A Tropical Garden Explosion in a Bottle
I’m actually gearing up to write another lengthy post about a winery visit I made with Fine Turkish Wine back in November. It’s taking me rather forever to get through these. But before I dive into another of those, I want to take a sec for a wine I keep meaning to talk about. The HUS Bornova Misketi.
HUS Şarapçılık
HUS Şarapçılık has seen more than its fair share of tumult and tragedy for a young winery.
Ceylan Ertörer Diaz Leon and Juan Pablo Diaz Leon met while studying in Canada. While neither ever thought about having a life in wine, during a visit to Ceyaln’s family in Urla, they both felt struck by fate, inspiration, what have you. In that moment, their future decided itself. In 2017, they founded HUS Şarapçılık. By the next year, they busied themselves reviving her family’s old vineyards and planting new ones. At the same time, they also formed agreements with vineyard owners locally and outside Izmir.
Then, in 2021, Juan Pablo passed away. Ceylan has bravely continued the push forward. HUS is now an official member of the Urla Bağ Yolu. The winery’s restaurant offers one of the best experiences on this particular wine route. And Ceylan has multiplied the wines HUS offers.
Bornova Misketi
Whether or not Bornova Misketi is Turkish is a debated topic among wineries and winemakers. Some claim that the grape, “native” to the Aegean town Bornova from which it takes its name, is merely related to Muscat Blanc a Petit Grains, but that it has its own genetic characteristics making it truly Turkish. Others believe the grape to simply be Muscat Blanc a Petit Grains, meaning it is not a native Turkish grape.
However you look at it, it is a popular grape here, grown primarily in the Aegean in Izmir, Manisa, and Bornova. It produces beautifully aromatic wines that range from dry to dessert-level sweet. Actually, once upon a time, Bornova Misketi appeared on shelves only as sweet wines, but today it is far more common to see dry wines.
HUS Bornova Misketi
Sooner or later, almost everyone in Urla seems to get around to making a Bornova Misketi. Now it’s HUS’s turn. A couple wineries dabble in some of the other regional native grapes like Foça Karası, Kara Misket, and Urla Karası. But Bornova Misketi is often the (sometimes only) native grape offered alongside all the Urla Cabernet Sauvignons. Although, of the official Urla Bağ Yolu wineries, HUS is one of a few exceptions in that there’s no Cabernet Sauvignon happening. They do a lot with Alicante and Cariñena, which are unusual to find in Turkey.
You look at this wine and, initially, it doesn’t look like it’s going to be much of anything. The color is so pale, a platinum shot through with straw that’s almost translucent. But one whiff and you’re transported to a tropical garden spilling over with blossoming orange trees and delicate white roses. Ripe tangerines burst from their skins, dripping juice onto melons growing amidst a wild tangle of mint.
The wine hums with energy. Nothing that leaps from the glass, but hits at the front of the palate before gradually narrowing into a graceful finish. It’s clean, clearly dry, and despite its aromatic prettiness, a wine that demands it be taken seriously.
As I poked around on the internet for information about the wine, hoping for some further details about the vineyards or winemaking, I stumbled across a genius review on Vivino that I just have to share, even though it totally throws shade all over mine:
“Minty and sweet like melon in smell, acidic and spicy in taste. Like the average guy next door, yet turning out to not have mummy issues but actually good taste in fine dining and 90s turkish pop music.” Aïda G
Aïda G, whoever you are, you are amazing.
If my (or more likely Aïda G’s) review piqued your curiosity, have a wander over to my other Bornova Misketi wine reviews and see what else might tickle your palate.
No Comments