Ghostwood Farm

A high school classmate of mine, Adam, and his wife, Melissa, have a small farm on their, oh, 33 acres in Bedford, Indiana, just south of Bloomington.  They were hosting their 3rd Annual Ghostwood Farm Open House this past weekend.  We didn't make it down last year, so I wasn't going to miss it. 

Originally, we planned to camp on the farm.  I borrowed a tent and Adam's parents were loaning us an air mattress; however, the weather report was freaking Chris out b/c rain was in the forecast.  He was all, "We are NOT going if it rains!  I am not walking around in mud!" etc., etc.  I was able to convince him to go by getting a hotel room (with some credit card points). 

We were going right past Oliver Winery, one of our favorite producers, which incidentally opened in 1972 ~ the best vintage, so I suggested that we stop for a quick visit.  We love visiting wineries!!  We didn't do any sampling b/c we already know what we like, but we were able to get a small tour of the winemaking facilities.  The grounds are beautiful, made even more so with pumpkins, squash, mums, etc.!  I bought a couple "daisy" gourds to use in my Fall flower box display!  It was a really nice break from our long drive, too.

From Oliver, we went straight to Comfort Inn to check in, drop off our stuff and freshen up real quick.  

The drive to Ghostwood Farm is wind-y and beautiful.  We drove by Lake Monroe and lots and lots of trees, which are their most beautiful in the Fall, of course!!!  We got to our final destination about 5PM (their time) and were pretty hungry!  I knew Adam had smoked pork and couldn't wait to get a sandwich!!!  There was just a little more than 2 sandwiches worth left ~ whew!!!

Another classmate, Michele, and her husband, Dan, made it down, too.  We chatted with them while we ate ~~ so much good food...the sweets kept landing on my plate and in my belly the whole nite ~~ before Adam led a group of us on a tour of the property.

I brought home this geode, which Adam thinks he might have cut in half with the bushhog ~ score!!!

After the tour, we ended up around the bonfire.  BRRRRRR!  Even with the fire going, we were so cold!  I was bundled up with a long-sleeve shirt, sweater & coat, plus gloves & a hat AND a blanket!!!  We talked, joked, laughed & drank til close to midnite.  I am glad we had a warm place with a soft bed (& a shower) waiting for us, rather than the confines of a tent on this super-cold nite!!! 

The farm has chickens and roosters & they grow produce (pumpkins, squash, asparagus & beans, just to name a few).  I was looking forward to buying some of their white pumpkins ~ I got 4 to add to my burgeoning collection!!

Chris took some great pics of the Ghostwood fowl:

I believe that is Kingfish...the top "dog"

Chris named this one Chanticlear.

A breakfast of melons grown at Ghostwood

 Sunday morning, we headed back to the Farm for a breakfast that included eggs from their chickens and venison sausage.  YUM!  The house was full of people, but it was cozy and welcoming.  Adam & Melissa were so calm amidst it all ~ perfect hosts for such a gathering!  We brought a (store bought) sweet potato cake that paired perfectly with (the much-needed) coffee.

After breakfast, we headed back outside, where I immediately headed for the coop to see if I could find any newly laid eggs.

I found 4...one of which was still warm!

About eleven (our time) we started the drive back home.  The part of the drive that is south of I-465, on 37, is such a treat for the eyes at this time of year!!!  I only wish the sun had been shining more b/c the colors of the leaves just pop in the sunlight!!

We had a fantastic time and can't thank Adam & Melissa enough for their generosity and graciousness.  We will make the trip next year, if we still live in Indiana, that is.  There are many projects that Adam wants to complete and we look forward to seeing the progress. 

Winos!!

Wine tastings are a joy!!!  I love discovering new wines to bring home!  We LOVE hitting the Michigan Wine Trail!  We have visited most every winery in the south/southwest of Michigan, plus all of the ones in the Traverse City/Mission Peninsula/Leelanau Peninsula up north.  Michigan, especially in the Fall, is some gorgeous country! 

We have also had the pleasure of visiting many Indiana wineries...as well as sampling (& buying) wines from Indiana wineries which we haven't visited by attending the annual Story Inn Wine Festival twice.   

This past Saturday, we headed an hour-ish north for some wine & music at Round Barn Winery & Vineyard in Baroda, Michigan.

We headed up on this particular weekend for 2 reasons: the weather was to be simply perfect and there was an event scheduled:

We have had the pleasure of tasting Round Barn wine (& vodka) at one of their tasting rooms a few years back, but this was our first trip to the actual winery and vineyard.  It did not disappoint!  We hit the sampling room straight away, of course!  For $8 you can sample 5 wines/spirits and keep your glass (you also get a $5 chip toward a discount on 3 bottles of wine, 2 6-packs of beer or a growler from the Round Bar).  We are primarily sweet wine drinkers, so we stick with what we like.  We are already fans of the Cranberry wine.

so we didn't use up a sample chip on this one; however, we did use it for a Crantini (3 parts Round Barn Cranberry wine and 1 part Round Barn DiVine vodka), which is delightful and I will recreate myself!  Chris was daring and tried all 3 spirits (DiVine vodka, rum and bourbon) ~ whoa, mama!!!  They are strong!!!  I stuck with the wines and really like the Redel Doux.

 It reminds me of an old favorite of ours from a now-closed winery in Porter, Indiana, called Dune Ridge Winery.  They had a Lakeshore Red which is probably my favorite (even over Oliver Winery's Soft Red).  When we found out Dune Ridge was closing, we rushed over to buy a case of wines, more than half of which were the Lakeshore Red!!

After sampling, we headed out to the green to listen to the live band.  We hit the Round Bar, where Chris tried the hard cider, which was a bit too tart for our liking, and the sangria, which was pretty good.  I decided to try one of Round Barn's beers.

The Summer Wheat is similar to Blue Moon, but not as tasty, I hate to say.  Too bad they didn't have a hefeweizen as that is my favorite style of beer. 

We went to the top deck of the Round Bar to enjoy our beverages while listening to the band, who were quite good!!!

When the band took a break, we had finished our drinks, so we decided to walk around the grounds a bit before heading off to New Buffalo for dinner.

We tried the El Rancho Grande....and wouldn't recommend it to anyone.  The margaritas were small & not potent, while the food prices were high and the portions small.  Not to mention, it was just before 5 when we got there and Chris asked if we could sit outside.  The crazy server lady didn't hear him and she started to seat us in the general dining area, so Chris asked again.  To which she replied that no, not until 6.  Well, I wasn't about to sit in the no-atmosphere, surrounded by families with kids dining area, so we followed her back to the front and asked to be seated in the bar.  We were there maybe 20 minutes, when lo & behold, another server (quite possibly the owner) sat 3 tables in the outside seating  .... it was ten minutes after 5!!!!  Needless to say, we were none too happy about that turn of events!  We won't be back to El Rancho Mal!

We didn't let that spoil our day, tho.  When we went to the downtown of New Buffalo, we discovered a tasting room for another of our favorite Michigan wineries, Warner Vineyards, in Paw Paw.  Looking forward to heading up there to purchase some of their Holiberry!!!