Cheers to the bicentennial

SANDUSKY — Firelands Winery toasted to a special Sandusky celebration with the proper drinks.The company — originally known as Mantey Vineyards, with its city roots dating back to 1880 — produced two flavors of Firelands Bicentennial wine:• A white, or pinot grigio• Several red blends of cabernet sauvignon, shiraz, red zinfandel and merlotTo help commemorate Sandusky's bicentennial, local business Firelands Winery produced and made special bottles of wine. The blends include reds of cabernet sauvignon, shiraz, red zinfandel and merlot.Made and bottled earlier this year, the entire stock of 480 bottles is almost sold out and won't be reproduced. People can purchase what's left at the winery's headquarters, 917 Bardshar Road, by Dorn Community Park.Candy Barczyk, the winery's retail manager, explained why her business wanted to intertwine its products with Sandusky's yearlong bicentennial celebration, happening all throughout 2018."Firelands Winery was one of the first wineries in the state of Ohio and has been going strong since," Barczyk said. "Sandusky has always been at the forefront of Ohio winemaking, and making a wine to commemorate the bicentennial seemed like a natural fit."Firelands Winery inside sales employee Hannah Galindo holds a bottle of special wine her company made to help commemorate Sandusky's bicentennial, or 200-year anniversary.So what can someone expect if they sip on one of the bicentennial blends?"What makes Firelands Bicentennial wines great is they are both smooth," she said. "Our winemaker, Claudio Salvador, has been at Firelands since the mid-1980s, and his knowledge of the grapes, weather and soil conditions are evident in every bottle."Earlier this year, Firelands Winery in Sandusky produced and bottled special blends of wine to help celebrate the city's 200th anniversary in 2018. A few bottles remain available for purchase at the winery, 917 Bardshar Road, by Dorn Community Park. Reach reporter Andy Ouriel at ouriel@sanduskyregister.com and follow him on Twitter @AndyOuriel.