It’s rare to see a successful winemaker succeeding in the Napa Valley give up a sure thing to move to Oregon and start a new winery working with a completely different grape and climate. That’s exactly what Steve Girard did and the Willamette Valley is that much better for it.
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The vineyards at Alexana Winery
Having been to numerous wineries around the world, nothing is more satisfying than discovering a real gem for the first time. Alexana Vineyards was that find for us on a recent trip to Oregon’s Willamette Valley. Located in the Dundee Hills AVA, it is one of the most unique properties we’ve come across, with no less than eighteen soil types divided into 31 different parcels to extract the very best from each micro-region.
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King Estate vineyards
In December of last year, the influential wine magazine Wine Enthusiast named Oregon’s Willamette Valley their Wine Region of Year for 2016. AdVINEtures decided to take trip down there and see how things had evolved since we were there two years ago. What we found was a wine region that charms visitors with its lack of pretension, a terrific food scene that focuses on local, farm-to-table cuisine, and a group of winemakers that embrace a sense of community and collaboration that has resulted in them producing wines at the top of their game. We thought their award was richly deserved.
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The view at King Estate Winery.
We have been fans of Oregon wine for a very long time which has translated into multiple trips to the State over the past several years. Our most recent trip was prompted by two things: the Willamette Valley region being named “Region of Year” by Wine Enthusiast magazine, and the praise being heaped on the 2014 and 2015 Pinot Noir vintages currently being released. What we discovered is that while Pinot Noir is what put the Willamette Valley on the world wine map, it is what the area offers as a whole that makes it the perfect place to visit time and again.
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“Wine to put a smile on your face” — Maria Lopez de Heredia, Proprietress & Winemaker
Lopez de Heredia Winery in Rioja.
We visited the Lopez de Heredia winery in the small town of Haro in the Spanish wine region of Rioja as a part of the Fine Vintages wine tour. We were very excited about this stop on the tour as we have been enjoying their wines for years and also because this winery holds a place of near reverence within the established wine community. We were about to learn first-hand just why this winery is so revered.
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To call Rick Longoria, winemaker and proprietor of Longoria Wines, a pioneer with respect to Santa Barbara County would be a massive understatement. He settled in the area and started winemaking at a time when hardly anyone foresaw the level of success the wine region is seeing today—hardly anyone that is, except for him.
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