This week's Vineyard Journal takes us close to home for a
summer afternoon at Echo Hill Orchards Winery & Distillery in Monson, Massachusetts.

What began as a family-owned pick-your-own orchard has grown
into something rather unexpected. After purchasing the orchard 27 years ago,
the Krupczak family continued its tradition while raising five children. Along
the way, Mr. Krupczak developed an interest in winemaking. With plenty of
self-teaching—and fruit growing right outside the door—he began making wines
from the orchard's apples and other fruits.

Those first fruit wines eventually found their way into the
farm store, followed by tastings and full pours, and ultimately a winery and
distillery.

Today, you can still come to Echo Hill to pick apples,
pumpkins, sunflowers, pears and peaches, but now you can add a wine or
distillery flight—or one of their seasonal signature drinks—to the experience.

And that is exactly what makes a place like this interesting
to me.

It's not simply about what's in the glass. It's the setting,
the people, the landscape and those wonderfully unexpected little discoveries
that turn an afternoon outing into a story worth remembering.

A cool drink, a shady table and nowhere else I needed to
be.

Sometimes inspiration doesn't require a grand adventure.
Sometimes it's simply giving yourself permission to sit awhile, sip something delicious and enjoy where you are.

Echo Hill isn't a traditional grape winery—and that's part
of its charm.

The wines began with apples and other fruits grown at the
orchard, and today the winery and distillery offers flights, wines and spirits
by the glass, along with a seasonal menu featuring more than a dozen signature
drinks.

And there are definitely a few surprises waiting on the wine list.

Pumpkin Chardonnay?

Blue Raspberry & Apple Wine?

Those are the kinds of bottles that make me stop and say,
"Well, I have to know what THAT tastes like!"

My advice? Don't rush the visit. Choose a flight or one of
the signature drinks, find a comfortable spot outside and enjoy the
countryside.

After all, isn't discovering something unexpected half the
fun?

The guests are truely enjoyiing their time spent at this unique New England Winery. This visit seemed to have its own color story:

Orchard Green — the lush greens surrounding the
property

Sunflower Gold — warm late-summer sunshine and
flowers

Weathered Cork — natural tans, browns and wood tones

Harvest Blush — the soft pinks and rosés of a summer
drink

Picture Jasper — earthy creams, tans and browns that
seem to capture all those colors in one stone

That last one especially stayed with me.

Picture Jasper has the wonderful appearance of a tiny
landscape captured in stone—warm, natural and beautifully imperfect.

It seemed like the perfect gemstone to remember an afternoon
spent at an orchard that has grown and changed with one family over nearly
three decades.

From nature's palette...to my worktable.