When Grape Sense debuted as a newspaper column in the fall of 2007, I never had any idea or hopes that it would run more than 10 years and result in over 250 columns.

The column has been responsible for meeting all sorts of people in the wine community. But, more important to me, it also has introduced me to wine enthusiasts in each of the communities where the column is published in the newspaper or on a website.

Today will be the last regular Grape Sense wine column. I will be offering the newspapers that carried Grape Sense occasional columns on Indiana wineries, holidays and other times when people are looking to read about wine.

It’s not that I’ve run out of ideas or a lack of motivation to continue the column. It feels more like the column has simply run its course.

I want to write good pieces about Indiana wine in a more thoughtful way. I want to offer suggestions at the holiday and season changes that make sense for you regardless of your budget.

Grape Sense has always been about education or helping you make wine decisions beyond your normal comfort zones.

I hope many of the Grape Sense newspapers will continue to carry the features.

This column was largely responsible in the early years for trips to Mendocino and Paso Robles to learn about wine making and vineyard practices. I was part of three press trips to France in 2012 which never would have happened without the newspaper column.

At one point the column reached 23 newspapers with circulation in excess of 350,000 Hoosier, Illinois, and southern Michigan homes. The core group has been with me for a long time. I started with the Crawfordsville Journal-Review and Frankfort Times – newspapers I had worked at during my long print career. I loved knowing wine lovers in Marion, Anderson, Terre Haute, Seymour, New Albany, Monticello, Columbia City and many more enjoyed reading about wine.

I hope I can continue to provide occasional stories worth your time and trouble.

In the end it’s about increasing your wine enjoyment, at a price you can afford, and drinking wines you like. I hope we’ve helped a few people achieve that goal.

Any time you have a wine question I’m happy to answer for you.

I hope you see Grape Sense back in your community for several years to come; it just won’t be on a regular schedule.

Thanks for reading Grape Sense!