Steve and Patty King from Admirals Landing and Bob and Pat Tollini from Admirals Bay were shoe-ins for a good time. Plus, we had our driver from the Cincinnati Reds Day Trip we had on Fathers Day, Hugh Selleck (not to be confused with Tom Selleck, the actor). The risk was mitigated, but not eliminated.

As the day wore on, the tastings intensified and our neighbors became good friends. I learned a lot about my neighbors. I learned that Barb Robbins, the unofficial mayor of Admirals Sound, likes fruity, sweet wines (the cherry wine at French Lick hit her buttons, just ask her husband Jim). I learned that Melissa and Rick Rogers of the Moorings probably have the most unusual ‘”how we met’” stories on record. I also learned that a two-car garage structure can hold 30 people for a wine tasting and produce excellent wine (Winzerwald Winery was unbelievably good!).

With a designated charter bus driver, we had little to worry about all day but coming up with adjectives for what seemed like hundreds of wines we were sampling. Dennis Snider came up with his share of adjectives. Not to be outdone, I came up with ‘”frisky’” and ‘”cobbler-esque’” while Steve King came up with ‘”sassy’” (as he shook his head and flashed his teeth). We tried to solicit help from Heather Simpson from the Java Jar, but there was too much pressure and she politely excused herself from the adjective debate.

My personal highlight of the day was during our final wine tasting at Huber’s Orchard and Winery when we were sampling one of over 30 wines that they produce. We learned that Bill Berger, accompanied by Kathy Hiatt of Peru (not the country, but the city in Indiana), was celebrating a birthday to which we all sang and toasted one of Huber’s sparkling wines. It was followed by a wine that was the ‘”most popular wine for over 20 years because of its ability to bring families together over the holidays’”. Steve King quickly responded with a request, ‘”can you show us the wine that causes families to break up and fight over the holidays?’” Needless to say, our winemaker wasn’t as enthused as we were at Steve’s wit.

We gave away several door prizes, most of which were bottles of wine signed by the winemakers themselves. Ace Discount Liquors & Wine gave away three ‘”wine of the month club’” memberships and Geist Jazzercise gave away a free month’s membership, which was won by Chris Mulvoy who quickly handed it to his wife, Maria. Gibbs Auto Interiors gave everyone a free $25 gift certificate and my wife Jeanne made wine charms for everyone to take home. If all this wasn’t enough, everyone bought a lot of wine to bring home from some great southern Indiana wineries. It was certainly a day to remember.

Thanks to all of you that joined or supported this great community event. A special thanks to Dennis and Bernadette Snider of Snider’s Landscaping. Because of their generous sponsorship, we were able to make a nice donation to Creating Hope, the beneficiary of the day’s proceeds. I also want to thank the Java Jar, a gracious host for breakfast and the makers of some great coffee.

I’m anxious to do it again, next time we’ll screen the movie before we bring it on the bus.

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