April, 2010

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Don’t Miss the Spokane Winery Association’s Spring Barrel Tasting May 7-9!

Monday, April 19th, 2010
Townshend Cellars

Townshend Cellars

Whether you are a seasoned wine connoisseur or just enjoy an occasional glass of wine, the annual Spring Barrel Tasting in Spokane, WA is a fun way to check out the wonderful varieties of wine produced in the area. This friendly annual celebration marks the end of the winemaking season and the beginning of a new wine year. Wineries are proud and excited to share their latest creations, and people travel from near and far to try them and enjoy visiting with winemakers and fellow wine lovers. Wine tasting events will be held at each participating winery from 11:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m. on Friday, Saturday, and Sunday of Mother’s Day weekend (May 7–9).

If your mom is a wine lover, a Spring Barrel Tasting tour would make a wonderful Mother’s Day present! Husbands—treat your wife to a fun, luxurious weekend of wine tasting and stay at the beautiful Stratford Suites Hotel, where you can both relax in one of our all-leather furniture rooms, with pillow-top mattresses, full kitchens, and a 50” hi-definition television.

This year, sixteen Spokane wineries will welcome visitors and guests for sampling new wines, sampling current vintages, sampling wines still in the winemaking process directly from barrels or tanks, and talking with knowledgeable and friendly wine lovers.

Liberty Lake Wine Cellar

Liberty Lake Wine Cellar

Participating wineries:

Arbor Crest Wine Cellars, at the National Historic Landmark Cliff House overlooking Spokane, features a number of award winning wines that showcase the quality and essence of Columbia Valley grapes.

Barili Cellars takes inspiration from the Italians, who believe wine is meant to be shared with friends and family. It is Spokane’s newest boutique winery, so come discover their second year of great wines!

Barrister Winery showcases award winning Bordeaux varietals, produced in small quantities, and limited edition wines, available to Wine Club members, in a 100-year-old warehouse located in Spokane’s historic Davenport Arts District.

Caterina Winery has been producing hand-crafted wines since 1993 in the historic Broadview Dairy building.

Grande Ronde Cellars produces single vineyard and Bordeaux Blend red wines from Seven Hills and Pepper Bridge vineyards, Walla Walla Valley appellation. Five wines have received 90+ ratings in Wine Spectator.

Knipprath Cellars, begun as a small family-owned boutique winery, enjoys a growing enthusiasm for its wines in and out of the state, which include award-winning firsts for the Spokane area, such as Washington-State Pinot noir and the first locally produced Port.

Latah Creek Wine Cellar has a stylistic aim to create wines that taste like the grapes from which they came by using traditional winemaking principles and selecting exceptional fruit. Wine Spectator Magazine has called it one of the top producers of Merlot in the State of Washington.

Liberty Lake Wine Cellars produces small lots of hand crafted red wine for those who seek out and appreciate limited edition wines. They specialize in single vineyard wines.

Lone Canary Winery wines combine the wonderful expressiveness of Washington State grapes with the depth and elegance of wines made in an Old World style.

Mountain Dome Winery produces quality sparkling wine from grapes from a variety of sources in Washington’s Columbia Valley appellation. The winery works closely with the growers to insure the highest possible quality while keeping the harvest down to less than four tons per acre.

Nodland Cellars has chosen to make very small lots of wine and to use traditional methods like hand selection of clusters, open top fermenters, and natural yeast fermentation followed by a cultured yeast fermentation to create wines with rich and opulent textures.

Overbluff Canyons is devoted to crafting world class limited production wines from the best vineyards in Washington State. Its only mission is to exceed the expectations of the most discerning wine drinker.

Robert Karl Cellars is a boutique Spokane winery producing handcrafted, premium Cabernet Sauvignon, Claret, Merlot, Sauvignon Blanc, Syrah, and a dry Cabernet Franc Rosé.

Townshend Cellar is dedicated to producing small lots of quality wines, ports, dessert wines, and unique Huckleberry style wines. Its wines derive their distinctive flavors from extensive oak aging in small French and American oak barrels and the selection of grapes from some of the finest vineyards in the Columbia Valley.

Vintage Hill Cellars started from a passion for winemaking and sharing an experience with friends and family. It first opened its doors May 11, 2007.

Whitestone Winery has over a decade of experience growing wine grapes in the shadow of Whitestone Rock, on the shores of Lake Roosevelt. Using grapes only from their estate vineyard, Whitestone is able to handcraft bold red wines and resurrect a tradition of wine making in the region.

While you are here in the Spokane Area check out our blog calendar of events for other fun things to do or see. Don’t forget to book your room at Stratford Suites Extended Stay Hotel if you are traveling for the Spring Barrel Tasting! Conveniently located just minutes from downtown Spokane, our spacious suites with fully equipped kitchens are the best lodging value in the Inland Empire.

Northern Quest Resort and Casino Offers Fun of Many Varieties!

Monday, April 5th, 2010

Since it’s inception as a modest gaming hall nine years ago, the Northern Quest Casino and Resort has undergone a complete transformation into a major regional destination. People from all over the Inland Northwest gather here for great concerts (Kenny G. and Miranda Lambert recently performed for the resort’s grand opening of its new hotel), comedy, theatre performances, boxing/fighting matches, special events, dining, and a variety of fun games in the casino. Recent performers at the Pend Oreille Pavilion, the resort’s major performance venue, include Tim Conway, the Commodores, and Art Garfunkel. Northern Quest, owned by the Kalispel Tribe of Indians, is also a popular choice for business conferences and events large and small because it offers flexible meeting spaces with excellent service and high technology amenities.

If you happen to be staying at Stratford Suites Extended Stay Hotel, Northern Quest Casino and Resort, located in Airway Heights near the Spokane Airport, is just down the road and is sure to have something to entertain you during your visit to Spokane, WA. Whether you want to listen to live music, play some poker, sip on fine wine, satisfy your craving for a great steak, smoke a cigar, dance, or shop, this is your destination!

For starters, there are six restaurants ranging from fine dining to Asian style noodles to tasty pub fare. For nightlife every night of the week, you can check out Impulse, which offers comedy, live jazz, dance lessons, and more.

The resort also features a cigar lounge, sports bar, social lounge, and a relaxing lobby fireside bar. The 46,000 square-foot casino offers over 2,000 slots and progressives, 37 table games, live poker, keno, and OTB.

If you really need to relax, indulge in a Pend Oreille River Stone Massage at the new Current Salon and Spa, a beautiful, full-service spa and salon with treatments inspired by traditional Kalispel Indian healing. You can even do some shopping at the gift store and the Logo Shop clothing store.

Coming up April 6–10, Northern Quest Resort and Casino will present Cabaret, the Broadway musical that swept the 1967 Tony Awards and has since undergone several revivals and revisions, in the Pend Oreille Pavilion. You can purchase tickets by calling the resort at (509) 481-6700 or through Ticketswest.

If you travel to Northern Quest Resort and Casino for any event, consider staying at the nearby Stratford Suites Hotel, the best lodging value in the Spokane area, with full kitchens, 50” hi-def. televisions, pillow-top mattresses, and all-leather furniture in every room. Northern Quest provides free shuttle to and from Stratford Suites.

Spokane Shock Football Opening Night April 2

Friday, April 2nd, 2010

Spokane Shock 2009 ArenaCup Champions. Copyright Spokane Shock.

Spring is here, and it’s time for the 2010 arena football season. The Spokane Shock, Spokane’s award-winning arena football team, will open the season on April 2nd as new members of the newly resurrected Arena Football League (AFL), which is back after a one-year hiatus and reorganization of its business plan. The 15-team league will play a 16-game schedule leading into the playoffs and the Arena Bowl the third weekend in August. Membership in the AFL will make this the most exhilarating season yet because it gives the Shock the opportunity to play against teams in bigger cities and a chance to test itself against AFL teams who have won championships at the highest level of indoor football. The Spokane Shock will play at HOME against big cities like Chicago, Phoenix, Cleveland, Salt Lake City, and Jacksonville. These games will definitely be worth travelling for.

Rob Keefe, former player and Shock’s all-time leading tackler (career), is the new head coach, replacing Adam Shackleford. Keefe is entering the season with high spirits and recently told the Spokesman Review “In six, seven months we truly put together an AFL team; a top tier team is what we believe we are.” (link)

ArenaCup 2009 at the Orleans Arena in Las Vegas

In addition to winning their second ArenaCup Championship since 2006, last year the Inland Northwest Sports Writers and Broadcasters named Spokane Shock the Team of the Year. This is the second time the team has won the award in its five-year existence.

The Shock will open the season on Friday, April 2nd, 8 p.m. against the Milwaukee Iron on Spokane Tribe Field at the Spokane Arena. Single game tickets can be purchased through TicketsWest. Season tickets can be purchased by calling 509-242-7462. Travelling to Spokane for a game or two? Book your hotel room now at Stratford Suites, featuring luxury one and two-bedroom suites with fully equipped kitchens and 50″ HDTVs.