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Mediterranean Tag

HomePosts tagged "Mediterranean"

  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

  I'm so excited that my first piece for Food Wine Travel Magazine was published today!  Discover Turkey's Unexplored Mediterranean Wine Region Beneath my feet lies an ancient wine press, carved deep into the mountain’s limestone bedrock countless centuries ago. Around me, gnarled bush vines twist out of the rocky soil, some 80 or more years old. From this high plateau, more than 5,000 feet above sea level, the air feels fresher. The sky stretches endlessly overhead, a burning blue. Not far to the south, the bright turquoise of the Mediterranean echoes the sky. While I could be in the vineyards of Priorat, Cinque Terre, or Provence, I’m not. I’m in a

  Disclaimer: I received these wines as samples but all opinions are my own. Explore Sagavin’s two distinct Syrah wines. Discover how vineyard origin and winemaking style shape their bold flavors, and learn the story behind this passionate, small Turkish winery. Recently, Sagavin Bağcılık ve Şarapçılık kindly sent me several of its wines. I enjoyed pairing Sagavin's white, rosé, and one of its reds with an Indian eggplant dish. I was really surprised that the red came out the winner in that experiment! Now, it's time to delve into the last two wines: Sagavin Syrahs. The winery makes two different Syrah wines, sourcing grapes for both from different places within İzmir.

  Since I wrote an extensive post about 7Bilgeler quite recently (including travel information for anyone wanting to visit!) I won't rehash all that info here. We're just going to dive right into this (previously) obscure grape and 7Bilgeler's wine.  Gök, the Sky Grape From the Mersin district in Turkey’s Mediterranean growing region comes the grape, Gök or Göküzüm. Mersin is far more well-known for its beaches and Mediterranean coastline than it is for grapes and wine, but this resort area’s hot climate isn’t where Gök makes its home. Grown in the Taurus mountains, high elevation helps mitigate the heat of the Mediterranean region. In mountain villages like Çömelek, Gök vines

  Disclaimer: I received these wines as samples. All opinions are my own. This article contains affiliate links. A couple years ago, I stumbled across Sagavin's wines, maybe on Instagram. I ordered a few bottles to give them a go, but unfortunately, they soon after fell off my radar. Sagavin has wines in maybe a couple few restaurants in Istanbul, but not in shops. I'd contacted the owner, Uğur, a couple few months ago as I wanted to make sure to include them in edition 2 of The Essential Guide to Turkish Wine (coming soon! - I hope, I feel like I've been saying that for months). He reached back

  Disclaimer: This post includes wines received as a sample. All opinions are my own. Just when you thought Heraki winery couldn’t get any better… they've dropped new wines that’ll make your taste buds dance. Alternately bold, unexpected, and impossibly smooth — these bottles are the next chapter in your wine love story. Are you ready to uncork something unforgettable? And yes, these aren't exactly "new" anymore. But we all know that my writing usually lags a bit behind my drinking! Heraki Heraki’s story could easily be told as a love letter to Turkey. Founded in 2019 by Fulya Akinci and José Hernandez-Gonzalez —whose names combine to form “Heraki”—the winery is a tribute to their

Ali and Fatma Ay were enticed into moving to the Mersin area in their retirement. What enticed them, you might ask. The heat? The beaches? The beautiful Mediterranean water? Nope. Patkara. Local wine made with this little heard of grape seduced them into not only moving to the region, but opening a winery. And, largely thanks to their efforts, Patkara has re-emerged onto the Turkish wine market. [easy-image-collage id=20798] Patkara’s home vineyards sit high in the Taurus Mountains at a minimum of 1,100 meters (3,600 feet) with some vineyards reaching even greater heights. Limestone bedrock is studded with marine fossils and, in many places, has given way to karstic landscapes.

  We don't talk a great deal about the ageability (or not) of white wine in Turkey. Frankly we don't talk a great deal about the ageability of any wine. Difficult to do really since it's largely all speculation. Most wineries with serious history behind them have not kept wine libraries. In fact, the largest collection of aged wine (wine in general, I think) is in private hands. Wineries, now realizing the importance of keeping old vintages of their wine, are buying wine back from him.  [caption id="attachment_13709" align="aligncenter" width="1024"] Likya's vineyards in the Taurus Mountains[/caption] And yet, I'm relatively sure there are any number of grapes, if not necessarily yet

  It's been some time since Chamlija debuted its Teruar Serisi with rare white grapes Ten Göynek, Ak Üzüm, Hüyük Ak Üzüm, and Kuyucak Ak Üzüm. I reached out to Chamlija to clarify some questions I had about these.  Ak Üzüm on its own is a little confusing. What little we know about Ak Üzüm comes from Mediterranean wineries Selefkia and Tasheli. A thin-skinned grape prone to disease, Ak Üzüm tends to prefer limestone soils where they grow as bush-trained vines, many of which are quite old. However, Ak Üzüm really just means "white grape". As it turns out, there are several "Ak Üzüms" floating around the Mediterranean.  This reminds me

  Amber wine has quietly existed in Turkey for a number of years with previously off the radar, small producers like Gelveri. Then, a few well-placed and larger name wineries like Chamlija, Paşaeli, and Kastro Tireli released skin contact wines. In many ways, the amber boom here resembles the rosé explosion. Sure, there's always been rosé. But then a handful of years ago everyone started making it (whether or not they personally like it) because that was the selling trend. And so it seems, amber follows in the wake of pink.  Despite the work from Mediterranean wineries like Tasheli and Selefkia, Göküzüm still flies largely un-talked about. A pity, in