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Amber Wine

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  It's been quite a few years since Kastro Tireli debuted its first "natural" Hermos wine, a blend of Narince and Viognier. The line takes Kastro Tireli's clean winemaking practices one step further. The winery has always used organically-grown grapes and, when possible, native yeast fermentation. Hermos goes another level by using skin contact for the white wines, no filtration, and adds the barest hint of sulfur before bottling. What started with one wine is now five: the original Narince-Viognier blend, a Bornova Misketi (one of my favorite wines), varietal Viognier, Cabernet Sauvignon, and Syrah. I have not tried any of the reds, but very much enjoyed the two

  How is it October already?! I know that I for one wanted the heat and humidity of summer to be over, but I blinked and it's October?? Possibly I missed September while my power and water were out because this city can't get itself together to actually fix the infrastructure. Hopefully though, October will go better than did September.  Regardless, autumn is truly upon us! Calendarily in any case and if we're lucky, cooler weather and lower humidity will follow. Does this mean that it's time to break into all those big red wines again? Read on to find out! Aquarius (January 20 - February 18) October invites you to engage

  The first Experimental Series wine Kayra released was an old vine Semillon. A couple years have passed since that one, which made me wonder if there even was going to be another in the series. I don't know if the winery was waiting for inspiration to strike or waiting for perfection, but it hit it big with the new Karkuş. [caption id="attachment_16265" align="alignright" width="225"] 60+ year old Karkuş vine[/caption] Karkuş (also known as Kerküş) has lived in shadows for some time. A grape traditionally used by Turkey's small Assyrian population, Karkuş grows in the high heat, semi-arid southeast near the country's borders with Syria and Iraq. New plantings of this

  While actual autumn does not begin until later this month, the beginning of September heralds to many the end of summer. Summer vacation is over, people are getting back to work, school, to "normal" life. Even if you didn't have the whole summer off, there's always an intangible sense of freedom and ease during June, July, and August and a lot of people feel a little let down at the end of the summer season.  Don't dwell on the let down this month! Concentrate instead on the good things. In Istanbul, for example, the end of summer means the return of charity ice cream producer Soulful Scoops! It means

  Used to be that Markogianni was not a winery with which I was familiar. A friend recommended their Vorias and Helios amber Assyrtiko to me some time ago. That one wine was all it took really to sell me on the whole winery. Subsequent trips have seen me tracking down more and more of their wines and I am dying to visit them.  Located to the far west of the country, near the Ionian sea and ancient Olympia,  Markogianni Winery is a family-run winery launched in 1982. They soon converted to organic cultivation and in 2001 were certified by DIO. Between their own vineyards and the growers with whom

  My little brother (by which I mean younger in that he stands something like 6'6" or 6'7") and I have a tradition going back to when I lived in DC. He's always the one to pick me up from the airport when I visit. Then we go to Wendy's, then Meijer (a MI/regional superstore). It's changed a little over the years. Now he picks me up in Chicago instead of Grand Rapids and rather than Meijer (which I hit later for major shopping) we go to Siciliano's. It may sound like an Italian restaurant, but it is in fact a gourmet drinks shop. I first encountered it back in

  Summer is in full swing and it's just begun. It's hot, tempers are rising with the temperatures! We all need something to cool us down. This time of year, most people want to reach for white or rosé because they're cold, they're refreshing. But, don't forget, you don't have to give up red wine during the hot summer months! Check out these chillable reds to start. And, even if your tastes run to heavier, full-bodied reds, don't be afraid to chill them for a little bit before drinking, especially given how hot our current "room temperatures" are.  So, let's get to it! What are we all drinking this month?

  Of the hundreds and thousands of grapes the world has, my three favorite are white varieties. One of which is Assyrtiko. I am lucky enough to be in the position that I can visit Greece often. And, thanks to my writing work, have even been to Santorini. For several years, I spent those trips drinking mostly Assyrtiko. And almost exclusively Santorini Assyrtiko. I didn't like mainland Assyrtiko, felt almost offended by its softness compared the acid powerhouses offered by the Cycladic Islands. A quick note about those powerhouses. I recently learned, during a lecture by Dr. Yiannis Paraskevopoulos from Gai'a winery how different the mineral levels are in

  Summer has unmistakably arrived! While it is spring that often gets the lamb or lion heraldic, it's really summer that needs one. Be it climate change or otherwise, the last several years has seen spring limp in weakly. Not meekly like a cute Easter lamb, but like one ravaged by angry wolves that managed to escape and keep going. In Istanbul, I feel like we need a new word to describe how winter and spring seem to be melding into one, indistinguishable season. There is no mistaking summer though which roars in like an angry lion, throwing temperatures into the upper 20s before June has even arrived.  I don't

  I had my first encounter with Sideritis at the Athens wine expo Oenorama a couple years ago. Only two or three examples were available to try at the time, but I've since been able to hunt down a few more. Never heard of Sideritis? Not surprising. While it seems to be moving on from 'rare' and into 'emerging', it's still not something you'll find on everyone's list/shelves.  A pink-skinned grape, Sideritis (Σιδερίτης) can be found in a few different locations around Greece, namely Patras on the Peloponnese peninsula, Central Greece, and in northern Greek in Macedonia. It takes its name from the Greek word ‘sidero’ (iron), referring to the