Fargo Pride of Dakota Holiday Showcase

Wow is all I can say. The Pride of Dakota Holiday Showcase in Fargo was unbelieveable. We had so many people come up to us and enjoy our wine. It seemed like Rhubarb, Bumble Bee Red, and Chokecherry were our top 3 wines. This was by far our biggest show. Bismarck usually is the largest of the 4 showcases. I am looking forward to it next weekend. We'll have 4 people working in our booth.

As I finish typing this, I am enjoying the smell of fermentation. Pear wine is something everyone is looking forward to. Words can't describe the wonderful aroma. Something you have to experience yourself.

Minot Pride of Dakota Showcase

Our family had a great time in Minot. My wife and I worked our booth at the Minot Showcase while our babysitter took care of our two girls (lots of swimming I would imagine). This was by far the busiest shows in Minot since we started in 2003. We had such a great day on Saturday, I had to drive to Bismarck to meet up with a couple of friends that met us with a van load of wine for Sunday. If Minot is any indication, I would imagine the Fargo and Bismarck show will be great as well! We have really noticed a lot of people promoting local products, whether it would be wine, crafts, sweets, or that famous soup that I can't stop eating. Remember, there is a coupon on our website for the Fargo and Bismarck showcase. You can print it out and bring a friend for free. We have heard a lot of our customers that have taken advantage of it. They are also commenting on the great reusable bags they are getting at the showcases. If you come to the show, make sure to thank the Pride of Dakota staff for the great job they are doing. It seems like when there is a problem they are always in the line of fire, but when things go great, they are usually overlooked.

Our topseller for the weekend: Rhubarb wine by a mile with Chokecherry and Bumble Bee Red tying for 2nd place. What will Fargo and Bismarck be like?

Grand Forks Pride of Dakota Showcase

It is that time of year again for our Holiday Showcases that we participate in. The North Dakota Agriculture Department has a terrific program called Pride of Dakota, which features products produced here in North Dakota. In November and December, there are 4 holiday showcases: Grand Forks, Minot, Fargo, and Bismarck. This weekend, we had a booth at the Grand Forks Holiday Showcase. Since our winery is only about an hour away from Grand Forks, we have many, many customers there. They stop by and sample our new wines and inform us how they enjoy going to their local retailer or visiting the winery. One thing we noticed this year was that a lot of comments were made regarding wanting to ship our Bumble Bee Red or our Prairie Strawberry to their relatives in California or other states. Our holiday website ordering has also picked up dramatically in the past couple of weeks. My wife also just redesigned our front page....I guess it is my turn to work on the other pages.