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October 2022

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By 1Rose Wine, Turkish Wine, Wine Reviews

  Over the winter I met some of the family behind new Çal-based winery, Kuzubağ. Historically, the wineries located on the Denizli-Çal plateau have produced more bulk, lower-quality wines. Kuzubağ is one of the new wineries here that want to change that image. One of the ways they're doing it is to emphasize the local grape, Çalkarası.  The winery's vineyards sit at an elevation of 850 meters in clay-loam and calcareous soil. Given the elevation, there's a great difference between day and night temperatures allowing grapes to ripen over a longer period while retaining their freshness. Here they grow not only Çalkarası, but also Kalecik Karası, Öküzgözü, Narince, Chardonnay and Sauvignon Blanc.  The

By 0Turkish Wine, White Wine, Wine Reviews

  [caption id="attachment_18341" align="alignright" width="428"] map from Nif Bağları click for larger image[/caption] Viognier Narince is not an unpopular blend in Turkey. I feel like the first I saw was probably from Kastro Tireli (which makes it as both a white and an amber wine). A couple few more have popped up since theirs. including (obviously otherwise what would be the point of the post?) Nif Bağları. In addition to the blend, Nif makes a varietal Viognier and uses both grapes in its Aegean blend. However, I have yet to see/hear about a varietal Narince from them (hint hint!). What I do appreciate though, is that Nif is not bringing in

By 0Red Wine, Turkish Wine, Wine Reviews

  Sagavın Winery's wines still reside totally under the radar. I've seen them at the odd shop here in Istanbul but not widely. Which is a shame. I'm not going to pretend that they're the greatest wines or even anything above mediocre because they're not. And yet. They're pricing their wines exactly as they should - not always a guarantee anywhere, especially not here! For that reason alone I think it's a winery worth supporting. Wine can improve. Egos and price inflation rarely do. I've tried a number of Sagavın's wines so far, the rosé was a nice surprise! And now that temperatures have cooled off a bit, I can

By 1Rose Wine, Turkish Wine, Wine Reviews

  The Gordias Kalecik Karası Beyazı was one of the standout wine surprises I found this spring. I think it's been around for a while but Canan's wines aren't always easy to find. The first time I tried it was this past May's CMC event and it was love at first sip.  She's billing the wine as "Beyazı" (white) but it's really a very very pale rosé. Kayra also makes a similar wine, the Allure Kalecik Karası Beyaz. White, pink, purple, blue

By 1European Wines, Rose Wine, Sparkling Wine, Wine Reviews

  Do you love sparkling wine? I do. I'm always happy to try any of them (and generally even happier to drink them). Finding new sparkling wine to drink is one of the many fun things about learning about wine regions. On a semi-recent trip to Athens, I discovered a new bottle of bubbles thanks to one of my favorite wine shops (Alpha Sigma in Syntagma): Theopetra Estate Edenia Rosé. We don't hear a lot about Limniona but I have really enjoyed the few I've had. So when I saw this Limniona sparkling wine, I couldn't not buy it. The grape comes from Thessaly in north-central Greece. It's undergoing something

By 1Turkish Wine, White Wine, Wine Reviews

  For years, Kastro Tireli has made one white wine: a Viognier Narince blend. Then they added a skin contact version of the same blend. Fast-forward to this year. Kastro Tireli released three new white wines: varietal reserve Narince and Viognier and an off-dry Viognier.  Limited availability, I've only seen them at a few places (namely Casa Botti and Santé Wine & More) and a little scary expensive. Especially the off-dry. But I had to pull the trigger on the Narince because I've always been curious as to what a 100% Narince from them would taste like.  Kastro Tireli Narince Reserve, 2019 What makes this "reserve"? Since there were no winemaking notes

By 0European Wines, White Wine, Wine Reviews

  Have you had wine from Kefalonia? If the answer is 'no' then you should try to change that ASAP! I haven't yet been to the island but it is so on my list (right after Paros). And Sarris Winery and the Sarris V for Vostilidi are two of the big reasons why.  Kefalonia (or Cephalonia if you prefer) is one of Greece's Ionian islands. Not just one of actually, it's the largest. It is also home to an ancient wine culture - mentioned in Homer's The Odyssey no less - with not just one but three PDO-level appellations. The island's main claim to wine fame is the grape Robola.

By 0Red Wine, Turkish Wine, Wine Reviews

  Büyülübağ owner Alp Törüner  experimented with micro vinifications of wild fermentations for a few years before releasing his first commercial bottling in 2015. While perhaps not the first such wine on the market, the Büyülübağ Wild Ferment Cabernet Sauvignon was the first wine to label itself a 'wild ferment'.  Törüner feels a deep connection with Cabernet Sauvignon. Two of his aunts (by marriage) are French and they brought a lot of their culture into the family, including the practice of drinking wine with meals. He first visited France when he was 11-12 years old and even at that early age was captured by the country and wine.  The grapes for