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White Wine

HomeWhite Wine (Page 28)

  The third white wine out of the Advent box o' wine yielded another import from South Africa - a Chenin Blanc. I've had this wine once or twice before and find it delightful. When the importer does a sale on it I usually buy one or two. And today I was so happy to have grabbed out this one as I have left over Indian food for dinner and suspect it will pair well with the wine. Jordan Bradgate Chenin Blanc, 2017 From Stellenbosch, South Africa, this is actually a blend of 87% Chenin Blanc and 13% Sauvignon Blanc. Appearance: bright lemon with pale green highlights Alcohol: 13.5% abv Nose: Love at first whiff! The

  This morning my box o' Advent wines offered up my first white wine blind tasting bottle. One of my preparations involved removing capsules from quite a few bottles. In some cases I did so to further disguise the wine within. For the blind tasting white wines I did it so I could mark the corks to indicate a white wine in need of refrigeration. We're having a warm snap in Istanbul. Which basically means we're back up to our usual early December temperatures of low mid teens (Celsius). So a white a white wine was very welcome today! My guess: moderate to cool climate, lightly oaked Sauvignon Blanc with

  This morning I finally managed to pull out a not blind tasting bottle! And the first white wine of the season too! What I got was a Grüner Veltliner from F.X. Pichler - just about the only Grüner Veltliner available in Turkey. I adore Grüner Veltliner. Luckily I have an Austrian friend who brings back bottles to share with me. Even though she comes from Welschriesling country and gently mocks my pronunciation of Grüner Veltliner. It's a deceptively difficult thing to say. Or so I tell myself to avoid having to admit simply that my German accent is atrocious. My apologies to all German speaking people to whom I

  Gordias winery, based in Polatlı (near Ankara), rests in the hands of former pharmacist Canan Gerimli. The winery posses a cleaner and Canan brings in people to help during harvest. Otherwise, she does all the work herself. This one-woman army makes an array of red, rosé, and white wines with both native and international grapes. Her Cabernet Franc, Boğazkere, and Narince count among some of my favorites here. And as if making 10 wines on her own wasn't enough; this year Canan introduced us to two new grapes: Fesleğen and Narınç.  Gerimli was on the lookout for grapes in her region that needed some love. After doing extensive research

  My brush with Jordanian wine comes thanks to my friend E who travels extensively for work. She bought me two bottles of Jordan River wine from Haddad Estates & Vineyards on her last trip to Amman. The first winery in Jordan, its wines were not released internationally, under the name Jordan River, until 2004. Some interesting facts about Hadded Estates & Vineyards/Jordan River: Founded in 1953 by Muthieb M. Haddad Located at 850 meters above sea level in the basalt soils of the Mountain Heights Plateau White grapes cultivated include: Chardonnay, Chenin Blanc, Pinot Grigio, Riesling, Roussanne, Sauvignon Blanc, and Viognier Black grapes include: Barbera, Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot, Pinot

  Now one of the most widely known grapes in Turkey, Kalecik Karası was nearly lost to history.  This grape was nearly extinct until the 1970s when it was reborn. While studying for his Ph.D. in agriculture at Ankara University, Prof. Dr. Y. Sabit Ağaoğlu elected to form his thesis around clonal studies of dried Kalecik Karası vines. He finished his thesis and wound up with not only his doctorate but also a small vineyard. Rather than abandon it, and the grape he revived, he and wife decided to continue to work the vineyard and make wine. Sadly, his wife has since passed but the godfather of Kalecik Karası continues

  Tbilvino, established in 1962, has grown into a leading producer of Georgian wines with a 6.5 million bottle portfolio. The company operates two wineries; one in Tbilisi and another in Kakheti. I'd seen their wines around Tbilisi, in fact my regular hotel keeps a display of them in the lobby. However, I'd never tried them until the 2017 New Wine Festival I attended in Tbilisi. I came home from that trip with two of their wines, the Sachino medium dry white and the Special Reserve Kisi. Kisi, from Eastern Georgia, is one of the leading white grape varieties after Rkatsiteli and Mtsvane. From the well-known Kakheti region, plantings of

  Misket, the Turkish name for Muscat, not only makes some of best sweet wines in Turkey but is increasingly known for quality dry wines. Most likely a child of Muscat Blanc á Petit Grains, Bornova Misketi has its own genetic characteristics and is a Turkish grape.  Although it's more common for the black grapes, like many Turkish grapes it takes its name from its place of origin. Bornova Misketi, which means "muscat of Bornova" originated around the village of Bornova just outside Izmir, Turkey's third largest city. It now grows primarily in Manisa in Turkey's Aegean region (of which Izmir is part). Bornova Misketi prefers warm climates and clay and gravel

  We all know Sultaniye; whether or not we actually know we do! In America we're more likely to refer to it as "Sultana" and it means raisins to us, not wine. Because few associate Turkey with wine, making the leap to think of it as a grape producer is almost as difficult. But it is, and a major one at that. In fact for Turkey we should talk first about grape production, then wine. The country is the world's sixth largest producer of grapes. However, a mere 3% gets used for wine and rakı. Most grapes are consumed fresh, made into pekmez (grape molasses), or raisins. For the

  While probably half the wines I buy in Greece invariably end up being Assyrtiko, or Assyrtiko-lead blends, I am always on the lookout for new (to me) grapes. Last year at a wine festival in Athens I tasted a 100% Athiri. Could I find it anywhere to buy? No of course not. Not on that or any subsequent trip. I did, however, get my hands on another grape often blended with Assyrtiko, Aidani. Aidani One of Greece's many indigenous white grapes, Aidani grows mainly in the Greek islands, particularly the Cyclades and Rhodes. Finding it on its own is a rarity. Most often, Aidani gets blended with Assyrtiko as part