5 Legion Street, Ringgold, Georgia 30736
This is a tasting room in central Ringgold while the vineyard itself is about 18 miles away, where nearly all the grapes for their wines are grown and for the few wines where they do not grow that grape, Broken Horseshoe acquires them from other local vineyards. We arrived around lunch time, so before a happy hour crowd, and the tasting room is kind of like a bar to visit – plenty of comfortable seating, great Classic Rock playing and the gentleman behind the bar was very knowledgeable, pleasant and funny. Here are our impressions, opinions, and our Wine Review:
- Seyval Blanc – Very tart and citrusy, heavy on lemon. Like a fine lemonade without the sugar. Very properly Dry! Tastes like young grapes, a “green wine,” and a fine Dry choice for a summer day.
- Chambourcin – Hints of currants, blackberries, very easy drinking, slightly tannic on the finish, very mellow tannins.
- Norton – Very young as it is harvested from small clusters, so younger grapes, we did not get the Big Bold taste and found it a lighter Red, a little tart, good for drinking a glass on its own.
- Emancipation – Very Dry, lots of cooked fruit, plums, a little tartness just like a vat of cooked fruit.
- Farmer’s Market – We had to take home a bottle! Tasted like a spiced tomato juice with a kick. We learned from the tasting room host that wine derived from tomato juice is not red, it does not distill red. This was like drinking a salad in the best way, all the vegetable notes come through, but you’ve had a wine. Our favorite that day!
- Peartastic – Smells more like cooked pears than fresh pears, serviceably Dry, but not for Dry purists. A special wine that is 100% Estate grown; a fun social wine to share with family and friends.
We had a great time at Broken Horseshoe and will return when we are in Ringgold and wager that they attract a good happy hour and evening weekend crowd with their cool set-up, good music, and ample seating like a wine bar as much as a tasting room. We would be hanging out at Broken Horseshoe if we lived in the area!
