After 29 years of service to Ste. Chapelle Winery, legendary Idaho Winemaker Maurine Johnson is leaving to take a new position with Hogue Cellars in Washington State. Effective July 7, Sawtooth Estate Winery Winemaker Meredith Smith will be promoted to head winemaker of both estates for Precept Wine in Idaho. “Maurine is an institution in …

Copyright 2015 Salt Lake Tribune Read the full story here. A trip to wine country is closer than you think. Instead of heading west to California and its famed winemaking regions in Napa and Sonoma, go north to Idaho, where there are more than just potatoes. There are 51 wineries throughout the Gem State, but …

Copyright 2013 Idaho Press Tribune  Wednesday, September 18, 2013 Idaho’s agricultural heritage goes back to the days of its earliest settlers. But in the past several years, local growers have discovered a whole new way to make money — agritourism.Visitors come to sample one of Idaho’s newest agricultural industries: wine making. Although the first Idaho …

Ste. Chapelle winemaker Maurine Johnson joined Idaho Gov. Butch Otter recently at a Boise Albertson’s. Johnson signed a custom Ste. Chapelle Idaho Wine Month 5-liter bottle in celebration. Otter looked on before signing the commemorative bottle, too! As the celebration comes to a close this week, participation from retailers was strong with store displays and …