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May 2021

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By 1Turkish Wine, White Wine, Wine Reviews

  To begin, Solaris is not a wine name, it's the grape. Developed in Germany in 1975, Solaris is a hybrid grape. Now, get ready for the geeky bits. Its parents are Merzling (itself a hybrid) and the sexy sexy grape, Gm 6493. Yup, you read that correctly. Gm 6493. With so many grapes existing naturally, why make another? In this case, Solaris, which super ripens early, was intended for those cold European regions where the sun doesn't shine so much. In addition to Germany, wineries in the UK, Denmark, Sweden, Norway, Switzerland, and Belgium plant it. So does Turkey! Nif Bağları began planting Solaris a number of years ago and

By 0Turkish Wine, White Wine, Wine Reviews

  Do not judge a book by its cover! We all know this. Sometimes though when it comes to a wine label I forget. I'm often guilty of buying, or not buying wine based on the label. I've had wines as fabulous as the label, wine as terrible on the label, terrible wine tarted up by a great label, and great wine hidden under a terrible label. The Doluca Kav Narince falls into that latter category.  This label hardly looks like the most interesting thing I've ever seen. Although to be fair I have seen far worse labels. However, it does not particularly evoke any excitement or invite one to

By 0Rose Wine, Turkish Wine, Wine Reviews

  I realized a few months ago that I have tried every wine from Urla Şarapçılık except the winery's rosé. Since I don't generally hold rosé in the highest opinion it's not a surprise that I hadn't had it. However, I must do my best in my quest to try all the Turkish wines!  Based in the southern İzmir district of Urla, Urla Şarapçılık heads up the Urla Bağ Yolu. Its wines include a series of red blends, varietal Boğazkere (grown onsite vs brought in from Diyarbakır) and Patkara, varietal Sauvignon Blanc, Chardonnay, Sungurlu, Gök, a white blend, a sweet white, and this rosé. Urla Serendias Roze, 2018 The Urla Serendias Roze

By 1European Wines, White Wine, Wine Reviews

  Last summer during a trip to Hungary, I discovered a new (to me) grape: Kéknyelű. Little is known about this grape's history. What I know for certain though is that it makes knock out wine. Kéknyelű, which is actually pretty fun to say, fell out of favor in Hungary after the second world war because of how difficult it is to grow. A naturally late-ripening grape, it gives low yields with poor fruit set. It's also one of those odd grapes that needs another variety to help pollinate it. According to Taste Hungary, which introduced me to the grape, for this reason locals have long referred to it as the "gentleman's

By 0Sweet Wine, Turkish Wine, Wine Reviews

  I love sweet wines. Perhaps I have mentioned that a time or two on this blog! I'd been curious about the Corvus Passito, having seen it around, for years. But it's not an inexpensive wine. It shouldn't be, right? Passito wines are not cheap to produce so they shouldn't be cheap to sell. But when you're looking at that price tag, sometimes it doesn't matter if you understand that or not. A few summers ago, I again found myself on the Aegean island Bozcaada, home base for Corvus. At the winery's Wine and Bites café/shop I was able to purchase the wine by the glass and finally try. Love.

By 0Red Wine, Turkish Wine, Wine Reviews

  Asmadan winery, located in Eceabat on the Gallipoli Peninsula, has vineyards in several locations in Turkey. Some surround the winery, others sit in the Aegean region - Turkey's most prolific grape growing area. The winery also works with growers in the east. From Elazığ and Diyarbakır (respectively), it sources Öküzgözü and Boğazkere. The topic of our tasting notes today. The winery currently produces wine under five labels (listed below in descending order of quality). Kor Reserve holds a place at the top of Asmadan's quality pyramid. Kayalıtepe Kor Reserve Duman Gönülden CNKL Asmadan Kor Reserve Öküzgözü Boğazkere, 2018 Öküzgözü and Boğazkere are considered common blending partners. They have a very Merlot-Cabernet relationship. The Asmadan Kor Reserve

By 0Turkish Wine, White Wine, Wine Reviews

  I love doing side-by-side wine comparisons. For example, when a producer makes multiple styles of wine from the same grape. So when I saw that Küp Şarap put out both a Sauvignon Blanc and a Fumé Blanc, I could not resist getting them both! Based in the heart of Turkey's largest vineyard area, Denizli, is Küp Şarap. A multi-generation, family run winery, Küp produces several series of wine. But it is best known, for its Thia line. Somewhere between entry and mid level, the wines come in at some of the most reasonable prices in the country. The quality can be a little unpredictable with them sometimes tasting like

By 0Red Wine, Rest of the World, Wine Reviews

  For May's Wine Paired Weekend event, Wendy Klik of A Day in the Life on the Farm has invited us to explore the wines and foods of the Middle East. You can read her invitation post here. This is a region rich in history, culture, flavor, and yes, wine. Join us tomorrow, May 8 at 6pm IST/ 11am EST / 10am CST / 8am PST by following along with the #WinePW hashtag on Twitter as we explore the wines and flavors of the Middle East. Wine in the Middle East To many, mention of the Middle East evokes images of deserts, pyramids, bellydancers, political instability, and religious extremism. It is those

By 0Turkish Wine, White Wine, Wine Reviews

  Just in time for international #SauvBlancDay, my new favorite Turkish Sauvignon Blanc: Saranta Chateau Murou Sauvignon Blanc. This is a hugely popular grape in Turkey. I don't, unfortunately, have any figures, but Sauvignon Blanc and Chardonnay definitely compete for the most popular white grape here. The majority of wineries boast at least one in their catalogue. It comes as a varietal and in blends. Sauvignon Blanc here ages in stainless steel and displays a crisp and racy character. We're also seeing more and more oak raised "fumé blanc" styles. One winery even has a botrytized sweet Sauvignon Blanc. The only thing we're missing is a sparkling! Saranta has been making

By 0Amber Wine, Articles, Orange Wine, Turkish Wine, White Wine

  Narince is perhaps the most ubiquitous of the native white Turkish vitis vinifera. However, its popularity has little to do with wine and more to do with its leaves.  A somewhat late ripening berry, Narince is harvested in the second half of September which provides a unique challenge to many winemakers. The vast majority of Narince vineyards in Tokat are owned not by wineries but third party growers who sell the grapes to winemakers and the leaves to other companies. Stuffed grape leaves (sarma) are made not only traditionally but almost exclusively with the leaves from Narince grapes. Unfortunately, the leaves reach peak ripeness and are harvested long before