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White Wine

HomeWhite Wine (Page 38)

By 2Red Wine, Turkish Wine, White Wine, Wine Reviews

  My love affair with Ayda Winery began last fall in my local bottle shop. I’m in this shop a lot. Like, a lot a lot. So when there’s a new bottle somewhere I zero in on it pretty quickly. With the Ayda Winery VinAida collection it wasn’t difficult at all since they were sitting right there on check out counter. Actually I think they might all have been samples for the store owner. There was only the one set and the shop doesn’t carry them*. They let me buy a couple bottles anyway. I think they get a kick out of the odd foreigner who gets so excited about

By 0Turkish Wine, White Wine, Wine Reviews

  The wine world recognizes some eighteen “noble” grapes. The most common among them being: Riesling, Chardonnay, Sauvignon Blanc, Pinot Noir, Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot, and Syrah. What makes them noble? In a nutshell, availability does. These 18 varieties have wide-spread appeal and can be found in most major wine-producing areas in the world. Not for nothing, but I like the way VinePair puts it: “… these grapes are the gateway drugs.” The Noble Grapes of Turkey   None of Turkey’s native grapes is included in the list of noble (or international) grapes. Not surprising as by and large the grapes are cultivated only here in Turkey. However if Turkey had its own list of noble

By 0Turkish Wine, White Wine, Wine Reviews

  While I have many favorite wineries in Turkey, Prodom holds a special place in my heart. The first year I lived in Turkey I lived in a conservative neighborhood a fairly far distance from the heart of the city. Alcohol was not easy to come by. And good wine was even more rare than that. So for a year I was convinced that all Turkish wine was crap. Then I moved to the city center where there is not only wine on grocery store shelves but also proper wine shops and wine bars. It was at one of these bars where a friend of mine took me that I had

By 0Turkish Wine, White Wine, Wine Reviews

  Diren Winery, located in the northern part of Anatolia in the Black Sea region is one of Turkey’s older wineries. Sourcing grapes predominately from its vineyards in Tokat, Diren has been making wine for 60 years. Diren was founded in 1958 by Mustafa Vasfi Diren who took his love for wine and transformed it into a family legacy. Largely self-educated in winemaking, he visited vineyards in Europe to learn their techniques and collaborated with the Agriculture Department of Ankara University. He continued to learn and perfect the crafts of viticulture and vinification until 1985, when his son Ali Diren took over the reins at the winery. Diren now takes great pride in

By 0Rest of the World, White Wine, Wine Reviews

  Last summer was the summer of New Zealand Sauvignon Blanc for me. We get a surprising number of them here in Istanbul. Sadly they all have ridiculous mark ups but some things are worth the exaggerated sticker price. Such as the Cloudy Bay Sauvignon Blanc. David Hohnen established Cloudy Bay in 1985. At the time he was one of the first five wine makers to venture into Marlborough. Of course Marlborough has risen since then to become New Zealand’s leading wine region and is now synonymous with Sauvignon Blanc. Cloudy Bay’s vineyards represent the essence of the region and embody it in wine. Grapes from the Wairau Valley bring the punch and

By 0Turkish Wine, White Wine, Wine Reviews

  Porta Caeli came about as the result of a wine-loving Turkish family’s quest to prove that Turkish wine can compete with established Old World wine. The winery and spa hotel are located in the village of Ecebat where Thrace meets the Aegean. While the majority of Turkey experiences a hot and continental climate, this region is very different. The harmony of a maritime climate, surrounding forests, and breezes has attracted many winemakers including Porta Caeli, Suvla, Ergenekon, Doluca, Chateau Kalpak, and more. With the notable exception of Suvla, most winemakers in the region, Porta Caeli included, work exclusively with international grape varieties. In the case of Porta Caeli, specifically Bordeaux varieties. They believe that their terroir

By 0European Wines, Rest of the World, White Wine, Wine Reviews

  I’ve been to Greece a couple times now but it wasn’t until my second visit (last May) that I discovered Greek wine. The very first one was the Thalassitis Assyrtiko from Gaia (pronounced ghye) Wines. Now, a year later and another visit to Greece in, I got to visit one of Gaia’s wineries. While the Thalassitis is from Gaia’s Santorini winery, not the one in Nemea I visited, I got to taste their Assyrtikos all the same.  Leon Karatsalos and Yiannis Paraskevopoulos founded Gaia on Santorini in 1994. Located in Monolithos on the east coast of the island, the winery is a repurposed tomato processing plant, a remnant of

By 0Turkish Wine, White Wine, Wine Reviews

  Vinkara Winery, located in Kalecik outside the Turkish capital Ankara is either the “smallest of the big” wineries or the “largest of the small”. It depends entirely on your perspective. Ardıç Gürsel became interested in wine while studying abroad where she was used to drinking good wine. She always wondered, where are the Turkish grapes? When she returned to Turkey in the 80s she told her family that she wanted to make wine and they thought she was crazy. Then a few decades later her father announced that he was going to open a winery. Not without her he wouldn’t! And so Vinkara winery was born. Dedication to Native Turkish Varieties It is my absolute

By 0Rest of the World, White Wine, Wine Reviews

  My tour of New Zealand Sauvignon Blanc discovery continued with Villa Maria. And what a fantastic story it has. Villa Maria started with George Fistonich and five acres of land in Auckland. Now, five decades later, Villa Maria encompasses vineyards in Auckland, Marlborough, Hawkes Bay, and Gisborne and stands as an icon of New Zealand wine. In addition to their viniculture, Villa Maria secured its icon status through its sustainable grape growing practices. A member of the Sustainable Winegrowing New Zealand; 30% of company owned vineyards are managed organically, and some 500 sheep graze in the Hawke’s Bay vineyards where they control grass growth and provide natural fertilizer. Villa Maria Cellar

By 0European Wines, Rest of the World, White Wine, Wine Reviews

  The Telavi Marani Rkatsiteli was another great find at Rind. I’m seeing Georgian wine in more and more shops here in Istanbul. However Rind (Kadıköy) has by far the best prices. For this bottle I paid only 39 TL; an unheard of low price for an import! Rkatsi-what? Rkatsiteli is the most ubiquitous of white Georgian grapes. It also has the scariest name for foreigners. Vintners use it to make all styles of wine: steel tank, oaked, or as an amber wine made in qvevri. It can also be made into sweet or fortified wines but I’ve not run across any of those. Native to Imereti, Rkatsiteli is grown widely across