Chamlija Istranca 2012
All of the teachers participate somehow and many of them wear traditional Austrian costumes of Lederhosen and Dirndl. As a rather typical American, my family is from a little bit of everywhere and I’ve always been envious of people who have a cultural heritage that
comes with national costumes, traditions, food, etc. Our biggest tradition in Michigan is using our right hand as a state map. Which, come on, is pretty cool.
Istranca Terroir
In a way, wine is like my Austrian friends and their dirndl; they come from and belong to a place. However, with wine we define that with the somewhat indefinable term, terroir. Kırklareli-based winery Chamlija takes a huge amount of pride in its terroir. When we visited, proprietor Mustafa Çamlıca took Istanbites and I on a tour of his various vineyards scattered around the foothills of the Istranca (or Strandja) Massif. He chose his plots, rootstock, and clones carefully to ensure not that the whole would be greater than its parts, but so that the whole would be a culmination of its parts.
Chamlija Istranca 2012
The 2012 Istranca is a Merlot-led Bordeaux blend with a whopping 15% abv. Aromas of black fruits, plums, berries, cedar, and leather blend together in a base and alto choir while bright mint sings the top notes. A sip reveals structured tannins and full, ripe plums and blackberries. Eucalyptus brightens the mid palate making way for an earthy finish.