Chandler Hill Winery

Tony has stopped at a few of the Missouri wineries for lunch, but this was my first.  Many people don't know this, but prior to prohibition, Missouri was the second largest wine producing state in the country.  Today, over 100 wineries operate in the state.  Both German and Italian immigrants developed wines along the Missouri River from grapes grown by local Native Americans.

Chandler Hill has the distinction of being the nearest, fully operating winery to St. Louis.  It's a short 35 minute drive from the city.  Given how flat St. Louis is, it always surprises me how close we are to large hills.  To enter Chandler Hill, you first drive through the rolling hills of Chambourcin.

This is the view that greets you once you turn onto the property.

Tasting room - I love the large chandelier over the bar.

In addition to the tables and chairs for the restaurant, there are also comfy leather couches and overstuffed chairs.

The 4,500 square foot wine deck is definitely the highlight.  As you can see, the back part of it was still closed off for the winter months.  If you wanted to enjoy the view while staying warm, there were couches, chairs with ottomans, and tables along with heaters.  Since it was sunny and 60 degrees, we decided to sit outside.  It was a little chilly with the wind, but well worth the view.

On Saturday afternoons, they have local bands play for a few hours out on the deck.  

View from the wine deck.

When building the vineyard in 2007, the owners decided to keep the old farmhouse.  It now stands at the entrance to the property.  Extra parking lots are down there with shuttles available for a ride up to the winery.

Chandler Hill takes its name from a freed slave named Joseph Chandler.  In the early 1870s, he settled near Defiance, MO and befriended a family who lived nearby.  As a free man, he worked on their farm for several years.  The family eventually deeded him 40 acres of their land including a hill overlooking the Femme Osage Valley.

Chandler died in 1952 at the age of 103.  The winery is located on the same 40 acres that he once owned.  The tasting room and winery are located where his cabin was built at the top of the hill.  They actually used the stones from his original cabin to build a large water feature in the front of the winery.  Artifacts of his that were discovered during excavation are now on display throughout the tasting room.

I forget that spring won't be in full bloom for us for another couple of weeks.  We'll have to go back when this is filled with greenery and grapes.

When we first arrived, we were one of only a handful of cars in the parking lot.  This was the site that greeted us when we exited after our long lunch.  Tony had to get a picture.

Orchid Show

On the day that we visited the Botanical Garden, it was also the last day of the 2011 Orchid Show.  This annual event is the only time when a vast, rotating selection of orchids from the Garden's historic collection is made available to the public.  Up to 800 blooming orchids set in a Maya-themed accent were featured.  

I was surprised to learn that the Botanical Garden here in St. Louis maintains one of the largest orchid collections in the nation, with over 7,500 individual orchid plants representing approximately 280 genera and including over 2,500 unique orchid taxa.  That's a lot of orchids!  The Garden's orchid history dates back to 1876, when the first one ones were gifted to Garden founder Henry Shaw.  The collection was expanded in the 1920s when Garden horticulturist George Pring added 5,000 from a collection trip to South America.  

I wish that Tony had taken some pictures of the Mayan influences that were set into the show.  The theme this year was chosen as a nod to the much-discussed Maya "Long Count" calendar, which reaches its end in 2012.  Life-sized, moss-colored mannequins with elaborate head pieces were posed throughout the 5,000 square foot display area.  A large serpent fountain, stone statues, and towers were also part of the display. The jungle-like environment was even complete with a light fog that meandered through the pathways to add to the ambiance.

At the end of the day, I was mesmerized with the hundreds of orchids.

These were my favorite.  Their petals seem to have been dipped in glitter.

LSU Orchids :)

Snow Covered Japanese Garden

I've seen a lot of beautiful things in my life, and our trip to the garden today ranks right up there.  I am trying to find the words to adequately describe the experience.  It was absolutely magical.  The 79 acre botanical garden was so peaceful and serene.  There were maybe 15 others walking around, and we hardly saw them.  Everyone had their cameras out to capture the beauty, so no one was really talking.

It also was sunny and warm enough out not to be miserably cold.  Thirty degrees and bright sunshine is surprisingly warm.  I just wore a fleece pullover, and was very comfortable.  I never even put on the gloves that I brought with me.  

Like our first trip to the botanical garden, our favorite part was the 

14 acre Japanese Garden.  

All of these pictures are from the Japanese Garden.

If you look closely in the far left of the picture, you can see two geese eating something in the water.

Large waterfall

Even the sky was picture perfect this morning.  Now, it's cloudy and getting ready to snow again.

We took advantage of all of the excess snow to have LOTS of snowball fights throughout our walk.  I always lose, but it doesn't stop me from starting them!

Snow covered cherry blossom

It's pretty impossible to have a bad day after looking at this all morning.

Poor duckies.  Tony was torturing them by throwing in little clumps of snow  so that they'd think it was food and swim over.  At least we fed them from the food stations on the bridge.

A goose just started eating the snow right off of the little poles!

In conclusion, if you're ever in St. Louis after a snow storm, bundle up and had to the botanical garden.  You won't regret it!

Botanical Garden Covered in Snow

I may complain about the snow often, but I still find it incredibly beautiful.

On Saturday afternoon, it began snowing around 1 p.m. as we wrapped up the last of our scholarship weekends for this year.  Fat, fluffy snowflakes are my favorite which is what we had yesterday.  When it finally stopped around midnight last night, we had right at 

4 inches of snow here in St. Louis.  

While it was still snowing, I attempted to convince Tony that we should go to the botanical garden.  He wasn't too keen on the idea, so I decided that a Sunday morning trip would work.  The snow would still be on the ground, but less chance of me slipping and falling as I'm prone to do.  Waking up Tony at 8 a.m. on a Sunday morning isn't an easy feat (especially when it involves walking outdoors for an extend period of time in 30 degree weather), but every once in a while, I decide to tackle the challenge!

We arrived right after the garden opened at 9 a.m.  Once we walked through the welcome center to enter the gardens, this is the sight that we were greeted with!

Spring flowers covered in snow isn't something that

 you see down in Louisiana!

Spring here is often marked by the blooming of the tulips.

Since it was so sunny this morning, the sidewalks were relatively safe.  I did find one patch of ice to slip on, but I never fell!

Pink magnolia tree

Entering the Chinese Garden.

There's a small waterfall that empties into a little 

pond at the back of this picture.

Cherry blossoms are so of our favorite trees.  Our bedroom and bathroom are filled with pictures of them as a nod to Tony's Asian heritage.

Another pink magnolia

Several day lilies were already in bloom.

Holly tree

You can see the snow falling from the branches.  At times, it would almost seem like it was snowing again with all of the snow falling from the trees.

One of the enormous holly trees.  It just look right all covered in snow.

Another pink magnolia right as we exited the park.  The bright sun was melting the snow quickly, so I'm glad that we went right as they opened.  Much to Tony's dismay, we did manage to spend two hours walking around the garden.

While there are several magnolia trees on the property, this is the only Southern magnolia tree that we found.