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Red Wine

HomeRed Wine (Page 28)

  Wine writer turned winery owner Şeyla Ergenekon and winemaker husband Çağatay cultivate organic grapes on the Gallipoli Peninsula. There they concentrate on French varieties including two of the most popular and widely planted grapes in Turkey: Cabernet Sauvignon and Syrah. Ergenekon produces varietal wines of each of these grapes under the label Singularis. The Regius brings together these two grapes for the winery’s trifecta of premium labels. Ergenekon Singularis Syrah 2013 Tasting Notes The Ergenekon Singularis Syrah is limited edition wine (1,115 bottles). As with all their wines, Ergenekon used only organic grapes for this Syrah. Aged for 16 months in French barriques, they then bottled it unfiltered; creating a wine

  Many moons ago I joined my very first wine club at Virginia-based winery Doukenie Winery. "the Bazaco family: a family-run winery built on courage, adventure and pursuit of the american dream" The winery began generations before its foundation with 14 year old Doukénie Babayanie Bacos's journey from Greece to the US. Her daughter, the aptly named Hope, married George Bazaco and their son, also George, would establish the winery.  In 1986 George Bazaco (the junior) and his wife Niki would plant their first vineyard in Loudoun County, Virginia, bringing the family journey full circle. He named the winery for his grandmother who made that fateful journey so long before, leaving

  Taking its name from the Syriac word for “peace,” Shiluh is Turkey's largest commercial Assyrian-style winery. Based in Midyat about 100 km from Mardin in the extreme southeast of Turkey, Shiluh (which also goes by Süryani Şarabı) carries on the winemaking tradition of Christian Assyrians. But in a modernized way. Until recently, Assyrian wine remained largely a family by family project. People sourced grapes from home gardens and made traditional wines at home to share with friends and family. Then in 2008, wishing to share this part of their culture outside the community, members of three Assyrian families: Gabriel, Aktaş, and Aslan, created a commercial winery to produce such wine. Shiluh

  Architect and musician (respectively) turned winemakers Bilge Benisü Öğünlü and Reha Öğünlü make wine they way they like it. After spending more than 15 years in America, they admit their palate was shaped by the many American and European wines they had during those years. So when they returned to Turkey to start their own vineyard in Urla, it felt natural to plant French varieties. Friends of the slow food movement, they take their time with their wine and attribute its ability to age well to a combination of this care and good cellaring practices. Their wine is always a little bit of a surprise to people I know. One

  Based in Elmalı, Antalya, Likya is one of Turkey's few Mediterranean wineries. Run by brothers Burak and Doruk Özkan, Likya's vineyards sit at an average of 1,100 meters giving the grapes cooling relief from the otherwise hot climate of Antalya. The Özkan family cultivates a wide variety of grapes including both domestic and international varieties. Likya is currently one of the country's leaders in resurrecting lost grape varieties like Acıkara, Fersun, and Merzifon Karası. These aren't the only native varieties the winery cultivates though. Likya's Narince has been one of my favorite wines from this grape. Boğazkere, Kalecik Karası, and Öküzgözü can also be found in their vineyards. Today,

  Petit Verdot blends well with a number of Turkish grapes. In addition to this Öküzgözü blend by Gülor, it also does well with Karasakız. Its meaty tannins and floral perfume help fill out some of these more highly acidic grapes that, left on their own, make medium bodied and often juicy fruity wines. For Gülor, the Öküzgözü Petit Verdot falls under the winery’s Silver Series which includes several native-international variety blends. Gülor Silver Öküzgözü Petit Verdot 2012 Tasting Notes The nose on the wine was as riotously colorful as the intense purple-tinged ruby color it displayed in the glass. Blue fruit aromas burst from the glass in waves of açai berries,

  I do not count driving among my core skills. If I'm being honest, it's barely a peripheral skill. Essentially, the best one can say about my driving is that I haven't killed anyone. And that car that I totaled that one time we argued the dealership into fixing instead of scrapping. Good thing for me, my skill level (or lack thereof) actually makes me an average driver in Turkey. Which is great because I've had to spend the last two years driving around the country in pursuit of wine. [caption id="attachment_13671" align="alignleft" width="225"] Gal pals on the edge[/caption] Google Maps has failed us a few times on these trips, getting

  Rıfat Şekerdil, owner and winemaker of Öküzgözü Şarapçılık, has been a fixture in central Izmir since his father opened a small winery in the Bornova area of Izmir when Şekerdil was a child. It was while making wine in Bornova that he became curious about the little-known Foça Karası grape. Foça Karası, which literally means “black from Foça” is from the nearby town of the same name. He started with just a few rows of the grape planted alongside Cabernet Sauvignon. When Şekerdil began experimenting with it, no one else was using it to make wine* so he had no idea what to expect. He soon realized that this medium small,

  What Ali and Melis Emin intended as a future retirement project turned into full-blown careers. Located on the same grounds as the Emins's vast horse breeding operation, Mozaik turns out some 60-70,000 bottles annually. Greatly influenced by a love of Italian wine, the winery offers wines made from several Italian varieties. Including the Mahrem Petit Verdot Rebo. We have a surprising amount of Petit Verdot in Turkey. For years winemakers used it only in blends but more 100% Petit Verdot wines pop up every year. For the case of Mozaik's Mahrem label though, we're back to blend territory. Interestingly enough, this is the only blend Mozaik produces. So while

  In the next coming weeks I'm moving apartments. I'm really hoping to be in the new place before Christmas. The tree and decorations will be the first things I move into and set up! As part of the move I need to pack up all my wine. This is one of those times I'm not jealous of people who have larger wine collections than I do; but packing up 200 some bottles is still not a picnic. Nor will be carrying them down from my third floor apartment up to my new third floor apartment. Although happily that's why moving companies exist. As I begin packing, I'm also separating