Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit. Morbi eu nulla vehicula, sagittis tortor id, fermentum nunc. Donec gravida mi a condimentum rutrum. Praesent aliquet pellentesque nisi.

White Wine

HomeWhite Wine (Page 40)

  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

  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

  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

  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

  Schloss Johannisberg in Germany’s Rheingau is more than just home to some brilliant Riesling wines. It is also the home to some of the Riesling grape’s most important history. Wine culture here has survived for over a thousand years despite political upheaval and wars that waged around it. 817 AD: The first documented mention of the vineyards by Louis the Pious 1720 AD: Benedictine monks plant the entire domain with Riesling consequently making it the first vineyard in the world planted exclusively with Riesling 1775 AD: The benefits of a Spätlese (late harvest) are first recognized at Schloss Johannisberg 1858 AD: Schloss Johannisberg presses the first Eiswein 1971 AD:  Under

  Another February has come and gone, although you wouldn’t have known it were you in Istanbul. It’s been a few years since we experienced such a mild winter and while I’m sure there are huge negative environmental impacts resulting from it; for snow haters such as myself it was a delight. The Wines February brought more than unseasonably balmy weather and yet another Valentine’s Day spent with my cat…it also meant another Sommeliers’ Selection Turkey. Last year was the first year I attended and I couldn’t believe that I hadn’t known about it before. One of (if not the) largest wine events in Turkey, Sommeliers’ Selection is a great place to

  I have written about Chamlija’s Albariño twice now and will again with every new vintage they produce. This gem though is not the Albariño, but the Alvarinho Reserve. Before we talk about the wine, lets talk about the grape. Albariño and Alvarinho are the same grape. Like Syrah and Shiraz it simply has a different name depending on location. Albariño is the Spanish name and Alvarinho the Portuguese name. Generally quite aromatic, Albariño grapes make wines that are fruity and light with lively acidity. I have yet to drink a rendition of this wine that I don’t love; especially in the heat of summer when you want a refreshing and zippy wine! Albariño is also a perfect

  I have long been an anti-Chardonnay person. It wasn’t really until my introduction to wines from Chablis that I realized why I dislike Chardonnay…and why I love it. But before we get into the Laroche Chablis or my complicated relationship with Chardonnay, what is Chablis exactly? Chablis is an appellation d’origine contrôlée (AOC) from the northernmost wine district of the Burgundy region in France. The only allowable grape grown in Chablis (in order to be classified in the AOC) is Chardonnay. Wines in Chablis are nearly always vinified without oak, instead fermented and aged in stainless steel or other neutral containers. They are known for their purity of aroma and taste and

  2017 was a crazy year. It began with a last minute trip to Iceland where wine is even more expensive than it is in Turkey. Spring was full of whirlwind wine trips to Israel, Georgia, and Greece. This summer after a two-year lapse I went back to the States to see my family in Michigan and Vegas. In the fall I went to Elmali, Turkey to visit a great winery and in December I visited Graz, Austria for the Krampuslauf, Christmas markets, and wine shopping. In addition to the travel I attended or led a couple dozen wine tastings. Including one on a private yacht on the Bosphorus where

  When I first started my adventures into wine here in Turkey I refused to buy imported wines like this Delibori Lugana. Because alcohol taxes here aren’t high enough; the Turkish Government also levies very high import taxes. So a wine that might cost five Euros in Europe will cost three-four times that here. However my attitude towards imported wines has slowly changed. They’re still outrageously over priced; don’t get me wrong! But with the falling value of the Turkish Lira and given the high prices I pay for many Turkish wines I find that I’m more willing to buy imports these days. This Delibori Lugana I found at the Metro