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Turkish Wine

HomeTurkish Wine (Page 39)

  Spring has finally spring in Istanbul. We don't have a lot of green in this city so every tender spring bud is a precious miracle. I've lived in cities before and vastly prefer them to swaths of farmland where I grew up. But I do like a happy medium between the concrete and crop jungles. Regardless of where I'm living, one thing that does not change is how happy budding plants make me. Maybe its the rosemary, basil, and mint I just planted on my balcony, one tree on my street or the honeysuckle that seems to be growing out of the building behind mine. I find it all

  Last October Istanbites and I finally made it to Avşa island to visit Alp Törüner and his winery Büyülübağ. A lovely island in the Sea of Marmara, Avşa's population skyrockets in the summer. So we thought we would be really clever by waiting to visit until autumn. But September then October came and went until we were scrambling to book a fare on one of the last boats to the island before winter. Scramble we did though and, while it took forever to find one still open, we had a hotel booking, boat tickets, and were ready to go.   Adventures on Avşa Despite being so far into fall we really were

  Porta Caeli, on the Gallipoli Peninsula, is a luxury wine brand that tries to model itself after Bordeaux. The winery produces several series including Ament (all red), Pacem (whites), Felici (pink), and their entry series, Porta Diverti (all the colors). Previously I reviewed the Porta Caeli Ament Bordeaux blend. This post we're tackling the Ament Cabernet Franc. Porta Caeli Ament Cabernet Franc 2014 Tasting Notes Porta Caeli uses the heaviest blasted bottles I have ever hefted. Even after we finished the wine I kept trying to pour more because empty it felt like it should be full. It would make for a great weapon. The Cabernet Franc here spent 18 months in

  Turkish winery Sevilen has winemaking facilities in both Mürefte and Aydın. They also have vineyards in several locations including Mürefte, Denizli, and across Anatolia. The grapes for this Colombard Semillon wine, a new release last year from Sevilen, come from the winery's Mürefte vineyards. Interestingly, while the wine is new, the vines are not.  It turns out that Sevilen has had its Colombard vineyards for something like 30 years. However, until now they used the grapes for brandy and table wine production only. Then last year, Sevilen's team took a trip to France. There they drank an amazing Colombard-based wine and realized how good it could be. With that

  Last summer, Istanbites and I visited Garova Vineyards and I wrote about a couple of the red wines the winery produces. Now it's time to tackle the Garova Öküzgözü blush.  Nestled in a bowl-like cradle in mountainous Bodrum and nearly lost in the riotous greenery of the surrounding agriculture grow vines of Cabernet Franc, Petit Verdot, Shiraz, and Zinfandel. This is Garova Vineyards. While winery owner Mehmet Vuran grows the four aforementioned grapes onsite; he brings in Öküzgözü from the Denizli district of Izmir. He believes the more moderate climate there a better for Öküzgözü than the heat of Bodrum. I very much enjoy the Bodrum-grown Öküzgözü wines I've had.

  [caption id="" align="alignright" width="302"] From oesterreichwein.at[/caption] Whether you call it Welschriesling, Laški Rizling, Olaszrizling, Graševina, Riesling Italico, or anything else, what does not change is how enjoyable the wines are. Despite its name, this grape bears no relation to Riesling. Welschriesling grows largely in Austria but also Slovenia, Hungary, Croatia, Northern Italy, Romania, Bulgaria, Slovakia, the Czech Republic, and Turkey (sort of-we'll get to that). According to Wine Searcher, the grape is "relatively easy to grow, although it does have a preference for dry climates and warm soils. Welschriesling is productive and retains its acidity in warmer climates, making it a reliable grape for growers. In most cases this will

  Gordias winery, located outside Turkey's capital Ankara, is mostly known for its red wines. However, Canan, the one woman show runner there, does make white wine as well. Her Nana Narince ranks as one of my absolute favorite Narinces. Unfortunately, it, and her other whites, have proven very difficult to find. So, if you find one, buy three. In addition to the Nana Narince, Canan's white wine collection also includes the Gordias Sauvignon Blanc.  This part of Central Anatolia, around Ankara, tends to lend itself more towards black grape cultivation. The main native grape from this area being Kalecik Karası (which Gordias also produces). However, just because red wine reigns

  Last year, Kırklareli-based winery Vino Dessera debuted a new line of wines. The Vino Dessera Entrika line up includes three wines: a red, rosé, and a white. Following the winery's principal that wine should be an "affordable luxury," none of the wines are pricey. Prices range from around 50 to 75 TL ($8-12). Also true to form for Vino Dessera, some very nice wines lie under the modest sticker price. Vino Dessera Entrika Red 2017 Tasting Notes During a previous visit to the winery I learned that Doğan Dönmez, in charge of the family winery, was experimenting with the Italian grape, Barbera. If his experiments proved successful, he would be

  I've been digging through older tasting notes, trying to pull out wines from wineries I've neglected, and stumbled across notes for the Kastro Tireli Peri. Based in Akhısar in the drier area of Turkey's Aegean, Kastro Tireli has built a reputation as a high-quality red wine powerhouse. A well-deserved reputation at that. The award-winning wines include blends of both native and international grapes. It is also one of the few wineries in Turkey giving focus to Mourvedre; a grape that seems to really like the hot, semi-arid conditions of Akhısar. Yes, some of the wineries top tier wines might price in as a little rich for some. But happily,