Our latest Video AdVINEture features a sneak peek of our recent trip to Oregon! After a night in Portland we headed to the Willamette Valley to interview Doug Tunnel of Brick House Vineyards and Wayne Bailey of Youngberg Hill Vineyards & Inn. We also experienced the provisions tasting at Soter Wines and stopped into Sokol Blosser for a tasting. Fall is our favourite time to visit any wine region and with harvest just completed, there was lots of activity and lots of optimism about the 2018 vintage. We are big fans of the wine coming out of Oregon and this latest trip solidified that the Willamette Valley truly deserved to be named Wine Region of the Year (Wine Enthusiast 2016)!
Champagne is the ultimate celebratory drink, the drink of toasts, of special occasions and in our book, one of the finest wines around. But ask most people how those bubbles got in their glass or what their favourite region of Champagne is and you are likely to see blank faces staring back at you. Learning the fundamentals of Champagne is not as daunting as you might think. We have broken this wine down into 5 basics that are easy enough to remember and give you a good overview of the wine.
There really is a first for everything. We recently visited South Africa for the very first time and we are the first to admit that our experience with wines from the region was limited at best. Relatively speaking, few South African wines make it to Canada so our experience has been inconsistent in terms of quality. Our first visit to the region of Franschoek began with a stop at storied family winery Haute Cabrière. We were drawn to this particular winery because of its history and the fact that they are reputed to make top quality Pinot Noir and Sparkling Wine. We discovered not only does this winery’s reputation precede it, it’s a reputation that is well deserved.
Apple and pear dominate the aromatic and flavor profile of this wine. This has medium body and good back end acidity and one could be forgiven for guessing Burgundy in a blind tasting. Already complex there are notes of citrus, minerals and nuts to underscore the fruit. The finish is long with hints of spice. Elegance dominates but there is underlying power as well. Very classy!
We first opened this wine a year and a half ago and our initial thought was “ABC” (Anything But Chardonnay) drinkers be damned! It is a big new world Chardonnay out of Washington that shows how an “oaky” chardonnay can be powerful but simultaneously balanced so as not to be overpowering. Gold in colour with a medium plus body, the first whiff revealed vanilla, butterscotch and caramel. The first sip had similar notes backed with lemon, honey and citrus. Terrific body and complexity to this wine with a lovely long finish. Fast forward to last night and it has evolved in more. A little more subtle yet still very complex, it is drinking beautifully right now but still has a few years of optimum drinking left.
Champagne is the ultimate celebratory drink, the drink of toasts, of special occasions and in our book, one of the finest wines around. But ask most people how those bubbles got in their glass or what their favourite region of Champagne is and you are likely to see blank faces staring back at you. Learning the fundamentals of Champagne is not as daunting as you might think. We have broken this wine down into 5 basics that are easy enough to remember and give you a good overview of the wine.
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