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Wine Reviews

HomeWine Reviews (Page 34)

By 0Red Wine, Turkish Wine, Wine Reviews

  Selefkia Wines is one of the few (well one of the two!) wineries based in southern Turkey's Mediterranean region of Mersin. The winery makes a number of wines from Turkish grapes but really focuses on the two regional grapes: Ak Üzüm and Patkara. White and black respectively, these underdog grapes appear in very few wines. really only Selefkia and its Mersin neighbor Tasheli use them at all. Patkara is at home on the slopes on the Taurus Mountains in the Çömelek and Karacaoğlan villages in Göksu Valley. It might be a valley but it's a heck of a high one. Turkey has a plethora of high elevation vineyards and

By 1European Wines, Red Wine, Sparkling Wine, White Wine, Wine Reviews

  This month I'm hosting the Wine Paired Weekend group's exploration of underrated European wine regions. You can read my invitation here. There are so many unexplored wine regions in Europe-even within the big three countries of France, Italy, and Spain so I asked the group to go out and find a region new to them or that they think should be given a little more love.  Whether you've written a post for the theme or not, join the #WinePW conversation on Saturday, April 10 at 11 am EST / 8 am CST by following the hashtag on Twitter. And don't forget to check out what the rest of the

By 0Red Wine, Turkish Wine, White Wine, Wine Reviews

  I begin this post with a little bit of a rant. One of my recent wine pet peeves concerns the hype around small production wineries. I'm all for small production and understand the allure of it over large format wineries. If the wine is good. However, sometimes these wineries have more cachet than quality. Wineries shouldn't be lauded simply because they make under a certain number of bottles annually. If the wine isn't good, it doesn't matter if it comes from a small "boutique" winery or a large factory winery. But if the wine is good, should it matter who produces it? Turkey has its fair share of factory

By 1Red Wine, Turkish Wine, Wine Reviews

  Often in Turkey I buy wines from winemakers or wineries I like whether or not I want the actual wine. Such was the case with the Sevilen Vendage 76. I was initially excited to see what I felt pretty sure was a new release from the winery. And then I looked at the label. Another Bordeaux blend. Cabernet Franc dominant which is unusual here. But how much more wannabe Bordeaux can I handle? And yet, I do really like Sevilen's winemaker. Sibel Çoban Ürentay is one of Turkey's rock star female winemakers. While I'm not much of a feminist, I do hate articles about women that have to describe

By 0Red Wine, Turkish Wine, White Wine, Wine Reviews

  Uçmakdere Winery, based in the village of the same name along the Sea of Marmara, is one of the most exciting wineries for me right now. Entirely because of the winemaker, Işıl Bulutsuz. Işıl Bulutsuz is not only the daughter of one of Firuze’s founding families, she is also the winemaker. Prior to becoming Firuze’s winemaker Işıl studied at Le Cordon Bleu in Paris where she received a diploma in Wine and Management and graduated from the Professional Culinary Arts Program from Turkey's Mutfak Sanatları Akademisi (MSA) Culinary Arts Academy. She sat down with me (virtually of course!) this week to talk about her work in wine. Don't forget to

By 1Red Wine, Sweet Wine, Turkish Wine, White Wine, Wine Reviews

  This month Camilla of Culinary Adventures with Camilla has invited the #Winophiles group to explore French grown around the world. You can view her original invite here. France is home to what are probably the world's most famous and widespread grape varieties. Grapes like Cabernet Sauvignon, Syrah, and Chardonnay can be found in almost every winemaking country from France to the Italy, the UK, the US, Argentina, Australia, China, and Tunisia. And pretty much everywhere in between! Turkey likewise is not immune to the charms of French grapes. They enjoy an overwhelming popularity here. Few wineries (in fact only four or five come to mind) do not feature a

By 0Red Wine, Turkish Wine, Wine Reviews

  I thought I'd had all of Gordias's wines. The I stumbled across a picture of this blend on the winery's Instagram feed. A wine I hadn't had?! Clearly, I had to rectify this situation. Not only had I never had this particular wine from Gordias but I'd never had this wine from anyone. The blend was something entirely new to me. Not only is a blend of Turkish grapes Kalecik Karası and Boğazkere extremely uncommon, Gordias owner and winemaker Canan Gerimli then threw in some Merlot. Because, why not? Gerimli pulled grapes for this wine from several locations around Turkey. The Boğazkere came from its 'home' in Diyarbakır, the Kalecik Karası

By 0Red Wine, Turkish Wine, Wine Reviews

  In December I looked at several Turkish Cabernet Franc wines as part of #CabFrancDay (December 4), that month's #WinePW food and wine pairing event, and my Advent wine calendar.  However, those are not the only Cabernet Franc wines Turkey has to offer! The below wines in now way cover all the Cabernet Franc here. They just happen to be the ones I've enjoyed in the last year (give or take). Gürbüz Cabernet Franc, 2018 Late 2019 marked Akın Gürbüz's first Cabernet Franc. Grapes sourced from Solera's Gazıköy vineyards, fermented in open vats then aged for 13 months in new oak. The result: one of the most stunning Cabernet Francs in

By 0Red Wine, South American Wines, Wine Reviews

  Owned and operated by the Romero Marcuzzi family, Bodega El Porvenir sits on the top of the world. Sort of. Located in Salta in Argentina's Valle de Cayafate, the winery shares vineyard space with some of the world's highest vineyards. The family chose this extreme location to pay homage to the region's extraordinary character. Their commitment involves more than making high-quality wines that emphasize that character. It extends to protecting the land and environment through sustainable farming practices. Bodega El Porvenir represents more than the pinnacle of the winery's production. The family's icon, it stands for their promise and commitment. "El Porvenir" means "the future." From the website: "El Porvenir is the

By 1Red Wine, Turkish Wine, White Wine, Wine Reviews

  Foça Karası has slowly and quietly snuck its way into the Turkish wine scene. This Aegean grape, like many in Turkey, takes its name from its local place of origin. In this case, the Foça district of İzmir. However, it goes by another name too. This is one of the few grapes Turkey shares with Greece where it is known as Fokiano and planted mostly on Ilkaria, an island near Turkey.  We don't see a lot of this grape in Turkey. While championed by Can Ortabaş of Urla Şarapçılık, he himself doesn't use it. The winery really putting Foça Karası through its paces is Öküzgözü Şarapçılık. Urla-based winery Urlice