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The Winery at Holy Cross Abby
If you ever go through Canon City, CO make sure to stop for a wine tasting at the Winery at Holy Cross Abby. This abby, built in 1924, was used by Benedictine Monks and the Roman Catholic Church. It was used primarily as a boys school, but closed in 1982 because of declining enrollment. It continued to function as a monastery until 2005, and eventually wound down and was sold in 2007 to an investment firm.
Today, it is a popular event center, used for weddings, receptions, meetings, and so on. The Benedictine monks had planted grapes and established a wine making capability. This continues to this day as one of Colorado’s favorite wineries. And why not? They have a large variety of wines, ranging from sweet one to full body wines. And, they were really excellent and even better, complimentary (except for the two special reserves, which were $1 each).
So we lugged a half case of wines home, including a special gift of a sweet wine (for Ida Cook) and a very special full bodied Red for daughter Tanya Allen. At least, if we can keep our hands off them till we get home….
Front of the 4 story abby
A view of the abby
An old truck in the vineyard
Vines, ready to grow!
This table once was a square grand piano!
Original couch used by the Abbot for receiving dignitaries
Inside the sanctuary, being prepared for a wedding
Pouring one of the red wines
What it’s all about… wine!
It is almost mother’s day, right?
Maryhill, WA
Yesterday we stopped in Maryhill, WA to visit the museum, war memorial, and winery. This area was home for Sam Hill, the late 18th century magnate who was so instrumental in building roads in the northwest.
The War Memorial was patterned after Stonehenge in England, and bears the names of local Clickikat residents that were killed in WW 1. Later, an addition was made for WW2, Vietnam, Iraq and now Afghanistan.
The Museum was built as his house, but he never moved in, donating it for use as an art museum. It was christened by Queen Maria of Romania, who was a close friend. She donated many items to the museum. Some featured exhibits we saw:
The Winery has earned some top awards, has a great location, and a eclectic tasting menu. The winery is also well know for hosting some famous bands (next week it’s Earth, Wind and Fire, an ’80’s rock band)
- a number of sculptures by Auguste Rodin;
- Native American artifacts,
- stage sets and mannequins from 1946 Theater de la Mode,
- over a hundred unusual chess sets,
- Orthodox icons and painings donated by Queen Marie,
- a permanent exhibit on the dancer Loie Fuller,
- a permanent exhibit on Hill’s life and projects,
- an outdoor exhibit of a variety of statues.
There were many pictures to take, below is a representation.
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- The outdoors concert seating at the winery.
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- That didn’t last very long
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- Aha — wine tasting at the bar
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- An original Indian headpiece. Photos are also on display of famous historical chiefs wearing it.
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- Hand made moccasins on display
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- Some intricate basket weaving in the Native American section
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- Some of the local artist paintings on display
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- A complete fashion show in scale models
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- After WW2, there wasn’t enough material to make fashion clothes in Paris, so scale dolls were used to show new designs
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- Some intricate chess pieces
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- The museum has some outstanding (and unusual) chess sets
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- A “portable” chess set
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- One of the Russian icons on display
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- A very unusual sculpture… made from stainless steel plates, from the side it almost dissapears
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- A metal flower sculpture
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- A scrap metal horse
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- Looking at the Maryhill Museum from the entrance driveway
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- Romola taking a break to view the scenery
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- Looking west from Stonehenge
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- A view of the Stonehenge memorial
Stopped at Maryhill, WA
Laninga's Travel Blog 