Grand River Valley Ice Wine Festival includes many fine meals for its 21st year

Feb. 22—Eating will be a primary pastime for those attending this year's Grand River Valley Ice Wine Festival, taking place throughout March at six area wineries and a distillery.

Ice wine made in 2023 will be poured and appetizers served at each establishment celebrating the 21st annual festival. Festive dinners will help celebrate, and those coming out can try treats such as ice wine marshmallows, ice wine slaw and condiments such as ice wine bacon jam.

This year's warm winter produced just a narrow window for making ice wine, which requires temperatures of 17 degrees or less to freeze the grapes so they can be harvested and pressed while still frozen solid. That freeze, which lasted just 48 hours this year, kept wineries busy picking and pressing in mid-January. Picking the frozen grapes is usually done before dawn, when netting used to defeat birds must be cut away and the frozen grapes picked and then hauled for crushing.

Participating establishments have worked to bring variety to the many ice wines being served for this year's monthlong festival, with special meals that include dishes prepared and paired with the sweet wine. Laurello Vineyards has long made a habanero ice wine that has become a favorite among those appreciating the hot-and-sweet contrast. South River Vineyard has a Blush Ice Wine — a blend of Vidal Blanc with a touch of Chambourcin — while Grand River Cellars has become known for its Maple Ice Wine, made with local maple syrup. Debonne Vineyards has a Cherry Bourbon Ice wine, while winery Cask 307 introduces an Espresso Ice Wine this year. Ferrante Vineyards soon will debut its Bourbon Barrel Aged Ice wine, which winemaker Nick Ferrante says is reminiscent of a cordial.

"I don't personally care for the sweetness of ice wine, and this one aged in a bourbon barrel has notes of bourbon and oak," he said.

Along with being the winemaker for the family-run Ferrante Winery & Ristorante, he is chairman of the Winegrowers of the Grand River Valley, the sponsor of the ice wine festival.

Ferrante's new Bourbon Barrel ice wine will be sold for $40 per bottle, while regular ice wines typically cost $30.

Ice wine is pricey because four to five times as many grapes are required to make it and they've dehydrated greatly in the months they've been left to hang on the vine before freezing and being pressed into ice wine. It's in a smaller bottle and is typically served in 1- 1/2 -ounce pours.

Although Vidal Blanc grapes are the industry standard for ice wine because of their thicker skins and later harvest, South River Vineyard owner Gene Sigel uses Concord grapes for his ice wines. He'll be bringing some Canadian ice wines for festival goers to taste with Niagara-on-the-Lake ice wines from Chateau de Charmes and Inniskillin for tastings at his Black Door Tavern, next door to sister business Red Eagle Distillery. Sigel also is the vineyard manager for Debonne Vineyards.

Ferrante has worked with the restaurant's chef, Kelly Ollis, to design a dinner at 6:30 p.m. March 1 pairing dishes with wines that have been honored with awards this year. It will include sea scallops with arugula paired with a sparkling Moscato that won best of show from the American Wine Society and a pork chop with mango salsa and a riesling peach reduction and coconut-crusted onion rings. The dinner is $165 per couple and requires reservations at ferrantewinery.com or 440-466-8466.

Others may wish to kick off the Ice Wine Festival with one of the Progressive Dinners beginning at 6 p.m. each Friday in March, starting March 1. Each starts with appetizers at Debonne, followed by the entree at Grand River Cellars and dessert at Cask 307. Those meals are $69.95 per person and require reservations at debonne.com/upcoming-events, where details can be found.

Black Door Tavern offers a three-course tasting dinner by reservation throughout March from 3 to 9 p.m. on Fridays and Saturdays and from 1 to 5 p.m. on Sundays. The starter will be Smoked Salmon with jalapeno, grapefruit and avocado. The entree is Braised Beef Bourguignon with bacon, mushrooms, carrots and pearl onions, and an Ice Wine Poached Pear as dessert. It's $39 per person, with reservations available at 440-466-6604.

Grand River Vineyards will offer ice wine juice mocktails, making ice wine marshmallows along with a lunch and dinner menu that includes such tasty delights as Polar Flatbread with caramelized onions, blue cheese, bacon, hot maple ice wine drizzle; an Arctic Burger with blue cheese and ice wine bacon jam; grilled salmon with an ice wine maple glaze; and Frostbite Cheesecake with ice wine soaked peaches.

Not all participating establishments are open daily. Each will give festival-goers a commemorative glass, appetizer and tastes of its ice wines. The cost is $10 at each. Live music will be included on weekends and each festival Saturday will have special events.

Grand River Valley Ice Wine Festival participants

Debonne Vineyards: 7743 Doty Road, Madison; debonne.com; 800-424-9463.

Ferrante Winery & Ristorante: 5585 State Route 307, Harpersfield; ferrantewinery.com; 440-466-VINO.

Grand River Cellars: 5750 Madison Road, Madison; grandrivercellars.com; 440-231-0991.

Laurello Vineyards: 4573 Route 307 E., Geneva; LaurelloVineyards.com; 440-415-0661.

South River Vineyard: 6062 S. River Road, W., Geneva; southrivervineyard.com; 440-466-6676.

Cask 307: 7259 Warner Road, Madison; cask307.com; 440-307-9586.

Red Eagle Distillery: 6202 S. River Road W., Geneva; redeaglespirits.com; 440-466-6604.

Black Door Tavern: 6202 S. River Road W, Geneva; blackdoortavern.com; 440-466-6604.