Maine Archives - Cherry Wine

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The Florida Winery

Tuesday, February 12, 2013

It won’t take long for you to realize that we do things a little bit differently around here. We refuse to accept that wine must taste of grass, tobacco, or dirt. Around here we like our wine like we like our women and ice tea…sweet! We don’t mess around when it comes to wine either, just check out the over 50 awards and medals we’ve won in our first four years!

All talk and no walk you say? Well pony up to our tasting bar and we will let our stunning selection of highly enjoyable libations walk all over your taste buds. Relish in pure unadulterated pleasure without worrying about how your swirling the glass. Sit back, Sip, Enjoy, Relax, Repeat…responsibly of course.

The winery is where the magic happens. All of our wines are made right here in house, just steps from the beach, where you’ll find the most unique winery on earth. Beach real estate isn’t cheap, s0 we squeeze a lot of wine out of a small space: about 900 square feet! We use three 2,000-liter jacket fermentation tanks and nine 2,000-liter racking and aging tanks. Filtering is handled by our 40-plate plate & frame filter, and all the bottling is done by hand right in the front window.

It’s not a lot of room, but it’s enough for us to create the most amazing libations known to man.

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Linganore Winecellars

Tuesday, April 3, 2012

In 1972, amidst rolling hills, dairy cows, and cornfields, a small vineyard was planted in the fertile soils of an old dairy farm. That one small vineyard has proudly become Linganore Winecellars. Now operated by the founder’s children, we welcome you to share in our growing family tradition.

Linganore Winecellars cordially invites you to partake in an enjoyable and relaxed afternoon tasting our award-winning wines produced by our fertile soils, abundant sunshine, and skilled winemakers.

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Finnriver Farm & Cidery

Friday, March 16, 2012

Finnriver Farm and Cidery produces award-winning hard ciders and dessert wines on a small, remote organic farm, orchard, and craft cidery on the Olympic Peninsula.

Located along a salmon stream in the Chimacum Valley, we’ve been honored to be at the forefront of the Pacific Northwest hard cider revival and to craft ciders that recognize hard cider traditions from around the world while also offering fresh perspectives on the fermented apple.

We grow and source organic, wild-harvested, and seasonal ingredients, and since our founding in 2008, multiple branches of the Finnriver family tree have sprouted:

Finnriver Farm & Cidery grows, sources, and ferments organic apples & pears into a line of farmcrafted hard ciders and fruit wines.
Chimacum Valley Grainery grows and mills organic grains and produces local flours, pastas, and baked goods.
And Stellar J Farms, located at the original home farm, grows organic fruit and veggies.

Finnriver’s farm and orchard are certified organic and Salmon Safe, and the cidery is a Certified B Corporation. Welcome!

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Peninsula Cellars

Tuesday, December 20, 2011

Peninsula Cellars is a family-run winery founded by the Kroupas, a pioneer family of northern Michigan cherry farmers. The winery and their centennial farm, where they grow millions of pounds of apples and cherries every year is located on the Old Mission Peninsula just north of Traverse City, Michigan. The peninsula juts out into Lake Michigan’s Grand Traverse Bay. This gives the region its distinct microclimate that makes it perfect for growing high-quality orchard fruit and wine grapes.

“Our philosophy toward winemaking has always been very minimalistic, allowing the regional expression of the fruit to come through. The sun, the rain, the wind, and the soil, all under the watchful eye of the grower, are what make our wines so good.” – The Kroupas

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Clear Creek Distillery (Hood River Distilleries)

Wednesday, December 14, 2011

Handcrafted from Oregon orchard fruit, Clear Creek Distillery’s eaux de vie, fruit liqueur, and brandies have, for decades, married classic European brandy-making techniques learned in Alsace and Switzerland with the traditional European pot still.

No colors or flavors are ever added to our brandies. The distinctive “nose,” or initial smell of the brandy in a snifter, is the result of careful fermentation and distillation of perfectly ripe fruit. You will taste only the clear and fiery essence of Oregon’s finest fruits.

Owner/distiller Steve McCarthy and his brandies are respected internationally, served in the world’s best restaurants, and celebrated by connoisseurs everywhere:

“In Oregon, Steve McCarthy’s Clear Creek Distillery is producing what many experts feel to be the best fruit brandies…ever made in the U.S.” (The New York Times Magazine, Dec. 8, 1991). Steve McCarthy received Bon Appétit’s American Food & Entertaining Award “Wine and Spirit Professional of the Year” (September, 2001). His spirits have been called “the most extraordinary eaux-de-vie in America, indeed, in the world” (“The Wine Bible,” by Karen MacNeil, 2001) and “Gorgeous, impeccably pure eaux de vie” (Eric Asimov, The New York Times, August 15, 2007).

In 2014, McCarthy sold Clear Creek Distillery to Hood River Distilleries, Oregon’s largest and oldest craft distillery, which continues to make several of his original products using the same methodology and reverence to high-quality Oregon fruit and herbs.

A legendary figure in the handcrafted spirits business, McCarthy passed away in 2023.

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Eden Specialty Ciders

Thursday, December 1, 2011

At Eden Specialty Ciders (click for video), our mission is to produce high-quality, boutique ciders and wines from traditional and heirloom apples produced in Vermont orchards.

Eight pounds of apples go into the making of each 375ml bottle of ice cider. Our ice ciders have won many ice cider gold medals and been recognized by Food & Wine, The Art of Eating, Wine Spectator, Culinate, Eatocracy, Serious Drinks, Edible Manhattan, and “Martha Stewart Living Radio.”

Our customers are discerning chefs, sommeliers, and wine shop owners, wine drinkers, sweet-wine lovers, foodies, gift-givers, and also people who just love Vermont.

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Latah Creek Wine Cellars

Thursday, September 22, 2011

Latah Creek Wine Cellars (click for video) is a family-owned Washington winery that has quietly built one of the most consistent and approachable portfolios in the region since its founding in 1982. At a time when Washington wine was still emerging, founders Mike and Ellena Conway set out to craft wines rooted in balance, complexity, and everyday enjoyment—and more than four decades later, that philosophy still defines every bottle they produce.

Today, Latah Creek remains a true family operation, with second-generation winemaker Natalie Conway carrying the tradition forward while introducing fresh ideas.

While the winery is widely recognized for its Merlot, its most popular offerings lean toward highly drinkable, fruit-forward wines like Pinot Gris, Riesling, and the locally beloved Huckleberry d’Latah. The portfolio spans dry and sweet styles, making it especially appealing to both traditional wine drinkers and those newer to wine or exploring fruit-driven profiles.

Beyond the wines themselves, Latah Creek stands out for its welcoming, unpretentious approach. Their goal has always been simple: create wines that pair beautifully with food, but are just as enjoyable on their own—and keep them priced so they can be part of everyday life, not just special occasions.

Latah Creek represents exactly what makes smaller, family-run wineries worth discovering: consistency, character, and wines designed to be enjoyed, not overthought.

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Montezuma Winery

Wednesday, September 21, 2011

In 1999, the Martins took their first official step into beverage production with Martin’s Honey Farm & Meadery in Sterling, New York. Operating out of their garage, they produced honey alongside fruit wines and meads. Interest grew quickly, and within just a few years, it became clear that the business had outgrown its original home.

That turning point came in 2001 with the opening of Montezuma Winery in Seneca Falls, a move that would define the family’s future. Located near the northern end of Cayuga Lake in the celebrated Finger Lakes wine region, the winery became the heart of the Martin family’s operations. Moving into the Finger Lakes also marked an important evolution in winemaking. In addition to fruit and honey wines, the Martins began partnering with local growers to work with vinifera, native, and hybrid grape varieties. Montezuma Winery quickly earned a reputation for being a place where experimentation and tradition comfortably coexist.

As Montezuma Winery flourished, the family continued to explore new ideas. In 2007, they launched Hidden Marsh Distillery, becoming early advocates for craft distilling in New York State. At the time, only a handful of distilleries operated statewide, and the Martins actively supported legislative changes that made small-scale distilling possible. After the laws changed, they acquired a custom-built German pot still—one of the first in the Finger Lakes—and expanded their offerings to include spirits.

Growth continued to follow the family’s personal connections to place. In 2010, they opened a Montezuma Winery tasting room in Old Forge, inspired by generations of family trips to the Adirondacks through Ginny Martin’s family. In 2013, they introduced Idol Ridge Winery, perched high above Seneca Lake with sweeping views and a lodge-style tasting room handcrafted by Ed Martin. Idol Ridge brought a new brand and a distinct expression of grape wines to complement Montezuma’s lineup.

In the years that followed, the Martins added distilleries, new tasting rooms, and their first estate vineyard, while continuing to innovate and grow, but Montezuma Winery in Seneca Falls has remained the foundation—the place where a beekeeping family became a defining part of the Finger Lakes wine region.

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