CIW Lab Attendees Get a Behind-the-Scenes Taste of City Winery
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| Barrels of wine are stacked to the ceiling at City Winery, where CIW Lab attendees learned how to make and taste wine. |
In a chilled room with barrels upon barrels of wine to the ceiling, about 15 Chicago Ideas Week (CIW) Lab participants took in a grand tour of Chicago’s City Winery at 1200 W. Randolph St. on Oct. 15.
“It’s not for show,” said Ryan Monahan, the venue manager. “We make this.”
The City Winery: Wine making & Tasting 101 Lab was just one of about 100 behind-the-scenes events taking place across Chicagoland during CIW’s weeklong innovation festival Oct. 14-20. Founded in New York City back in 2008 by Michael Dorf, the ultimate goal for City Winery was to have great wine, music and food all in one place, Monahan said.
City Winery opened in Chicago last year, boasting an incredible ambiance in a building that’s more than 100 years old, with beautiful large windows, high ceilings, old wooden doors and exposed brick walls. And performers like American Idol finalist Crystal Bowersox, comedian Louis Black, singer-songwriter Howie Day and more regularly take the City Winery stage. As a special touch, City Winery lets each headliner customize his or her own brand of wine – from type to taste to the graphic design on the bottle – as a gift.
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| City Winery hosted CIW Lab attendees for a grand tour and wine tasting. |
In addition to seeing City Winery’s facilities, winemaker Robert Kowal fielded questions from the group about wine and the industry.
The more popular wine these days? White. And many people were shocked to learn that dark grapes can be used to make white wine.
“The only difference between red and white wine, with some exceptions, is when you squeeze the grape,” Kowal said. “You can squeeze the inkiest grape and get clear juice.”
While some of the participants already had a working knowledge of winemaking, others like Chicagoan Nicole Steeves, 37, it was something of a gateway.
“I heard about this place from a friend,” Steeves said. “[Seemed like] good practice for a Napa Valley trip.”
Beyond an educational background in wine, participants also enjoyed sipping several wine samples.
“This one is so good,” reporter Shannon Lewis, of Toronto, said after trying a sweet Riesling.
It would seem there is more than enough wine to go around at the City Winery facilities.
“There is (never) a shortage of wine,” Kowal said. “Because it is a fashionable commodity.”
*Sip great wine and check out the food and entertainment at City Winery by clicking here!*
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Written by: Fran Hoepfner
Photography by: Fran Hoepfner
