Click here to learn more about the people and places featured in the Markko Vineyard collection.
Browse the Markko Vineyard Documents Collections
Memorial Poem for Linda Grace Tenny Frisbie07/16/2015Linda Frisbie(1940-2015) worked for over 40 years at Markko Vineyard. She worked alongside Arnie Esterer, helping with the pruning, winemaking, and serving customers. |
Mission: the Essence of Lake Erie Wines, Presentation for Ohio Grape Day 199608/25/1996Markko Vineyards celebrates its 25th year by heralding the work of Dr. Konstanin Frank’s in the Finger Lakes of New York and upholding its mission of creating superb Lake Erie wines. Operational and wine-making success strategies provided and the distinctiveness of the Lake Erie region explored. Charts on the vineyard labor hours by task and spray schedules included. |
No. 03, The Gadding Vine, Fall 197810/01/1978The challenges and cycles of operating a vineyard are eloquently described. Arnie answers the popular wine consumer question, “How long should a wine age in the bottle?” Wine Notes Underridge “boxed” wine is released. |
No. 05, The Gadding Vine, Spring 198004/01/1980As the winery grows in production and quality, the cost to produce the wine decreases. Price cuts across all wine vintages are initiated. List of recent wine awards received. Wine Notes Cabernet Sauvignon 1977, Lot 71 aged one year and only 20 cases available. Riesling Lot 704, a small lot of dry late-harvest Johannisberg Riesling aged two years in oak with a limited release of 15 cases. |
No. 09, The Gadding Vine, Spring 198204/01/1982Due to increase of demand, the price of Markko Vineyard wine increases. Concerns of shortages are addressed. Discussion on how Ohio wine industry leaders worked successfully with legislators on two pieces of legislation that have long-term benefits for the industry. List of recent wine awards received. Wine Notes Riesling Lot 012 and 014 released. Both are a dry, kabinett style, a light type of Reisling made from fully ripened grapes from the main harvest. Lot 014 has some residual sugar. |
No. 10, The Gadding Vine, Fall 198210/01/1982Summary of how the harsh winter of ’81-‘82 damaged vine buds and impacted the grape yields of Chardonnay, Riesling, and Cabernet Sauvignon. The vineyard slowly expands to cover future production losses due to winter damage. List of Ohio restaurants that carried Markko wines and recent wine medals received.. Explanation of Markko’s lot numbers stamped on the back label of the bottle. |
No. 12, The Gadding Vine and Wine List, Fall 198310/01/1983Explore how a 1980 Markko Chardonnay edged out Mondavi's 1981 Chardonnay for the "Best of Show" at a blind tasting in Tornoto for members of the Society for American Wines. The story of the 1983 harvest and why Riesling needed to be picked off season. Wine Notes The winery releases a "Covered Bridge" commemorative label in celebration of Ashtabula County's newest 'old bridge' situated less than a mile from the vineyard. Character of each vintage highlighted. Chardonnay: Traditional, 1976, 1979-1981 Cabernet Sauvignon: 1979-1980 Riesling: 1977 (Sweet), 1980 (Dry) Covered Bridge: Picnic White and Picnic Red Underridge White: Riesling, Chardonnay, Riesling/Chardonnay Blend |
No. 14, The Gadding Vine and Wine List, Fall 198410/01/1984Groundbreaking ceremony for the Ashtabula County Research Center in Kingsville occurs and the rationale and funding support for an Ashtabula County research station provided. Arnie Esterer speaks on the merits of Lake Erie wines at the American Wine Society’s annual conference in Cleveland. Ohio rises nationally to fifth place in gross wine production and Ashtabula County is the largest producer of grapes in the state. Wine Notes Character of each vintage highlighted. Chardonnay: 1980-1982 Cabernet Sauvignon: 1979-1982 Riesling: 1983 (Dry), 1983 (Sweet) Covered Bridge: Picnic White and Picnic Red Underridge White: Riesling, Chardonnay, Riesling/Chardonnay Blend |
No. 15, The Gadding Vine, Spring 198504/01/1985Working directly with Professor Garth Cahoon, Greg Johns takes on the position of managing Ohio State University’s newest Kingsville grape research center. His background and experience working in the vineyards of the Moselle region, the third largest in terms of grape production in Germany, is briefly described. Arnie Esterer travels to the Kiedrich vineyards of the Rheingau region of Germany, an area known for its classic dry Riesling. He also tours the Alsatian vineyards in France. Wine Notes New releases for 1985 include a 1984 Riesling (Lot 402), 1982 Chardonnay Reserve (Lot 221, Ohio Wine Competition Silver Award Winner), 1981 Cabernet (Lots 11, 12), and 1982 Cabernet (Lot 21). Character of each vintage highlighted. |
No. 16, The Gadding Vine and Wine List, Fall 198510/01/1985The passing of Dr. Konstantin Frank, “the pioneer of vinifera growers in the East” is announced. Arnie shares some of his Dr. Frank stories. New white oak barrels crafted from trees on Markko’s property are incorporated into the wine production process. The barrels are expected to produce “a more delicate and subtle flavor than oak found from other regions.” Kinkopf’s Old Mill Winery in Geneva opens. Wine Notes Character of each vintage highlighted. New Releases: 1983 Cabernet Sauvignon, 1983 Chardonnay, 1984 Riesling, and Ohio’s first commercial bottling of a Pinot Noir. Chardonnay: 1980-1983 Cabernet Sauvignon: 1979-1983 Riesling: 1983-1984 Pinot Noir: 1983 Covered Bridge: Picnic White and Picnic Red |