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Aegean Tag

HomePosts tagged "Aegean" (Page 18)

  Suvla Wines, on the tip of the Gallipoli Peninsula offers a huge range of wines. Currently the winery produces some 12 or 13 series. Many wines, like Syrah, Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot, Karasakız, and Yapıncak feature across multiple series which gives consumers the chance to compare single grapes across quality levels.  Unfortunately, the Cabernet Franc comes only at the Reserve level. A real pity as I would love to make a comparison tasting. Suvla Reserve Cabernet Franc 2015 Tasting Notes There's a lot of 'medium' happening with this wine: medium alcohol (13.5%), medium-bodied, medium (plus) acidity, a medium ruby color

  Öküzgözü Şarapçılık's name creates a bit of confusion. It is the only winery in Turkey named not after a family name or a vineyard but after a grape. Quite often when I see a wine with Öküzgözü written in big, bold letters across the label I can’t tell for a minute if it’s a new wine by Öküzgözü Şarapçılık or if another producer is just really excited about the grape variety. Öküzgözü Şarapçılık does produce Öküzgözü. In fact its flagship wine is a 100% Öküzgözü. However, in this post we're not talking about Öküzgözü. We're talking about another Turkish grape variety, Bornova Misketi. Misket is the Turkish word for

  As my wine tastings wind down, sometimes a few of my regulars stick around for a chat. More often than not when that happens, I'll take a break from cleaning and open another bottle to share. One night, I reached for a bottle of Shiraz made by a new winery none of us knew much of anything about, Bodrum Winery. I've written about Bodrum Winery a couple few times already, but never about my first experience with their wine. The very first of their wines I tried was the VinBodrum 2014 Shiraz and it was one of those wines I wish I'd saved for myself! Bodrum Winery VinBodrum 2014 Shiraz

  There's some argument here whether or not the grape Karalahna means 'black pumpkin' (per Wine Grapes) or if it's a derivative of the Turkish word for 'kale', karalahana (with an extra 'a'). Regardless, this native Turkish grape a variety rarely seen of its home island Bozcaada. Even on the island only two producers really feature it, Corvus and Çamlıbağ. Bozcaada based winery Corvus is one of the most recognized names in wine in Turkey. When Reşit Söley decided to give up architecture for winemaking, he did it with a meticulousness and considerable energy. Söley threw himself into regenerating old island vineyards and planting new plots. Now, nearly 20 years after

  At the end of November during Turkey's annual Sommeliers' Selection event, I had the chance to participate in a vertical tasting of two wines from Doluca: the Karma Cabernet Sauvignon Öküzgözü and the Karma Shiraz Boğazkere presented by the winery's Education and International Marketing Manager, Ebru Günaçan.  Circa 2000, Doluca owner Ahmet Kutman decided to make the Karma line to show that Turkish grapes could blend well with recognized, European varieties. Blending Turkish and international varieties isn't new (well maybe it was in 2000, that was before I got here).  Now, at least, such blends are not uncommon as a) many of the grapes really do work well together; and

  Architect and musician (respectively) turned winemakers Bilge Benisü Öğünlü and Reha Öğünlü make wine they way they like it. After spending more than 15 years in America, they admit their palate was shaped by the many American and European wines they had during those years. So when they returned to Turkey to start their own vineyard in Urla, it felt natural to plant French varieties. Friends of the slow food movement, they take their time with their wine and attribute its ability to age well to a combination of this care and good cellaring practices. Their wine is always a little bit of a surprise to people I know. One

  I've read a lot of #WinePW posts but for one reason or another never managed to get my act together enough to participate. However, when I saw that the inspiration for this month's event was Jason Wilson's Godforsaken Grapes I knew I couldn't not participate. Being an advocate for Turkish wine and grape varietals this #WinePW was right up my alley. Öküzgözü This tongue-twisting grape originates in Mid-Eastern Anatolia (Elazığ). However, as the most popular (or at least widely planted) native variety in Turkey, one can find this grape across the country in vineyards in Mid-Southern Anatolia (Cappadocia) and increasingly across the Aegean and even in Thrace. Pronounced uh-küz-guh-zü, these grapes prefer

  Established in 2002 by wine and beer importer Seyit Karagözoğlu, Paşaeli is, in my opinion, one of Turkey’s most valuable wineries. More than just creating quality wine, Paşaeli is of the Turkish wineries making huge efforts to revive rare and dying grape varieties. While Paşaeli does turn out a couple of the Bordeaux-style blends that are endlessly popular in Turkey. I’ve had the Kaynaklar and K2 blends several times and they’re very good. But the heart and soul of this winery are the grapes you’ve never heard of. A big believer in growing things where they are native, Karagözoğlu set about collecting vineyards where Turkey’s native grapes thrive naturally. Paşaeli has vineyards in

  Yapıncak is arguably Turkey's most up and coming native white grape right now. As a general champion of lesser-known Turkish grapes, Yapıncak has been part of Paşaeli's collection for a while now. The winery features a simple (but elegant) Yapıncak, a skin contact amber that frustratingly I haven't been able to get my hands on, and an 'old vine' (more on the in the future). Popular Gallipoli-based producer Suvla makes three wines with this grape as well: a simple table wine, a lovely oaked reserve, and a traditional method sparkling wine.  Now mega producer Sevilen has joined the ranks. Sevilen's history with this grape is just that, a history.

  I do not count driving among my core skills. If I'm being honest, it's barely a peripheral skill. Essentially, the best one can say about my driving is that I haven't killed anyone. And that car that I totaled that one time we argued the dealership into fixing instead of scrapping. Good thing for me, my skill level (or lack thereof) actually makes me an average driver in Turkey. Which is great because I've had to spend the last two years driving around the country in pursuit of wine. [caption id="attachment_13671" align="alignleft" width="225"] Gal pals on the edge[/caption] Google Maps has failed us a few times on these trips, getting