Oklahoma Wineries Win at the Toast of Taos

The Toast of Taos art and wine festival is a wonderful place to taste a variety of wines from all around the country. They have wonderful foods & art displays as well as one of the most popular wine competitions in the area.

With competitors from around the country two Oklahoma wineries proudly brought home medals in a variety of categories.

Oak Hills Winery invites you to visit their tasting room and taste these award winning wines!

- Seyval Blanc - Silver
- Summer Harvest / Berry Blush - Bronze
- Traminette - Bronze

Deer Creek Vineyard in Edmond also received a silver for their fortified wine Trois Elsie.

You can find out more about the Toast of Taos Art & Wine festival on their website www.toastoftaos.com

Harvest Grapes for Your Next Fund-Raiser

It’s almost harvest time at Stone Bluff Cellars and the winery is looking for individuals or groups to help pick grapes, according to Dee Selby, winery spokesman.

“This is a great opportunity for area non-profits or school booster clubs to earn money for their organization,” Selby said. “In the past, we’ve relied solely on volunteers or area FFA groups, but the job is too big for that now. This way, we can still help give back to the community, and it allows individuals who just want to put in a day’s work the opportunity for some one-time earning.”

Organizations or individuals that wish to take advantage of the fund-raising opportunity should call the winery at 918.482.5655 or email info@stonebluffcellars.com Additional information will be provided at that time.

The winery will need about 40 people for the white grape harvest in mid-August and about 75-80 people for the red grape harvest in mid-September, Selby said.

Each person picking will need to provide a photo ID (like a driver’s license) and a secondary proof of citizenship (birth certificate or social security card). The winery will give each picker a ticket for each full bin of grapes picked, and then pay $4 per bin to the organization or individual.

Contact Information:
Dee Selby
Stone Bluff Cellars
918.482.5655
Dee.selby@stonebluffcellars.com

Where not to buy juice concentrates

This came to me from a friend in the Oklahoma wine industry. He wanted to share his story about the company Juice Products Unlimited of Chicago, IL represented by Barry Ripkin. They displayed some very poor judgment which caused him much stress, consider yourself warned...

I thought it might be useful information for others who have use for juice concentrates to know that Juice Products Unlimited of Chicago, IL represented by Barry Ripkin lost a shipment I had ordered the first week in July. When it didn't arrive as promised I called Barry Ripkin to let him know and he made arrangements for another shipment.

Because the lost shipment put us behind production schedule, I called to tell them we needed the juice immediately. They had determined (without calling me) that they couldn't deliver the product as fast as I wanted it and cancelled the order.

Rather than attempt to expedite our order or try to be helpful, they further delayed our production.

Since there is more than one supplier of juice concentrates I thought people would like to know of my experience before placing an order with a company whose customer service is, in my opinion, less than satisfactory.