Out of Darkness Come the Brightest Wines
What's that saying about nothing good happens after midnight? While often associated with crime/thriller stories (one assumes because only criminals are out and about
Read MoreWhat's that saying about nothing good happens after midnight? While often associated with crime/thriller stories (one assumes because only criminals are out and about
Read MoreUsually I get Greek wine from my friends who live in Athens. But in December they gave me three wines from
Read MoreI first learned about Chatzivaritis Estate from one of Moshe Cohen's In the Vineyard With podcast episodes, A Greek Wine Odyssey. It sounded like
Read MoreI've posted several reviews semi-recently from the Pamukkale Nodus line including the Nodus Fumé Blanc and Nodus Cabernet Sauvignon. The sudden frequency of the
Read MoreAfter recently talking about Gamay as an emerging popular grape, let's take a look at Semillon, specifically, the Arda Rezerv Semillon. Like Gamay, Semillon
Read MoreA few months ago I finally got a chance to go back to Michigan. I want to say it's been about four years since
Read MoreNothing can stop my love for Assyrtiko. Much as I love exploring other and new grapes in Greece, I always buy a couple few
Read MoreAkın Gürbüz has built a name for himself in Turkey as a talented winemaker and wine consultant and his latest wine, the Akın Gürbüz
Read MoreI go to Greece fairly often. It is just kind of next door and two of my best friends live in Athens. Partially for
Read MoreWhile 2020 was straight-up awful, 2021 had a few more ups. Certainly there were downs! But the slowly slowly back to normal life certainly
Read MoreEven before my obsession enthusiasm for Turkish wine began, I knew the name Chateau Nuzun. I knew it as the closest winery to Istanbul
Read MoreLast year, 7Bilgeler Khilon Fumé Blanc joined the ranks of oak-aged Sauvignon Blanc in Turkey. Sauvignon Blanc enjoys huge popularity in Turkey. It grows
Read MoreSome grapes are natural blending partners. Cabernet Sauvingon and Merlot. Sauvignon Blanc and Semillon. Boğazkere and Öküzgözü. But what about Sauvignon Blanc and Narince? Narince
Read MoreQuick, what's the first thing that comes to mind when you think about sparkling wine? I could take a few guesses. But I'm going
Read MoreWhen you think of sparkling wine, which countries pop into mind? Probably France, Italy, Spain? Maybe Germany, Australia, or the UK? Something I have
Read MoreI recently came back from a trip to Crete. My first time on the island, in fact my first time in ages outside of
Read MoreBarel Bağları Gamay joins the (albeit limited) ranks of Turkish Gamays. Why this grape has suddenly become so popular is mystery - to me
Read MoreI realized some time ago that I'd not reviewed the Sevilen Plato Öküzgözü, nor in fact any of Sevilen's Plato wines. Now, with Sevilen
Read MoreThis year, I get the honor of kicking of the #WinePW 2022 calendar with a celebration of bubbles from around the world! For this month's
Read MoreI was so excited when the #WinePW 2021 calendar came out and Deanna from Wineivore suggested a Greek wine theme. You can view her
Read MoreCabernet Franc doesn't get a whole month of celebration the way Merlot does. And while #CabFranc day has passed (you can read my post
Read MoreLast year, the #WinePW group celebrated the December 4 #CabFrancDay with pairings and wines from around the world. I of course joined in with
Read MoreIn 2005, the Erdem Yılmaze and his wife were lured by friends to the Çömelek village near Mersin on Turkey’s Mediterranean coast. Enchanted by
Read MoreI don't drink a lot of Moschofilero when I'm in Greece. But every time I do, I chide myself all over again for neglecting
Read MoreRecently, I have read more than a few pieces about Wiener Gemischter Satz which reminded me that I'd also recently drunk some. Thanks to
Read MoreTurkey is no stranger to sparkling wine production. Ankara-based Vinkara wines made the first traditional method sparkling wine (with Kalecik Karası) years ago. Suvla
Read MoreEdirne-based Arda Bağcılık has been a favorite winery of mine for years now. One of the first I ever visited in Turkey, this family-run
Read MoreOne of the very first boxes I received from the Oenotrian wine club was themed to look at how Turkish wine ages. The box
Read MoreAkın Gürbüz has made several Sauvignon Blanc wines over the last few years. Sometimes single vineyard, sometimes blends. I have enjoyed all of them.
Read MoreHappy Halloween!! Not that I often (or maybe not ever) do Halloween posts
Read MoreThe last few weeks, I've posted about wineries like Likya and Saranta growing Öküzgözü outside of it's traditional home. This week, I'm making an
Read MoreBüyülübağ winery is located on the island Avşa in the Sea of Marmara. When the Istanbul-levelling earthquake people keep predicting finally comes, Avşa is
Read MoreThis year for October, the month of #MerlotMe, I did not have a lot of new wines to try. For the #WinePW event I
Read MoreWhile more and more new wineries pop up in Turkey, on an almost annual basis now! Assyrian wineries are still a minority. While a
Read MoreLast year for the #WinePW #MerlotMe event, I paired a late harvest, dry, Merlot by Arda and you can see that pairing here. Knowing
Read MoreIt's Merlober! What else could the #WinePW group be exploring this month than that most divisive of grapes, Merlot? This month's host Jeff from
Read MoreIf you've seen the movie, Sideways, you'll remember the infamous line about Merlot. Some attribute the movie to the grape's loss of popularity in
Read MoreEarlier sunsets, cooler temperatures, and slate grey, rain-threatening skies are heralding the waning of summer in Istanbul. While I completely plan to continue drinking
Read MoreIt must be two years now since I visited Mor Salkım in Bodrum. At the time, the winery largely catered to the droves of
Read MoreNot that very many things ever were fully closed for COVID (or not at least for long), but Turkey is more and more open
Read MoreWe left the A. Gere vineyards on day 3 of our Hungarian wines tour with Hungarianwines.eu and headed to their winery for a walk around tasting
Read MoreThis is the first review I've done for this winery. And while I've now had a couple few of their wines, I still don't
Read MoreAfter our tasting and dinner at Lajvér Borbirtok in Szekszárd, we got back in our cars for the day's final drive. Happily, not three
Read MoreWe left Tornai after our tasting to continue our Hungarian wines tour with Hungarianwines.eu in a different region: Szekszárd. But first, another three hour drive!
Read MoreI am slowly slowly coming around to rosé. Well, I say "slowly slowly" but I'm discovering more and more wines that I enjoy. In
Read MoreWe woke up on the morning of Day 2 of our Hungarian wines tour with Hungarianwines.eu at Dominium Pincészet in Mátra. After a quick
Read MoreAfter lunch at the Paris Passage, we headed east of Budapest to the Mátra region. With vineyards located on the lower slopes of the
Read MoreThe story of USCA Winery began some 15 years ago when a group of friends, fascinated by the world of wine, decided to open
Read MoreFor the last four years, Hungarian Wines EU, founded by the fantastic Ágnes Németh, has run a writing competition. This was the first year
Read MoreWhile I have embarked on a journey to learn to love rosé, that's not why I bought this one. Of all the wine tasting
Read MoreBased on the Ionian island of Corfu, the Grammenos Family launched its winery in the late 1980s, before the Corfu PGI (est. 1996) even
Read MoreQuite some time ago I had the opportunity to attend a vertical tasting of some of Doluca's Karma wines. These were the red blends,
Read MoreThe Hasandede grape hails from Turkey's Central Anatolia region. It has historically not been shown a lot of love by the winemaking community. But
Read MoreFemale owned and operated Tafali Bağcılık is one of Turkey's newest wineries. Based in Kalecik, join the ranks of wineries like Tomurcukbağ and Vinkara
Read MoreFor August's #WinePW event, host Gwendolyn from The Wine Predator, has invited us to explore amphora aged wines from around the world. You can
Read MoreIn a somewhat recent wine tasting, Drink Pink!, I featured a series of rosé wines. I'd had many of them before. Two were go-to
Read MoreKerküş is not a grape we talk about a lot. In fact, I have written about it only once after visiting Shiluh in Mardin.
Read MoreShortly before Christmas I saw that my local shop, La Cave, would soon be stocking a new wine from Kayra. Kayra might be one
Read More[caption id="attachment_16139" align="alignleft" width="225"] Pürneşe red label[/caption] Pürneşe is a semi-new series from Vino Dessera. Occupying a place in the winery's mid-range line up, the
Read More7Bilgeler (or Yedi Bilgeler as you prefer) has long produced wines I've liked and admired. My one issue was that all the wines were
Read MoreLike the Likya Öküzgözü I was crushing on last week, Saranta winery also grows this grape outside its traditional home of Elazığ. Unlike Likya,
Read MoreFor years Bozcaada wineries have more or less quietly made wine with Karalahna. Maybe it's me noticing it more or maybe it's that the
Read MoreMy introduction to Hungarian wine occurred on a work trip to Budapest in 2004. Budapest is a beautiful city I have since fallen in
Read MoreWhen I'm in Athens, my friend M and I play a game. We stand in front of the wine shelves at his local grocery
Read MoreThe bulk of Öküzgözü in Turkey grows in the grape's homeland of Elazığ in Eastern Anatolia. The most widely-planted Turkish black grape sometimes gets
Read MoreGiven my recent complain about the current trend for blanc de noir Papazkarası and the lack of good red wines made with it, I
Read MoreThe Urla district of İzmir in Turkey's Aegean region has become a hotbed of trendy wineries. Many belong to the Urla Bağ Yolu (the
Read MoreFor this month's #ItalianFWT, Camilla from Culinary Adventures with Camilla has invited us all to explore the world of Ramato wines. You can read
Read MoreIn the game of 'follow the leader', the current fashion for Thracian wineries is to have a blanc de noir Papazkarası. This is one
Read MoreTo kick off summer, I recently hosted an online wine tasting of some of Turkey's island wines. Turkey has several islands which boast great
Read MorePošip was a new to me grape when I got this bottle. I'd heard of it but hadn't ever had it. Luckily for me,
Read MoreHave you ever found a producer who just excels at something? For me that person is Akın Gürbüz. I enjoy all his wines (his new
Read MoreThis month, Linda from My Full Wine Glass has challenged the #WinePW group to find those 'difficult' to pair foods. You can read her
Read MoreNarince is made into fresh stainless steel aged wines, rich oak-raised wines, and traditional method sparkling wines. They are always dry. Narince is never
Read MoreThis is a semi sponsored post but all opinions are my own. While Paşaeli has built a reputation for its wines made from rescued and
Read MoreFranco Terpin's winery straddles two worlds. Well, two countries in any case. Located in San Floriano del Collio, Friuli Venezia Giulia, Italy, the winery
Read MoreTo begin, Solaris is not a wine name, it's the grape. Developed in Germany in 1975, Solaris is a hybrid grape. Now, get ready
Read MoreDo not judge a book by its cover! We all know this. Sometimes though when it comes to a wine label I forget. I'm
Read MoreI realized a few months ago that I have tried every wine from Urla Şarapçılık except the winery's rosé. Since I don't generally hold
Read MoreLast summer during a trip to Hungary, I discovered a new (to me) grape: Kéknyelű. Little is known about this grape's history. What I know for
Read MoreI love sweet wines. Perhaps I have mentioned that a time or two on this blog! I'd been curious about the Corvus Passito, having
Read MoreAsmadan winery, located in Eceabat on the Gallipoli Peninsula, has vineyards in several locations in Turkey. Some surround the winery, others sit in the
Read MoreI love doing side-by-side wine comparisons. For example, when a producer makes multiple styles of wine from the same grape. So when I saw
Read MoreFor May's Wine Paired Weekend event, Wendy Klik of A Day in the Life on the Farm has invited us to explore the wines
Read MoreJust in time for international #SauvBlancDay, my new favorite Turkish Sauvignon Blanc: Saranta Chateau Murou Sauvignon Blanc. This is a hugely popular grape in Turkey.
Read MoreOf all the random things for a Turkish company to produce, we have some pretty decent buffalo burrata here. The company recently released a
Read MoreSuch is the scarcity of MMG Şarapçılık's wines that the only two vintages of their Syrah I've had were made seven years apart! One of
Read MoreIt was recently pointed out to me that I never posted a list of my favorite wines from 2020. In fact, I have not
Read MoreThe #WorldWineTravel blogging group continues its virtual exploration of Spain this month with a trip to Rías Baixas! Host Linda from My Full Wine
Read MoreI haven't written before about Çakır Bağcılık ve Şarapçılık. It's a newish winery, releasing its first vintage only last year. Until recently this was the
Read MoreSauvignon Blanc wines enjoy a huge amount of popularity in Turkey. It's right up there with Chardonnay. Generally if a winery makes one, it
Read MoreTo celebrate Earth Month, Gwendolyn the Wine Predator challenged the #Winophiles group to find a wine that celebrates "Loire's organic gardens." You can view
Read MoreIn January, Esat bey, owner of La Cave in Cihangir, asked if I'd recently had the Kayra Vintage Boğazkere. It was his highest selling
Read MoreSelefkia Wines is one of the few (well one of the two!) wineries based in southern Turkey's Mediterranean region of Mersin. The winery makes
Read MoreThis 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
Read MoreI begin this post with a little bit of a rant. One of my recent wine pet peeves concerns the hype around small production
Read MoreOften in Turkey I buy wines from winemakers or wineries I like whether or not I want the actual wine. Such was the case
Read MoreUçmakdere Winery, based in the village of the same name along the Sea of Marmara, is one of the most exciting wineries for me
Read MoreThis month Camilla of Culinary Adventures with Camilla has invited the #Winophiles group to explore French grown around the world. You can view her
Read MoreI 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
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