Are you fond of sampling good-quality wine? Are you also planning a trip to Alaska soon? If yes, then this is the perfect article for you.
We will give you a detailed account of the best wine tasting in Alaska where you can sample different alcoholic beverages and transform your Alaska wine tasting experience.
Prepare to be blown away by the beauty of Alaska and the hospitality of the locals as you embark on this Alaska wine tasting journey!
Where to Go For Wine tasting in Alaska
The people of Alaska know the intricacies of preparing and enjoying premium wine. There are several bars and wine tasting rooms present in the state, and people frequent these joints throughout the day to enjoy a glass or two.
Wine tasting in Alaska is a pleasure because there are many great places to visit for a glass of quality liquor.
Alaska experiences chilly weather during the peak winter season, leading to more favorable conditions during the spring and summer seasons.
The warm temperatures in Spring and Summer support the harvest season for Alaska Wineries. However, owing to the slightly harsh climate in Alaska, only some varieties of fruit can thrive in this region.
This fixed assortment of fruit and raw material forces Alaska to concentrate on producing premium liquor but in limited variety. Hence Wineries in Alaska are famous for providing rich and wholesome wine.
The list below highlights some of the best spots for wine tasting in Alaska.
The Quality of wine in Alaska
Several Alaska Vineyards are famous for producing ‘Wilderness Wine’. Farmers cultivate the raw material in the unpolluted fresh atmosphere of Alaska’s extensive landscape, rarely sticking to the rules and regulations of standard vineyards in the southern United States. This results in a potent flavor.
Alaskan wineries provide smooth and hearty wine that is nothing less than liquid gold, making wine tasting in Alaska a complete pleasure.
Furthermore, Wineries in Alaska use a mixture of fruits like Raspberry, Black Currant, and Blueberry as flavor additives to improve the natural texture and taste of the beverages.
Since the fruit growing here is free of all pollution, it has unparalleled richness, deepening the flavor of the wine. Hence, connoisseurs of wine favor the unique combination of aromas present within each glass of wine in Alaska.
How to visit wineries in Alaska?
Most wineries in Alaska provide tours only after you seek an appointment. Many Alaska Vineyards remain shut in the fall and winter months and refuse to give tours because of the harsh weather.
Therefore, you should refrain from choosing winters as the time for wine tasting in Alaska. According to expert advice, the best time to go on a tour and enjoy the superb taste of pure Alaska wine is during the hot summer months.
If you wish to experience the beauty of the various vineyards in Alaska, then contemplate visiting one of the Alaskan wineries on the list below. You are sure to be pleasantly surprised during wine tasting in Alaska when you visit the following distilleries.
Alaska Denali Winery
What Is Its Location?
The Alaska Denali Winery has a cute compound featuring an emblem with an unforgettable picture of a reindeer. It is located in the south-central region of the State of Alaska.
What Does It Feature?
The Alaska Denali Winery provides a unique experience by conducting extensive tours and creating wine on the premises.
In recognition of its excellent quality liquor, it has received several awards. It also holds wine tasting events to enable people to sample its product.
The Frozen North Denali Winery has expertise in developing individual, micro-brewed batches of alcoholic beverages that satisfy the taste buds of their visitors.
Moreover, apart from making regular wine, they can also concoct wines for special events like a wedding or a party to enchant all your guests.
You can also request them to craft a unique formula for you so you can add a personal touch to your wine collection.
What Happens At A Wine Tasting Event?
Before the pre-scheduled wine tasting event, the Alaska Denali winery summons you and your loved ones to a meeting where you choose your favorite beverages.
Then they start the blending process in the production facility. You can choose to be a part of this unique process if you desire.
Once they prepare the wine, the staff summons you and your family once more to bottle, cork, and cap your wine. This step is unique and always makes people feel a part of something bigger.
Alaska Berries
What Is Its Location?
Wine tasting in Alaska is incomplete without visiting Alaska Berries. It features a gorgeous berry farm that belongs to a family near Soldotna, Alaska, on the stunning Kenai Peninsula.
If you decide to go to the farm to purchase any products, remember the gate appears shut to keep the animals away, not you.
During regular working hours, you can open the gate, secure it to a post, and drive in. After you park your car, please close the gate.
These are the few rules you must follow when visiting Alaska Berries during a wine tasting in Alaska.
What Does It Feature?
Alaska Berries is the only winery in the northernmost part of the USA. It was the first-ever, and presently, it is the only winery in the state that certifies all its products as Alaska Grown.
When you visit the farm, you will see how the workers take immense pride in monitoring every step of the wine-making process, from planting and care of the fruit to the final packaging of all the beverages.
The farmers at Alaska Berries pick the fruit when it is fully ripe and incorporate only the best quality fruit into the winemaking procedure. They discard the fruit that does not meet the strict criterion.
Since Alaska Berries has a farm and distillery located adjacent to each other, the management can supervise the entire process and maintain total control over everything.
They use this authority to guarantee that the workers perform each step by the most hygienic and sanitary means possible. This stringent quality control provides customers with premium products every time.
Awards
Alaska Berries is sure to boost your Alaska wine tasting experience because it has received several awards acknowledging the greatness of its products.
Alaska Berries gained Gold and Silver medals after featuring Haskap and Black Currant wines in 2017. Later in 2018, it showcased four types of beverages and acquired a Silver medal for Blueberry and Red Currant flavored wine and a Bronze for Gooseberry and Rhubarb.
Celestial Meads
What Is Its Location?
The Celestial Meads compound is in the more suburban area of Alaska instead of the countryside. It is located in Anchorage in Alaska and features a unique aspect of wine tasting in Alaska.
What Does It Feature?
Experts hold Celestial Meads products in great esteem. They claim that if you wish to sample premium mead from the Great State of Alaska, you should opt for Celestial Meads!
Celestial Meads is unique because it is a part-time venture. The owner of this successful venture is a driven and ambitious man who juggles a day job with this passion for making and supplying mead.
He is so invested in his project that he is personally present at the meadery on most evenings from 5:15 pm and 7 pm or later, after returning from work. He spends all of Saturday at the Meadery as well.
So if you are interested in tasting mead or getting to know more about this product before you buy it you are most welcome. However, it is preferable if you first call.
The owner of Crystal Meads willingly conducts a thorough tour of the facility and also hosts wine tasting events where he answers any question related to mead.
What Is So Special About Crystal Meads?
At Crystal Meads, the owner focuses on providing a diverse selection of meads to satisfy every customer. Hence, the beverages vary in flavor from a delicate taste to a very potent taste and very dry to cloyingly sweet.
He uses different varieties of honey as the base for all his beverages because mead is a derivative of honey. He uses honey from a single floral source (varietal honey) compared to other meaderies.
He also adds whole spices and various fruits to deepen the flavor of each product and give some depth and dimension to each beverage.
Whenever possible, the owner likes to incorporate Alaskan fruit because of its purity and richness. He then stores most of the meads in oak casks for a while to let the flavor develop some more.
The alcohol content of every product ranges from 6.5% to +15% ABV.
