Ten-Cents), (along with other treats), and all of our guests drinking and dining, (when that 10,000^th person walks in), will receive 10% off their bill. There will be other prizes and celebratory offerings also.

We plan to make it a very special night for all those with us this Friday.

So plan ahead to see if you are the 10,000^th customer this Friday…. and help us celebrate.

Joe

Tuscan Courtyard Update:

A few weeks ago we announced plans to open our Outdoor Tuscan Courtyard on Saturday, May 29^th. Well…. some of the construction materials are delayed in delivery, so we will have to delay the opening for a week or two. But don’t fret; we have our building permit in hand, we’ve started the concrete work, our contractor has started his portion of the build out, and the count down to opening has started. So stay tuned. We’ll be announcing the official opening in the next week or two. (We’ve got a lot of fun events planned, and it’s going to be a great, fun, outdoor space.)

One of our favorite areas of the wine world is The Rhone Valley in France. The Rhone has some very interesting white wine grapes planted there…. Roussanne, Marsanne, Viognier, etc. and some equally, (if not more), impressive red wine grapes….. Grenache, Syrah, Mourvedre, Cinsault, Carignan, and many others.

 The wines coming from The Rhone Valley can be very expressive, and very long lived. There are a number of good Negotiant Houses there and a number of the wines available are of very good to excellent quality….. but just recently we found a producer that we think has a line-up of outstanding Rhone wines that express the best of what The Rhone Valley has to offer, and we are going to debut them for the first time.

That producer is Maison Ferraton Pere & Fils, and next Wednesday we will be tasting 5 of those wines from Maison Ferraton.

Please be sure to join us next Wednesday, May 19th, for a Fireside Chat

with Nicholas Dufour of Maison Ferraton & Fils, and a showcase tasting of the wonderful wines of Maison Ferraton & Fils, from Tain Hermitage, France.

Our Fireside Chat and Tasting will start at 7:00 PM in the lounge and we’ll learn about and enjoy:

“Samorens” Cotes Du Rhone Blanc

“La Matiniere” Crozes Hermitage Blanc

“Plan de dieu” Cotes Du Rhone Villages Rouge

“La Matiniere” Crozes Hermitage Rouge

“Les Lauses” Tavel Rose

This tasting is limited to the first 20 people and the cost is $20 per person.

Please RSVP with name and phone number via email to Joe at

 joelertch@gmail.com or phone 443-502-2551 to reserve your place

Hope to see you next Wednesday, May 19th