The Irish are Coming!

Sun, June 6, 2010; 1:00 - 3:00 pm
Irish Sunday at the Blue Heron Inn

On the 1st Sunday of the month a group of Irish players from all over the region gather for an impromptu jam. Come listen as they play and discover your own "little bit o' Irish"! Join us for lunch, tip a pint and tap your toes! Blue Heron Inn, Main Street, Findley Lake, NY. For info & reservations: P: 716.769.7852 or stay@theblueheroninn.com

Findley Lake Merchants promote 3/50 Project with “I’m Here to Shop Local” promotion

Findley Lake has taken the National 3/50 Project one step further. “I’m Here to Shop Local” is a shopping program open to customers who make a purchase while visiting Findley Lake, NY. The premise is simple, we want to show our appreciation and offer a potential reward to the customers who make our businesses successful:
1. Buy any item in participating shops and restaurants
2. Fill out an entry form each time you make a purchase
3. Each month the entry forms will be collected and one lucky patron will win $100 Findley Lake “Fun Money”.
A new drawing will be held each month, so Shop Often, Stay Often, Register to Win Often!

The 3/50 Project
The 3/50 Project is a national movement that supports locally-owned businesses by inspiring consumer loyalty to the storefronts that directly fund their communities.

The 3/50 Assertion
Think about which 3 independently own businesses you miss most if they were gone. of Stop in. Say hello. Pick up a little something that will make you or someone else smile. Your contribution is what keeps those businesses around. If half the employed US population spent a total of $50 each month in independently-owned businesses, their purchases would generate more than $42.6 billion in revenue. Imagine the positive impact if ¾ of the employed population did that. Pick 3. Spend 50. Save your local economy.

The 3/50 Mission
• To promote and strengthen independent brick and mortar businesses owned by people in the community
• To thank consumers for their patronage
• To expand local revenue streams by showing how a small dollar amount can translate into enormous financial stability
• To shine a light on the stark contrast between what an independent, locally owned brick and mortar business contributes to the local economy versus the significantly lower amount big boxes, franchises, chains, and internet purchases return. For more information, please visit www.The350Project.net

Findley Lake, located in Chautauqua County, NY, is situated in the scenic southwest corner of New York State, just inside the NY/PA state line. One mile south of Interstate 86, exit #4, Findley Lake is less than three hours, less than one tank of gas, from Cleveland, Pittsburgh, Rochester, Niagara Falls and Toronto and within an easy drive from Buffalo and Erie. Findley Lake is around the corner from Peek ‘n Peak Resort and Spa and is convenient to the Chautauqua County Snowmobile, Wine and Art Trails. Findley Lake’s downtown shops, restaurants and Inns sit on Findley Lake’s picturesque north shore and offer a year ‘round destination perfect for a single day’s pleasure or a relaxing overnight stay. For more information, please visit www.findleylakeinfo.org.

The Chautauqua-Lake Erie Art Trail "2010 Annual Open Studio Tour"

Did you know that Chautauqua County, NY is the home of a community of 2 dozen artists? Read on for more information about this weekend's Open Studio Tour, sponsored by the Chautauqua Art Trail. Make the Blue Heron Inn your "home base" while discovering our talented local artists, wineries, shops, & restaurants. There's a lot to love about Chautauqua County!


The Chautauqua-Lake Erie Art Trail
2010 Annual Open Studio Tour
Memorial Weekend - May 29 & 30
10:00 am - 5:00 pm - No Charge


The 2010 Chautauqua- Lake Erie Art Trail (CLEAT) Open Studio Tour will take place Memorial Day weekend. CLEAT runs from Silver Creek, NY to Sherman, NY, and features 25 artists and 35 art related businesses. The artists work in a variety of art forms, including paintings, photographs, ceramics, sculptures, fabrics, stained glass, pottery, jewelry, drawings and wood turning.

A Personal Invitation
As artists, the work we do is always personal – our responses to the world in which we all live – responses that take a variety of forms: paintings, photographs, ceramics, sculptures, fabrics – myriad, creative, expressive, beautiful forms. Now is your opportunity to see for yourself, to visit the personal places where we live and create our work, and get to know us. We live in and find our inspiration in one of the most beautiful, picturesque regions of New York State. As you travel to visit us, see what we see every day - verdant vineyards and fields, lush forests, rolling hills, and a spectacular Lake Erie shoreline. There are plenty of places to eat and find lodging along the way so come and visit, and stay awhile. For information and downloadable maps, go to www.ChautauquaArtTrail.com or P: 716.679.9154.


Make a weekend of it!
Enjoy a 2-night stay at the Blue Heron Inn along with the following amenities:
   Full breakfast each morning
   $50 dinner voucher for two in the Blue Heron dining room
    (menu includes soup or salad to start, choice of dinner entree and dessert)


Add Sunday night to your stay and enjoy breakfast while watching Findley Lake’s annual Memorial Day parade from the comfort of our lake view deck!


Package Rates:
  2-night package: $299 per couple
  (cost does not include alcoholic beverages, sales tax or gratuity)
  3-night package: $349 per couple
  (cost does not include alcoholic beverages, sales tax or gratuity)


Reservations: P: 716.769.7852  *  E: stay@theblueheroninn.com  *  Web: www.theblueheroninn.com

An Evening with Claudia Schmidt

The Blue Heron Inn welcomes acclaimed singer/songwriter Claudia Schmidt this Friday, May 21st. Schmidt, who plays 12-string guitar and mountain dulcimer, has been performing for almost four decades and has released 14 albums that explore folk, jazz, and blues.

Work in clubs, theaters, festivals, TV, radio has added depth and dimension, and since she has always included her original work along with very personal versions of the work of others, what you get is a unique look at the world from someone who says what she sees with clarity, humor, and wonder. The San Francisco Bay Guardian said: Schmidt's shows are a lot like falling in love. You never know what's going to happen next, chances are it's going to be wonderful, every moment is burned into your memory and you know you'll never be the same again." Having appeared on "Prairie Home Companion" Garrison Keillor said "when Claudia sings a song, it stays sung".

Seating is limited and cost is $14 per person. Cash bar & light bar fare will be available. Advanced ticket purchases are available at: http://www.eventbrite.com/event/667505527, by e-mail: stay@theblueheroninn.com or by phone: 716.769.7852.

Join us for a magical evening!

Libation Vacation on Lake Erie's Shore

By Carl Francis Penders
Published: April 25, 2010

The words “lake effect” can have a chilling consequence on Western New Yorkers. But for grape growers along its shore, Lake Erie provides the opportunity to fill glasses with delightful fruits of the vine. And through New York’s Chautauqua County, and Pennsylvania’s Erie County, that fruit turns into some excellent wine.

With 30,000 sandy soil acres dedicated to growing grapes, the region enjoys a mild climate moderated by “lake effect” weather. Cool springs keep buds from growing too soon, and warm late summers and mild autumns extend the growing season while reducing the risk of frost.
In recent years, more wineries have taken root in the area, and more wine lovers have been drawn to follow the Chautauqua Wine Trail.

A recent addition to the trail is Liberty Vineyards ( www.libertywinery.com , 672-4520), where innovative branding ideas flow as freely as wine. Owner Gary Burmaster is a fifth-generation grape grower. Burmaster said his daughter Beth produced “a fully integrated plan for the marketing of a winery” for her 2005 master’s thesis at St. Bonaventure University. This academic endeavor spurred his decision to expand from grower to wine entrepreneur. Beth, who now joins her parents in the enterprise, said, “It’s great seeing things I put on paper are now actually being used.” Burmaster exhibits a flair with words in naming his wine offerings. His Liberty Vineyards markets brands like White Side of the Moon, a white wine with a fruity, sweeter taste. He said his Purple Haze “is a fun little way of promoting the Concord grape,” and Lucy in the Sky is a white wine made from diamond grapes, which the winemaker terms “an old Native American variety.”

In their vineyards in the town of Sheridan on Route 20, the Burmasters grow 13 grape varieties on 93 acres. They produce 21 wines, including a 2008 Pinot Grigio and 2009 Riesling and Diamond, which won gold medals in the 2010 Grand Harvest Awards in Sonoma, Calif. Open every day for tasting and tours, Liberty also has a gift shop selling nonalcoholic products like Concord Grapeseed Oil and Concord Grape Pie Filling & Topping.

Behind the tasting bar is an antique oak humidor. Now used for display, the case was built in Buffalo by A. F. Meyer& Sons, formerly at 404-408 Broadway, and hails from a Dunkirk tobacco shop. Liberty now counts among its customers the 93-year-old daughter of the owner of that tobacco shop.

The nearby Woodbury Vineyards ( www.woodburyvineyards.com , 866-691-9464) on South Roberts Road off Route 20, won the Taste of Buffalo’s 2009 Best Wine award for its cherry wine. Woodbury also offers blueberry and cranberry fruit wines. Woodbury opened as a  winery in 1980, and its pavilion is a popular setting for weddings, picnics or parties that call for libation to augment the occasion. The Chautauqua Wine Trail continues southwest on Route 20 to Westfield, where Vetter Vineyards ( www.VetterVineyards.com , 326-3100), 8005 Prospect Station Road, operates a boutique winery. We were greeted by owner Barbara Lancaster and her mother, pitching in on a busy Wine and Art weekend. Set in a wooded area, the winery provides an opportunity to sample some of the 25 wines from more than a dozen grape varieties grown on 23 acres. Westfield’s Noble Winery ( www.noblewinery.com , 326-9463) is a farm winery, and its wines are produced exclusively from New York State grapes. Pete and Diane Noble invite visitors to drink in their spectacular Lake Erie view, along with their award-winning Seyval Blanc. Almost 50 of their farm’s 65 acres are dedicated to growing grapes for Mogen David wine. At Johnson Estate Winery on Route 20, (www.johnsonwinery.com , 800-374- 6569) the grapes are grown in French “chateau tradition.” “This is a process in which the vineyard manager, winemaker and owners collaborate so that we make the vines happy, and harvest the best fruit,” said Jennifer Johnson. Johnson’s is New York’s oldest estate winery. It has 110 acres, producing 11 grape varieties, resulting in 30 wines, including award-winning ice wines. The bright red winery building, circa 1920, was originally built by co-owner Frederick Johnson’s grandfather as a cold storage facility for apples and other fruit. Today fruit is made into wine in a production area where grapes are crushed, pressed and fermented. After aging in barrels and stainless steel drums, the wines are bottled and put to the test in the tasting room out front. The space serves as a welcome center and gift shop, featuring a complete line of wine accessories.

A newcomer to the trail is Ripley’s Quincy Cellars ( www.quincycellars.com , 736-2021), where winemaker and chef Kevin Daughrity pairs his wines with specially prepared winemaker’s dinners. Each of four courses is served with its own wine, as Daughrity explains the pairings and how the dishes were prepared. The wine-and-dine outing includes bread baked on the premises, dessert and coffee.

Stepping even further back in time, and into Northeast, Pa., is Mazza Vineyards’ South Shore Wine Company ( www.mazzawines.com , 814-725-1585), 1120 Freeport Road. Established in 1864 by grape-growing pioneers William Griffith and Smith S. Hammond, South Shore’s magnificent wine cavern, modeled after a French wine cellar, features a tasting room with a bar made from poured concrete. The structure has room for production, a banquet hall upstairs and a seasonal cafe, open from April to October. Presque Isle Wine Cellars ( www.piwine.com , 814-725-1314), 9440 West Main Road, Northeast, Pa., is set in a wooded area alongside Twelve Mile Creek. Known as “the dry red people,” the PresqueLuebbert took us out along the water, to the pressing and crushing area. Stems are taken out, Luebbert said, “because they can add bitterness and off flavors.” Presque Isle also caters to home winemakers, shipping supplies all over the country; it even exports its wares to customers in Japan.

We didn’t have time to stop at two other vineyards in northern Chautauqua County, but they are worth mentioning, and a visit: Merritt Estate Winery ( www.merrittestatewinery.com ; 965-4800), 2264 King Road, Forestville, has been a functioning winery since 1976. On June 12 and 13, it will hold its 30th annual Strawberry Festival. Legendary Buffalo Bills wide receiver Andre Reed will be at the winery to sign autographs and raise money for Ali’s Rally Foundation. Willow Creek Winery ( www.willowcreekwines.net ; 934-9463), 2627 Chapin Road, Silver Creek (between Routes 20 and Route 5, off Center Road), has its tasting room in the original farm house, built in the early 1800s. Its 10th annual Willow Fest, a family event with music, crafts and rides, is June 24-26.

If you go: The Chautauqua-Lake Erie Wine Trail consists of 21 wineries, and runs from Silver Creek to Northeast, Pa., along Routes 5 and 20. Maps are available at the Wine Trail web site: www.chautauquawinetrail.org or by contacting individual wineries. The Chautauqua Wine Trail puts on several special events, including a Wine and Cheese weekend May 1 and 2, featuring cheese from Corfu’s Yancey’s Fancy. Harvest Weekends are scheduled for Nov. 6-7 and 13-14.