Grapes along the Mississippi River

Saturday morning began with temperatures in the low 30's, not a great start to a weekend motorcycle ride in mid October.  Plans were to leave by late morning so that clouds may give way to sunny skies and temperatures would rise to the low 40's at least.  Well, as many plans are just that, we didn't see any sun until mid afternoon, just prior to crossing the Mississippi River in Prairie du Chien, Wisconsin.

One of our first stops was Rural Route 1 Popcorn.  Should you find yourself in Montfort, WI and you love popcorn, this is a must stop!  Rural Route 1 Popcorn started in 1983, however seed corn here was first established in 1906.  Seed corn through the years had decreased sales, and the government started to pay farmers to sustain planting their fields for a year.  Rather than stop planting a crop, the Biddiscks decided to plant 25 acres and use the same processing equipment that had been used for their seed corn.  Today several hundred of the 3,000 farmed areas are used to produce gourmet popcorn!  No matter what your flavor of choice is, Rural Route 1 Popcorn can fill it!

Mid afternoon temperatures finally broke into the 50's and we crossed over the Mississippi River into Marquette, Iowa.  As we road over the bridge that connects Prairie du Chien, WI and Marquette looking to the north we all saw our main reason for making this venture, Eagles Landing Winery along with our lodging for the night Cobblestone Inn & Suites.  We excited State Highway 18 onto North Street and found parking to be at a premium, however a spot was open directly in front of the winery (score!).  

Both Harley-Davidson FLHTK Limited's found plenty of room for a rest as we welcomed some needed time off the motorcycles.  Looking to the west and east down North Street we saw little shops and many enjoying the fall favorable warmth of a Saturday afternoon.  About 1 block away from the winery, was our lodging, the Mississippi River and Casey's Gas Station and a little further to the south along the River the Queen Casio.  For the next 24-hours everything we needed was within walking distance or even closer (if that was even possible!).  

We didn't want any photo opportunities to go wasted, so pictures were taken prior to making our way into the little winery.  Once inside it was elbow to elbow customers enjoying the samples of this Grape along the Mississippi River.  Campfire Hootch, their Double Gold Award winning wine at the Tasters Guild 2018 International Wine Competition was our favorite sample! Before checking into the hotel, Cathy & I (or should you talk to her, I purchased 6 bottles of wine without her approval) got our order in!  Marc and I checked into the hotel while Cathy & Chris enjoyed a bottle of Oktoberfest (Double Gold Winner).  

Since parking was limited, the Harley's were moved from in front of the winery, to the 1 block away and into a "special" place the hotel staff told us about, within 50 feet of the front door!! Another SCORE!  Marc and I made the long, exhausting walk back to the winery, were we found there was still some Oktoberfest left in the bottle for us to sample! Chris had opened the, what appeared 5 pound bag of mixed popcorn she had purchased at Rural Route 1 Popcorn and we all enjoyed the nice afternoon.  

This was our first batch of bottles we purchased! From left to right; Grandpas Reserve, Serenity (chocolate rasberry dessert wine), Campfire Hootch (a blend of 6+ grapes), Spiced Apple, Honey & Berries (a Mead classic) and Oktoberfest.  Day 2 we added; Starboard of Marquette (a Port style wine, a little tighter in ABV) and Outstanding White.  The one bottle that didn't make it back home was Oktoberfest since we had opened it up at the Winery and drank from plastic wine goblets under a  wooden pergola adjacent to the winery.

The employees at Eagles Landing Winery were very friendly and knowledgeable of the many, many different flavors of wine they produce.  We were allowed 5 samples for free, though we found ourselves enjoying more without any added coin.  Maybe it was because we bought 6 bottles? Many signs and seasonal wall hangings adorned the walls and were for sale.  This little winery along the Mississippi River was quaint and a must see!  Because this was the last winery on our Great River Wine Tour, we all had our wine passport stamped and then turned it in for etched wine glasses! Cathy found that not only was Eagles Landing Winery part of the Great River Wine Tour, but also one of 11 on the Iowa Wine Trail.  Upon completion of the Passport, wine goers will each receive 2 etched wine glasses!  The 4 of us vowed to make this tour a must next riding season!

Once back at the hotel, we decided to take in the Scenic Overlook, which is adjacent to the Cobblestone Inn & Suites.  What a wonderful view overlooking the Mississippi River and downtown Marquette!  Several more photo opportunities we had.

With The Milwaukee Brewers playing in their first National League Championship Series, I knew we (mainly ME!) had to be close to a working TV.  It was close to dinner time and the Brewers we leading 1-0 over the Los Angeles Dodgers in the middle innings, so thoughts of dinner grew closer.  Across the street from the hotel was Marquette Bar & Cafe.  This was a nice little cafe, with an extensive menu, though the only working televisions all had college football! Don't get me wrong, I love college football, however The Brewers were playing!!  The four of us decided to leave prior to ordering and walk over to The Queen Casio (Cathy & I had a hosted a Touring' Hawgs Ride many. many years ago that took the group to the Casio for lunch and gambling before heading back to Watertown, WI).  The buffet dinner we enjoyed ($21.99) had something for everyone to enjoy (Prime Rib, Ribeye Steaks, Fried Shrimp, Fried Frog Legs, Stuffed Pork Tenderloin, Fish, Friend Chicken, Riblets, Pizza, Mac & Cheese, Crab Legs, Vegetables, Salads and many different Desserts).  

After dinner, the four of us made our way to the slot machines in an effort to pay for our weekend!  How did that go you ask?  We all lost whatever little money we played.  Cathy $15 and myself $20.  However playing the $.05 and $.25 machines, we had entertainment for abut 15 minutes )lol)!

Our haul of the Great River Road Wine Trail..........19 bottles, 2 glasses and an extra Passport Brochure.  I know, there are only 13 bottles shown - 6 have already been emptied.  Keep in mind we started this Wine Trail in August (lol)!!  

We never, ever consume and ride!  Please remember to practice your skills! Get Safer, by being more Skilled and be a Smarter Rider.  As we begin to store the motorcycles for the colder months, please reflect on the type of rider you were this season.  Ask yourself how you can improve on your skills and reflect on the many adventures from the 2018 riding season.  I myself can always improve my skills, especially as I get older.  I vow to ride more than the 4200 miles I did this season, my fewest in several years.  This past ride to Marquette, IA roundtrip just under 300 miles.

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Great River Road Wine Trail

It's been 3 years since our last husband/wife overnighter on the Harley! What was originally planned as a Lake Superior Circle Tour was tweaked a bit and made shorter.  First we picked a location, Red Wing, Minnesota so that we could ride up the Great Mississippi River Road on one side and home on the other.  Next what to do along the way and other attractions once we landed.  Cathy found what is known as the Great River Road Wine Trail.  The GRRWT is a collection of 11 wineries all located near the upper Mississippi River in the states of Wisconsin, Minnesota and Iowa.  Stopping at each one was a goal we set out to accomplish!  Tastings at each one along with getting our Trail Map stamped meant in the end we would each earn a GRRWT wine glass.  Keep in mind the glass itself is worth maybe a buck or two, but the adventure and memories collected along the way, priceless!

The order in which we visited the wineries were as follows (Wisconsin Side first); In Trempealeau, WI - Elmaro Winery.  Pictures of this Winery don't do justice to the scenic view we enjoyed. Next we rode north to Fountain City and Seven Hawks Winery. Seven Hawks tasting was done in a refurbished building just of the Great River Road.  Stop #3 was in Alma, Wisconsin at Danzinger Vineyards.  Their vineyard boasts 18 acres established in 2003 and wine tasting began in 2010.  The last winery for Day 1 was in Pepin, Wisconsin at Villa Bellezza Winery. Here we were treated to a classical Mediterranean style winery complex.  In talking with the caretaker, a former City Planner in Pepin, he informed me one of the large building on property that houses weddings cost $2.75 million!!  Believe it was money well spent.  He added that they host an average of 10 weddings per month!  What we have in South Central WI with Barn Weddings, we found out several of our stops along the Great River Road Wineries cater to Wedding Receptions!

A day that started at 8:00am finally found us in Red Wing at our hotel for the next 3 nights around 5:00pm.  We missed the last winery on the Wisconsin side, but vowed to stop there on Saturday after visiting Leinenkugel's.

Friday morning began with a hearty breakfast at Perkin's and the another stop at Elmaro Vineyard in Trempealeau because we enjoyed their sampling sooooooo much especially their Elmaro Rosa (this wine along with others we were told can be purchased at Woodmen's).  From here we traveled to Winona, MN and Garvin Heights Vineyards.  The owners both Doctor's began growing grapes 25 years ago and in 2007 started wine tasting and received a license to sell their wines.  In 2015 their expanded building was able to host groups up to 100 people.  Yep, more weddings!! From Winona we traveled to Cannon Falls, MN and Cannon River Winery.  This ride was over 90 miles and found us on I-90 most of the way, not that we wanted to be on an Interstate but we still had two there wineries to visit after Cannon Falls!  "Cannon River Winery’s Vineyard is home to more than 9,000 vines on 40 acres of land. Selected for its ideal soils, high elevation, and south-facing slopes, our Vineyard provides all of the qualities needed for excellent grapes, and in turn, delicious, award winning wines crafted by hand in our nearby Winery in downtown Cannon Falls" (from their website).  Once we arrived, we knew dressed in Harley-Davidson rain-gear while others were in sport coats, dresses and formal wear, we were definitely OVERDRESSED!!  There was a wedding reception going on (imagine that, another wedding), but we HAD to get our GRRWT Passbook stamped!  No tastings here, just a stamp!  Back on the Harley's we rode to Red Wing only 35 miles and stopped at Winery #4 for the day, Falconer Vineyards Winery & Bistro.  After traveling what felt like a miniature version of Tail of the Dragon up to the hills overlooking the Mississippi River and riding a long gravel road, we were greeted by yet another party!  Nope, not a wedding party but rather  Dairyland Power Coopertive gathering.  What this meant to all in attendance was free hot dogs (natural casings), chips, punch and cookies!  So we had our wine tastings and walking over to the large sheltered area overlooking the valley below and river and enjoyed our long awaited lunch!  Here they grow 6.5 acres of grapes.  Finally we reached our 5th winery of the day, again in Red Wing at Flower Valley Vineyards.  Flower Valley planted their vineyard in 2002 and 10 years later in 2012 opened their tasting room.

Saturday was a day we toured Leinenkuel's Brewery, a brewery established more than 150 years ago! I was amazed that in our group, one had never been to this Wisconsin tourist area!  It was a no brainer we had to make it a stop!  Leinie's Lodge opened at 10:00am and we arrived at 10:02am! Yep we made the first tour at 10:30am.  With your $10 fee, your were treated to 5 - 5 ounce samplers or 2 - 12 ounce glasses.  Since the tour lasted an hour and we knew shopping would last another hour, we sampled a few prior to the tour.   

After the tour we rode to the last Wisconsin Winery on the GRRWT route.  Stockholm, Wisconsin is the home of Maiden Rock Winery & Cider.  Opened for business in 2008, Maiden Rock serves all Gluten Free Wine and Ciders.  Since we were still in Stockholm a stop at Stockholm Pie & General Store was a must!!  Cathy had Coconut Cream, Marc had Sour Cream Raisin, Chris had Apple Pie and I had a slice of Dutch Apple with Ice Cream.  

Sunday morning we headed out early enough to stop at #10 of the 11 wineries listed on the Great River Road Wine Trail.  In la Crescent, MN we stoped at Riverview Vineyard & Winery.  Here we were served by one of the owners himself!  This is a family owned farm that changed to growing grapes and making spectacular wines.  My favorite was the Brianna, sweet wine.  But the again, the other 2 I tasted were my favorites too as we purchased all 3 and had them shipped.  Traveling on motorcycle only provides you with so much room and ours was already packed with 4 other bottles plus 2 - 12oz bottle of hard cider from Maiden Rock Winery & Cidery (Honeycrisp Hard).

In all, we traveled a few miles short of 1,000 over 4 days!  This after Cathy only had 130 miles on the Harley last season!  Bike ran great!  Wow only rode in a few sprinkles, never any down pours.  As far as our purchases went, well we ended up buying 9 bottles of wine (4 came home on the bike, the other 5 being shipped) and a 4-pack of Honeycrisp Hard Cider.  We still have to stop in Marquette, IA and Eagles Landing Winery to complete all 11 and earn our Great River Road Wine Trail wine glass! This glass will be treasured with the many fun times and memories that made this motorcycle adventure one of the very best!!

Remember to ride with skills, sober and smart.  Keep challenging yourself by becoming a better, safer rider with each ride.  Until next time - be SAFE!

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