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.
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While there are plenty of Shiraz notes from both Turkey and Australia waiting to be written up, I wanted to shake things up a
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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
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My adventures with Turkish wine importer, Fine Turkish Wine, continue! Well at least the writing of them does, the adventures themselves ended in November.
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[caption id="attachment_22306" align="alignright" width="300"] Serving 'enrobed wine' fabulosity & drama[/caption] Disclaimer: This post includes wines received as a sample. All opinions are my own. Enrobed wine
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My adventures with Turkish wine importer, Fine Turkish Wine, continue! Well at least the writing of them does, the adventures themselves ended in November.
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My adventures with Turkish wine importer, Fine Turkish Wine, continue! Well at least the writing of them does, the adventures themselves ended in November.
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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
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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
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Paşaeli, that great pioneer and champion of rare native Turkish grapes has done it again. The winery, never content to rescue a grape and
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It's been an age since I've done one of these! Weirdly, I have a bunch of Turkish candidates for various wines (Sauvignon Blanc, Vermentino,
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I recently had the chance to re-visit Arcadia Bağları in Thrace with US importer, Fine Turkish Wine. Not that I don't always enjoy visiting
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Quite some time ago (again, I drink faster than I can type) I received an exciting invitation to a wine masterclass in Istanbul: Georgian
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Disclaimer: I received these wines as samples but all opinions are my own. While I've seen them on social media, I have yet to try
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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
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These wines were provided as samples - all opinions are my own. The lovely folks at Akberg recently reached out to me and sent me
Read MoreIt's a pretty rare day for me to post about wine from one of the "main" (aka Italy, France, Spain) European countries. Partially, because
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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
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This post contains affiliate links While I was only in Bulgaria a few short days last summer, its wine left a lasting impression on me.
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Iranian food meets Turkish wine? How often does this happen? Hopefully more and more often now if this Bitter & Sweet pairing inspires anyone! My
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Every once in a while, you just have to treat yourself. Even if money is a little tight, or you know what you're buying
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Every year, wineries in Turkey release new wine vintages (I mean, of course they do). But new wines are much rarer. Finding out about
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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
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It might be trite, given how many different grapes grow in Greece, but I love Assyrtiko. Love it, love it, love it. And while
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Despite the massive expense and roadblocks thrown up by the current government, wine production in Turkey continues to expand. Each regions grows a little
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Lent was a wee little while ago. But, I've never been great about blogging about wine as I drink it. Why is Lent even
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Label designs for wine is a big business. As with any company working on its marketing plan, a winery has to decide how it
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Of all the wines I've been able to try from Crete's Lyrarakis Wines, its Thrapsathiri somehow fell between the cracks! With this being one
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Two Suvla pét-nats (so far - dare we hope for more?) made with Yapıncak and Emir have joined the ranks of Turkish pét-nats. They
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Disclaimer: I received this wine as a sample but all opinions are my own. Narince is such a fantastically flexible grape. We've seen it in
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Disclaimer: Tomurcukbağ flew me to Ankara for the experience but all opinions are my own. The wineries in Kalecik have not traditionally encouraged visiting. When
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This post contains affiliate links Last June I visited Sofia for the first time. What a charming little city! Which maybe sounds slightly condescending but
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Except for my weird friend, Roy, I don't know anyone who doesn't at least like sparkling wine. For me, it's hands down my favorite
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*this post contains affiliate links A couple weeks ago, I flew to Izmir to give a wine tasting for a group from Roots Adventure Travel.
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How do you pair fine Turkish wine with one of the country's iconic staples, börek? That's a question I found myself asking recently. For ages,
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Riesling is one of my absolute favorite grapes in the whole wide world. I have a three-way tie going for 'favorite grape' title and
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When Ardıç Gürsel founded her Vinkara winery in 2003, she did it with one main goal: introduce the world to native Turkish grapes. It
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Have you ever wondered what kind of wine Homer drank? It seems that he was a fan of Limnio, (one of) the oldest grape
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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
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For over 100 years, Grace Wine has been a leading figure in Japanese wine production and in the advancement of Japan's own Koshu grape.
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Founded by Umay Çeviker and Levon Bağış, Yaban Kolektif is an effort to, as their website says, "
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Since my last post had me mourning my inability to travel this spring and waxing lyrical about last year's March trip to Bologna, it
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This post contains affiliate links I am semi-recently unemployed and poor. One of my cost-saving methods (aside from no longer buying wine like it's going
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Turkey and Australia both being what they are, this will merely be the first of many Turkey vs Australia Shiraz taste offs! Shiraz (or Syrah,
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Disclaimer: This post includes wines received as a sample. All opinions are my own. This March, to celebrate International Women's Day, Camilla from Culinary Cam
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Canadian wine doesn't often fall into my hands. Luckily, my partner in wine crime Emma's Baked Goods went back to Montreal for a visit
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[easy-image-collage id=21004] I was lucky enough to visit Crete a couple years ago. Unfortunately for my friends and I, we experienced one of the worst
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I was lucky enough to recently be invited to a tasting of Nif Bağları wines at Foxy Nişantaşı. As my focus tends to
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Disclaimer: This post includes wines received as a sample. All opinions are my own. None of us had ever heard of the Black Sea grape
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I've oft lamented the extent of international grapes used in Turkey. And, while I will always prefer native grapes, the international varieties have their
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[easy-image-collage id=20889] This past summer, I took a trip I've been wanting to make for a few years now: Sofia. Bulgaria may not be on
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Wendy of A Day in the Life on the Farm invited our wine writers group to explore any (wine) topics that tickle our interest
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Narince has an interesting story. While one can now find it in many places around Turkey, its home is the Black Sea region district
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Grape providence can be a tricky thing, particularly where there are shifting borders involved. When researching background on the grape Pinela (or Pinella or
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Camilla from Culinary Cam has invited the #WorldWineTravel group to close out the year with celebration of sparkling wine and holiday nibbles! It's been a
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Ali and Fatma Ay were enticed into moving to the Mersin area in their retirement. What enticed them, you might ask. The heat? The
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Disclaimer: This post includes wines received as a sample. All opinions are my own. Saudade (sauw-dad) is one of those great words that has no
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Disclaimer: This post includes wines received as a sample. All opinions are my own. Located in the Şırnak Province, Midin Vineyards established itself, in part
Read MoreThe rarity of my posting about Australian wines the rarity of drinking them. Not necessarily by choice, but by lack of availability. Luckily for
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With a view of living a life closer to nature, Can and Duygu Kırış bought some land in Bayramiç in 2017, with the view
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It's been quite a few years since Kastro Tireli debuted its first "natural" Hermos wine, a blend of Narince and Viognier. The line takes
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Disclosure: This post contains affiliate links. This past summer, I took a trip I've been wanting to make for a few years now: Sofia. Bulgaria
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For my birthday in August, my friend Malia of Shoyu Sugar made SPAM musubis for me!! I remember eating SPAM a bit when I
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Disclaimer: This post includes wines received as a sample. All opinions are my own. Two years ago, I was privileged to try Paşaeli's experimental, super
Read MoreI get very little Croatian wine where I am but have enjoyed (as far as I recall!) every one that I've got my hands
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Chamlija winery is known to many in Turkey for its enthusiasm for planting grapes not native to Turkey. In addition to grapes that have
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Crete is an amazing place to visit, for so many reasons, but especially so if you're a wine enthusiast. The island is home to
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The first Experimental Series wine Kayra released was an old vine Semillon. A couple years have passed since that one, which made me wonder
Read MoreEach one of America's 50 states produces wine. You don't have to be a wine aficionado to have heard of wine from California, Oregon,
Read MoreSince shifting some of its focus to quality wines, Selçuk area-based Akberg Winery has sourced grapes from around the country. Narince from its home in
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The Urla district of İzmir in Turkey's Aegean region has become a hotbed of trendy wineries. Many belong to the Urla Bağ Yolu (the
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Used to be that Markogianni was not a winery with which I was familiar. A friend recommended their Vorias and Helios amber Assyrtiko to
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Even if you're not a wine geek, you've heard about ageing wine. I get the question from time to time; people asking if they
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If I feel like I have a hard time selling the concept of Turkish wine, how must the Baltic countries feel? This question came
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My little brother (by which I mean younger in that he stands something like 6'6" or 6'7") and I have a tradition going back
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Çalkarası is what I like to call Turkey's 'Cinderella' grape. For a long time, winery's have used this grape as a work horse to
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Kuzubağ, part of the Çal Bağ Yolu, is located in the Çal district of Denizli in Turkey's inner Aegean. The winery’s vineyards sit at
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Of the hundreds and thousands of grapes the world has, my three favorite are white varieties. One of which is Assyrtiko. I am lucky
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I write about Bornova Misketi a lot; about 25 times so far, in fact! And yet, I realized some time ago, that I somehow
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Several years ago, I went on my first wine tour in Hungary. I've been a Hungarian wine lover for years, but before this tour,
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Emir is one of my favorite grapes in Turkey. My favorite white grape full stop. High acidity, distinct minerality, clean citrus and green fruit
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The Vatistas Ioannis Winery was born in the 1990s when Ioannis Vatistas decided to turn his love of wine into a winery. He created
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While neither new nor lost, Karasakız has long been underappreciated. For a long time, there was only Suvla (which still explores the most expressions
Read MoreI've mentioned my friend S. a few times here and there in my blog. A teacher here in Istanbul, she drives home to Austria
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It's World Malbec Day! This French grape is a global people pleaser. While mostly known for the wines produced in Argentina, its popularity knows
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Nihat Kutman, founder of Doluca Winery, was one of the first in Turkey to revive vineyards and winemaking after phylloxera destroyed many of the
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I've been to the Peloponnese a couple times now, but have yet to make it as far north as Patras. Although I would really
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Possibly a better title for this would be, "Can you say Csókaszőlő?" LOL. I happened to be in Budapest on what was a national
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Surrounded by mountains and the verdant forests of the Black Sea region, the district of Amasya lays about 120 kilometers from the Black Sea.
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We, understandably, don't have a lot of Christmas in Turkey. I try to go somewhere in Europe every year for a Christmas market and
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Camilla from Culinary Cam has invited the Italian Food Wine Travel writing group to explore the vast world of indigenous Italian grapes this March.
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The Budapest airport forever confuses me, regardless of how many times I've been through. Duty free is before immigration which I continuously forget meaning
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I had my first encounter with Sideritis at the Athens wine expo Oenorama a couple years ago. Only two or three examples were available
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I've written about a couple few wines now from Akberg. This winery emerged from less than savory "fruit wine" origins to create interesting (grape)
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It's a little strange for me to post about wine today in Ash Wednesday. Today is a fast day which means I will not
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This month, Camilla from Culinary Cam has invited us all to share our love for rosé wines - which are not just for summer!
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In the September 2023 Turkish Wine Horoscope post, I promised a review of this wine and here it finally is! Yaban Kolektif is a group
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For years I'd wanted to visit Santorini. All the beautiful pictures you see, the wine
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Over the last several years, 7Bilgeler has slowly released a series of wines, the Vindemia series, made with native grapes. Some have been more
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Champagne and Fries Day?! Yes, it's a real wine holiday! January 10 also happens to be the birthday of the creator, Anna Maria of
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