Today’s Press Herald reports on a new gelato shop that’s due in September, interviews MDI Ice Cream about their new business in Portland and reports on the “Obama Bump” they’ve received since the First Family ate there.

Even President Obama couldn’t resist a coconut cone from Mount Desert Island Ice Cream in Bar Harbor during his visit to Maine last weekend. The sight of the leader of the free world enjoying his afternoon treat sent sales of coconut ice cream soaring at MDI’s Bar Harbor and Portland stores, according to owner Linda Parker. More wholesale orders came rolling in as well.

An interview with macrobiotic author and former Maine resident Jessica Porter,

A former Mainer, Porter lived in Portland when she wrote “The Hip Chick’s Guide to Macrobiotics.” The fun book — which mixes humorous advice and explanations with recipes — was published in 2004 and reigns as Amazon’s top seller in the macrobiotic category.

Porter returns to Portland next week to conduct a macrobiotic cooking class a week from today, followed by a lecture the following Friday, “Is the Macrobiotic Diet Vegan?” Both will take place at the Five Seasons Cooking School on Munjoy Hill.

and Joe Appel recommends a trio of red wines that are right for Summer.

The big new Summer issue of Portland magazine includes a feature story on Maine wineries.

Some of Maine’s vintners make the so-called “fruit wines” with fruits other than grapes–mainly blueberries, apples, cranberries, raspberries, and pears. Some make wine from grapes or grape juice brought in from out of state. And quite a few, especially the newcomers, are growing their own grapes, something many people believed could not be done in Maine. Several are experimenting with growing and fermenting techniques and with new, especially hardy types of grapes designed to survive the state’s cold climate. Many of these varieties are hybrids created by university scientists and did not exist as recently as five years ago.

Many of the state’s 20 wineries are open to the public. Visit www.mainewinetrail.com for a map and links to winemaker’s websites.

Yesterday’s Food & Wine section in the Press Herald included an update on the soon to open Havana South,

The head chef is Joe Boudreau, formerly of Mims in Portland and the Purpoodock Club in Cape Elizabeth. The food, Boland said, will be American cuisine with a Latin twist. Think filet mignon with an adobo rub, or a hanger steak with a chimmichurri sauce.

Latin fare will be represented by a Peruvian seafood paella, made with dende oil to give it a rustic flavor. Also on the menu will be a Brazilian stew known as moqueca.

and the launch of a new wine column written by Joe Appel who puts his wine knowledge to use on the page and at his day job at Rosemont.

My intention for this column is to make it desperately relevant to you – whether “you” is a can’t-relate-to-humans-because-wine-is-more-interesting geek, a mildly interested food-lover unfamiliar with the world of wine, or somewhere in between.

I try hard to keep an open mind and treat every aspect of the wine world as an opportunity to learn something new. Still, here’s what really excites me: reasonably priced, locally available, food-friendly wines that honestly reflect the character of the land that bred them, the true nature of the grapes that died for them, and the spirits of the farmers and winemakers who labored over them.

The Food & Dining section in today’s Press Herald includes an interview with Paul Turina, a Yarmouth man who imports wines produced by his family in Italy. According to the article, Turina wines are on the menu at Paciarino, Hugo’s, and Walter’s and can be purchased at Rosemont and RSVP.

At first, he brought just enough wine to the States to satisfy family and friends. Now he travels to Italy once or twice a year to visit his family and do business with them, trying to find ways to get the word out about their wines on this side of the Atlantic.

Johnny’s Bistro in Falmouth is featuring Turina wine at a dinner on May 17.

Governor Baldacci has signed  a revision to the 2009 law that regulates wine tastings.

The law had required that wine stores run tastings “in a manner that precludes the possibility of observation by children”. The revised law strikes that provision; shops now just have to “post prominently at the entrance to the store a sign that announces the date and time of the event”.

The revised law also enables shops to conduct up to 3 tastings per month and no more than 24  per year.

For additional reporting see: Chow Maine.

Both MPBN and the Press Herald have reported on yesterday’s hearings about Maine’s wine tasting legislation at the Legal and Veterans Affairs Committee in Augusta.

“At our Bangor location, we have had customers after the fact apologizing for missing a tasting because they saw the windows covered in paper and thought we were either closed to remodel or out of business,” [retailer Scott Worcester] testified. “During a tasting in Southwest Harbor, I had to explain to a gentleman that he could not come into my store while carrying his infant, even to buy cheese and crackers, because I was conducting a tasting.”

For a wider perspective on how legislation is impacting the state’s wine making and retailing industry be sure to read the article published earlier this month in Down East.

Down East has published an in-depth look at the convoluted and complex set of laws governing wine sales, production and shipping as well as wine tastings in the state.

Yet even such codified situations seem to have exceptions. Winterport Winery, for instance, had a liquor license for three years by virtue of maintaining a restaurant next door (separate door, separate corporation) where it conducted wine pairings with meals and cooking classes. Owner Michael Anderson was surprised, therefore, when he was told that he would not be able to renew his license in 2009.

“Mike, we’ve got a problem,” a state liquor inspector told him. “I want you to become a brewery.”

“You what?”

Chow Maine’s Bob Rossi has published an update on the effort to revise the flawed wine tasting law that went into effect last year. Hopefully the revisions make it quickly through the legislative process so wine shops can resume their normal tasting schedules.

There are currently two proposed bills aimed at correcting the “no children” aspect of the tasting law. One is sponsored by Representative Stacey Fitts of Pittsfield; the other is sponsored by Representative David Webster of Freeport, the legislator who introduced the “no children” amendment that made it into the final bill that was passed in 2009.

Today’s Portland Daily Sun includes an interview with Steve Melchiskey from Maine Coastal Vineyards in Falmouth.

Whether or not global warming turns Maine into a wine center, as a 2006 National Science Foundation report suggested, the short season and mild summers make for a climate that is inhospitable to classic wine grapes. St. Pepin, St. Croix, LaCrescent, Leon Millot, Marechal Foch, Ravat 51, Sabrevois and Aurore are the cold-adapted grapes that Melchiskey has found success with. Hundreds of gallons of test blends have been dumped over the years but there has been enough bottled success that their grape harvest festival attracts 125 volunteers.

and an article on the Wayside Soup Kitchen and Food Rescue.

A decade into its mission to feed the hungry and distributing more than a million pounds of food annually, Portland’s Wayside Food Rescue is reaching beyond the traditional food kitchen format by cultivating garden plots and establishing new neighborhood outlets.

Chow Maine has a report on Maine’s new wine tasting law and the impact of the provision that tastings “be conducted in a manner that precludes the possibility of children viewing the tasting” is having on wine shops.

Now that the law is in effect, it’s clear that the shop owners’ concerns were justified. Tastings have been canceled, shop owners remain confused about what they have to do to comply with the new law, and getting approval for tastings from the liquor enforcement bureau has frequently proven to be difficult.

Public radio is on a roll when it comes to food reporting. In addition to the piece mentioned in the prior post there’s also a pair of audio articles that were aired today on disputes among lobstermen and on the confusing new wine tasting law.

Chow Maine has taken a look at one of the more unusual provisions of Maine’s new wine tasting law. While the law provides shop owners with more flexibility on what can be part of tasting or how frequently they can occur, it also specifies that they must “be conducted in a manner that precludes the possibility of observation by children.”

The changes made by the new legislation won’t go into effect until September, so it’s unclear how the “no children” aspect of the law will affect specific shops. However, an overly strict interpretation of this provision might make it impractical, or even impossible, for some shops to continue to conduct wine tastings.

The state legislature is weighing three separate proposals to enable Mainers to buy wine over the Internet.

The third measure, proposed by Rep. Melissa Walsh Innes, D-Yarmouth, is modeled after similar legislation in 35 other states. It would establish just one permit for wine producers wishing to ship directly to Maine consumers, but not require Mainers to register themselves with state government in order to make the Internet wine purchases.

Chow Maine‘s Bob Rossi has written an interesting article about Maine’s connection to two California wineries: Serenity Vineyards and Thunderstone.

In addition to the article about the Zimmern’d Deathmatch that was held this Summer, this week’s edition of the Portland Phoenix also includes advice on finding value priced wines for the holidays.