Happy Fall! I am back after taking a much needed summer break. Our editor covered my absence by saying I was out walking my dog. I thought that was pretty cute. While out walking it gave me time to clear my head and come up with new thoughts for this column. I wonder how daily columnists do it. I really do need your thoughts and ideas to keep me going. On that note my friend and customer Sue Kmieciak called me last minute one day in late August saying she had an idea for me to write about. She invited me to a wine tasting that afternoon held at Plumps Last Shot on Cornell Avenue. This wasn't just any wine tasting, this was a true dog day afternoon. Sue works for Olinger (so did I a hundred years ago), a wholesaler of liquor and wine. Olinger was promoting Mutt Lynch Winery. The owner Chris Lynch was here from California to introduce his unique wines to the Hoosier State. When I arrived I met Chris who told me "I love wine that doesn't take itself seriously". He and his wife Brenda started their winery and based it on their love of dogs. When you go to their web site www.muttlynchwinery.com you see their dogs, their philosophies, commitment to animal rescue organizations and, of course, their story and their wines. The event was great fun. Tippi Hickey of Olinger told me that she chose Plump's for the venue because of their dog-friendly deck. On hand were representatives from Humane Society of Indianapolis and dogs for adoption, including a boxer puppy that would melt your heart. One dollar per bottle of wine sold through the HSI website is donated to the shelter. Stepping up to the cause with the same match was Crown Liquors at 12480 N. Meridian. They carry the brand. In Broad Ripple contact Cork and Cracker at 2126 Broad Ripple Avenue. At this writing they are thought to have come on board.

The wines have fun labels and are aptly named (and in my humble opinion dog-gone pleasing). Here are some descriptions:

Merlot Over and Play Dead (big, beefy bulldog saying "bite me" is a way of saying this is not your typical Merlot)

Portrait of a Mutt Zinfandel (it blends a small amount of spicy Carignane fruit into a jammy Zinfandel. As the label says, "Just because I'm not pedigreed doesn't mean I'm not a good dog")

Fou Fou le Blanc Sauvignon Blanc (She's amazing, she's eccentric, some might even say barking mad! It is a Sauvignon Blanc with certain panache)

Unleashed Chardonnay (Unleashed Chardonnay is all about "fruit jumping out of the glass", like a dog jumping out of a vineyard)

Chateau d'Og Cabernet Sauvignon (biggest, most complex, fullest bodied Dog Series red wine. You know what they say - you can run with the big dogs, or stay on the porch and bark).

According to Chris Lynch "I've been working in the wine business for over 20 years. Wine is in my blood. Mutt Lynch Winery is perfect for dog loving, wine drinking people with a sense of humor---Like myself! And these are the best folks around!" Notable is their motto: Apply dog logic to life: eat well, be loved, get petted, sleep a lot, dream of a leash-free world.

Starting in 2009, Mutt Lynch Winery will be donating a portion of its profits each year in support of Adopt-a-Pet.com. For more information on this awesome organization, go to www.adoptapet.com. I had not heard of them until now. By clicking on their site I found 97 rescue groups and shelters within 50 miles of zip code 46220. That represents a lot of pets that need us.

You gotta love happy, fun businesses like this who give proceeds to animal causes. Pets make you smile (and so does good wine).