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Wine Reviews

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By 1American Wines, Articles, European Wines, Sparkling Wine, Turkish Wine, Wine Reviews

  Sparkling wine is almost universally associated with celebrations. Yes, bubbly wine is a happy drink and happy drinks are great for celebrations, but that's not why the association. It is largely due to how expensive sparkling wine tends to be. People generally, therefore, save it for special occasions. Why is sparkling wine so expensive? How are sparkling wines made? Let's pop a cork and get into it! This post ended up being way longer than I expected. So, I'm trying for the first time to add a table of contents.  Table of Contents Everything You Need to Know about Sparkling Wine Traditional Method Sparkling Wine Martinotti Method Sparkling Wine Ancestral

By 0European Wines, Red Wine, Wine Reviews

  While most of my focus is in Turkish wines, it's nice to sometimes walk in the vineyards of our neighbors. Metaphorically speaking of course. I've yet to visit Romania at all let alone its vineyards. But that's one of the great things about wine. Opening a bottle is like opening a magic door through which you can step and discover new worlds. Maybe you've never been to that region, or even that country, but wine lets you taste what you cannot see.  For me, one of those recent journeys too me to Romania and to the discovery of one of the country's native grapes, Fetească Neagră. Fetească Neagră [caption id="attachment_22440" align="alignright" width="350"]

By 1Rest of the World, Turkish Wine, White Wine, Wine Reviews

  While there are plenty of Shiraz notes from both Turkey and Australia waiting to be written up, I wanted to shake things up a bit. Australia has been gaining a reputation for Viognier over the years while it's still largely unknown in Turkey. Despite its rarity in Turkey, we have some excellent examples here. Since I just happened to have a bottle of Viognier from Australia, why not pit them against one another? Viognier Viognier it seems is a bit of a struggle to work with. Not in a Pinot Noir prima donna way, but it is not disposed to producing healthy or bountiful grapes and is prone to coulure (uneven

By 0European Wines, Greek Wine, Red Wine, Wine Reviews

  We've had some rather chilly days lately in Istanbul. I should be neither surprised nor resentful. It is, after all, winter. Just because we've had ridiculously warm winters for the last several years and I've largely managed to avoid turning on my heat doesn't mean things will always be so. While I don't love it, the cold weather does encourage me to reach for one of the many, many red wines languishing in my wine room.  If you want to wrap yourself in a cozy red wine, perfect for cold winter weather and drinking by the fireplace, look for a bottle from the Goumenissa PDO.  Goumenissa PDO (ΠΟΠ Γουμένισσα) The what

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

  My adventures with Turkish wine importer, Fine Turkish Wine, continue! Well at least the writing of them does, the adventures themselves ended in November. And it's taking ever so much longer to write about these visits than it took to make them! After two days in Trakya (aka Thrace), visiting first Arcadia, then Arda and Gürbüz Winery we headed for the Aegean. In this region, our first stop was Kuzubağ, and then we were on to Heraki. And buckle up, this post turned out much longer than I anticipated! [caption id="attachment_22367" align="alignright" width="500"] Çal vineyards by Rob İçsezen[/caption] Heraki Heraki Wines is, at its heart, a love story. First between its founders,

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

  My adventures with Turkish wine importer, Fine Turkish Wine, continue! Well at least the writing of them does, the adventures themselves ended in November. And it's taking ever so much longer to write about these visits than it took to make them! After two days in Trakya (aka Thrace), visiting first Arcadia, then Arda and Gürbüz Winery we headed for the Aegean.  First stop, Kuzubağ! Kuzubağ  Kuzubağ Şaraphane is one of the new generation wineries working to raise the profile of the Çal region. More than just a member of the Çal Bağ Yolu, Kuzubağ is (in my considerable opinion), the best of them. A family-run affair, the Kuzu family

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

  My adventures with Turkish wine importer, Fine Turkish Wine, continue! Well at least the writing of them does, the adventures themselves ended in November. We spent two days in Trakya (aka Thrace), visiting first Arcadia, then Arda before venturing onto Gürbüz Winery. A visit to Gürbüz Winery is never short! Akın's enthusiasm and energy hold you captive as wine after wine (especially when you're with an importer) get opened and tanks and barrels are tapped to try new vintages.  Gürbüz Winery Akın Gürbüz grew up among grape vines. His family owned five hectares of vineyards planted to Semillon, Sauvignon Blanc, Yapıncak, and Cabernet Sauvignon. They did not make wine but sold the

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

  In a strange twist, I knew Acıkara almost before I knew Likya. Or it is perhaps more accurate to say, that I knew the grape/wine before I knew Likya well. I don't remember how exactly I found it or even knew then how special it was, this was closer to the beginning of my Turkish wine journey. But in many ways, it was my gateway into not only this winery, but the realm of rare, Turkish grapes. [caption id="attachment_22238" align="alignleft" width="275"] Göknur Gündogan PhD introducing the Likya Arkeo Project[/caption] I was invited to a recent event, Likya Antique Grapes Masterclass, hosted by Göknur Gündogan PhD and Burak Özkan. The event invited

By 1Red Wine, Turkish Wine, Wine Reviews

  I recently had the chance to re-visit Arda Bağları in Thrace with US importer, Fine Turkish Wine. If only I had a car, I would certainly be at this winery more often. Arda has long been a favorite winery of mine. Not only because the wine is great (and price conscious!) but because the family behind it is lovely. [caption id="attachment_22197" align="alignright" width="445"] Rob İçsezen of Fine Turkish Wine, Andrea Lemieux, Yavuz Saç[/caption] Arda Bağları & Şarapçılık Located near the historic town of Edirne, a mere stone’s throw from the Turkey-Greece-Bulgaria border, lies Arda Bağları. Founded in 2007 by Ilyas Saç, this winery is a family affair tended to by Saç’s