Pinot Gris at Villa Catalana Cellars

Villa Catalana

We stopped by Villa Catalana on our way out of town last weekend. Seems they grow rare plants, mediterranean plants, and make wine. The place was beautiful, over-the-top, and a wee bit pretentious as a Spanish style villa seems a little out of place in Oregon. I really enjoyed seeing the vines and walking the vineyards they had on site, and thoroughly enjoyed the setting. These pictures are from a vineyard of Pinot Gris in front of the main house.

My Growing Arsenal of Information

As I keep searching for information I stumble upon seminars, wine tastings, and of course wine. I look at local restaurant wine lists to see what they are stocking, and I am amazed at the prices they have the nerve to charge. I have also assembled a small selection of books. Currently I am reading Adventures on the Wine Route, by Kermit Lynch. I love this book, mainly because I love French red wines! It is a great travelogue that goes way beyond just writing about wine. It reveals a culture (old France's wine industry) and an aesthetic (Mr. Lynch's search for stellar, off the beaten track wines) that have become intertwined with each other and become a symbiotic force in the wine import business.

Other books I haven't had the chance to delve into yet are How to Taste, by Jancis Robinson, Judgement of Paris, by George M. Taber, and the Windows on the World Complete Wine Course, by Kevin Zraly. Another book that I seem to use quite often is The World Atlas of Wine, by Hugh Johnson and Jancis Robinson. Each time I open a bottle I open The World Atlas of Wine and read about the geography and the climate that produced the grapes I am enjoying. It has been a great asset to my enological endeavor.

A little over a week ago I attended one of the local Science Pubs. This is where an audience of interested listeners gather to hear a speaker talk about a topic that has some scientific merit: the "Science" part. You can do this with a drink in hand, which is the "Pub" part. The speaker was James Frey, winemaker and owner of Trisaetum Winery in the Willamette Valley. His topic was Winemaking: Art vs Science. Mr. Frey is a type-A, fast talking, do-it-his-way, kind of guy that has had some great success growing and bottling Pinot Noirs and Rieslings. His Rieslings even get a shout out from Robinson and Johnson on page 289 of The World Atlas of Wine where they refer to Trisaetum as a "notable producer". It was interesting to listen to him talk about making wine but the most interesting fact was this. From the time he and his family bought the land for the vineyards and planted the vines, it was seven years before he actually sold a bottle of wine. A great display of patience.

I also attended another wine tasting at the Wine & Spirit Archive in Portland, This month it was the Wines of Southern Oregon. We started out with a fresh, Vermentino from the Troon Vineyard, bottled by Minimus Wines. The climate in southern Oregon is warmer and allows winemakers a chance to experiment with grape varieties that are imported from Mediterranean locales. We also tasted a Pinot Noir (HillCrest), a Barbera (Heydon Road), and a Cabernet Sauvignon (J. Scott). All three of these wines had a similar underlying taste to them. All three somewhat transparent, dark purple (not red) and infused with an earthy, dewy, musky undertone that just might be a kind of signature flavor of Oregon red wines that aren't overtly oaky. A taste that reminds one of the rich earth, the ferns, the fungi, and the smell of wet topsoil. I had only connected this to local Pinot Noirs, but now I am curious if this is just the local terroir.

Well, I must end this entry. I do have a day job and it is getting late. As Oscar Wilde said, "Work is the curse of the drinking class."

Tasting Domaine de Durbin, 2011 Beaumes-de-Venise

I am so hooked on fruity, almost opaque, French red wine. Poured in the glass it's hard to see through. When swirled around in the glass the fresh fruit aroma intensifies and hits your nostrils with a most pleasing pre-palate punch. When it's good, the balance of fruitiness and acidity blend in such a way that you don't pucker or wince.

I have a French wine in my hand right now that does all of that. I had a bite of Gruyere cheese before I tasted it: Domaine de Durban, 2011 Beaumes-de-Venise. This is imported by Kermit Lynch, which means... a). I know that the importer tasted the wine before it was bottled. b). I know the wine was transported to the west coast via refrigerated containers. c.) I know that the wine is unfiltered.

Those things, and many, many more that I don't know about, come together to bring about the personal revelation that this little bottle of French wine is probably, in my limited, budgeted wine tasting experience, the most complete wine I have ever tasted. The sweetness to acidity is just right on. There is a bright berry taste that at first I couldn't identify or define, yet familiar. After reading others notes on this wine someone mentioned strawberry. Yep, that's it!

A small lesson: this wine is the most balanced I have yet to taste and I could smell the balance in the glass even before I tasted it. Trust your nose! Swirling the liquid in the glass then sticking my nose into it (WOW) produces a most intense strawberry aroma that I can taste when I put the glass to my lips and let the ground-filtered, french rain water that fell four years ago, that was stored in these grapes for a season, wash over my tongue. My eyes roll back in pleasure as I nod my head yes, yes...

So what does a better wine taste like?

Mini Vineyard

Preparing to test the soil. Dirt soup!

The Mini Vineyard is here!

I bought four Pinot Noir grapevines a few weeks ago and planted them in the backyard. My impetus for this project was a personal lesson in growing and pruning some grape vines. My choice of Pinot Noir was simply because that is the most popular varietal in my area. I had envisioned a project like this last winter as my interest in enology grew so that I could simply watch some grapes grow, learn to prune and train them, and taste them during the growing process. I'm curious what Pinot Noir grapes taste like prior to fermentation. How sweet are they? How does the taste on the vine compare to the taste of the finished product?

It is doubtful that these four vines will produce enough grapes to make a personal batch of wine, but if they do, I'm up for that. Even if they do produce plenty of fruit it won't be this year, and probably not the next.

However, before planting them, the first thing I did was test the soil. My son has lots of science kits so I borrowed his soil test kit and tried it out. The ph was slightly acidic, almost neutral. The other elements were closer to "DEPLETED". I bought some organic top soil and also used some of our compost. The soil was filled with earthworms.

The test was simple.

I got my grapevines from Advanced Vineyard Systems in McMinnville. They specialize in facilitating legacy vineyards from conception to realization. I bought four Mount Eden 37/3309 Grafted Grapevines. They were six dollars a piece.

I then went to Home Depot and Dennis' Seven Dees (a local garden supply store) and bought the wood, the stakes, the soil and the hardware for a small raised bed. I noticed that the prices at Home Depot were about half that of the local garden supply chain in regards to similar items, so anything I could buy at Home Depot, I did.

Once I assembled the bed and plotted it's position I dug down about a foot where the plants were going to be planted, to loosen up the earth for the roots. I hammered in the stakes and then filled the bed with some top soil, then I planted the vines. I set up wires to train the vines as they grow.

The finished raised bed with the grapevines. I cut the bottoms out of the containers and put them around the vines for protection.

I'll post monthly updates on the vines and my pruning decisions throughout the growing season. Stay tuned.

From Hillsboro to Newberg, Then to McMinnville for Lunch and Wine

After a long season of gray days and rain, the comforting smell of the home fires that burn throughout the winter finally wafted away and gave way to the fresh scent of spring. Saturday was a spectacular day! It was like crawling out of a cocoon, spun with the rut of work and the long Oregon winter, and experiencing the place I live in with a heightened set of senses. And so we set out, with the car windows down, through the valley for a spring excursion.

We drove south from Hillsboro to Newberg on state route 219. It is roughly twenty miles of rural two lane roads that wind and twist through orchards, berry patches, and pastures. For the first ten miles, from Hillsboro to Scholls, the road follows the low point of the valley and stays just to the east of the Chehalem Mountains AVA. At almost every crossroads, every road leading west, there is a sign pointing the way to one of the local vineyards which are all located just a few miles away on the slopes of the Chehalem Mountains. 

The area still has an untamed rural feel to it. It is not uncommon to hear "talk" of the occasional cougar sighting just a few miles south of Hillsboro at Jackson Bottom Wetlands. Here the Tualatin River, a tributary of the Willamette that flows out of the Coast Range, creates a soggy wilderness that is usually flooded throughout the winter.

At Scholls, a T shaped intersection comprised of a few old edifices, you can grab breakfast or lunch at the South Store Cafe or go across the street to the Smith Berry Barn. If berry picking isn't on your agenda, the Berry Barn has other things: a garden market, a gourmet gift shop, espresso and milkshakes, preserves and honey. They have a nice patio where you can sit with your espresso. The French country vibe that the place exudes will make you feel like you are farther then ten miles from home. 

Before you get to Newberg, you have to climb over another low range of mountains, drive right through the Chehalem Mountains AVA, and then slowly (due to the speed limit and the occasional traffic cop at the bottom of the slope) descend into town. When you're on top of these slopes there are chances to see up to four snow capped volcanoes in two different states: Mt. Saint Helens and Mt Adams in Washington, and Mt. Hood and Mt. Jefferson in Oregon. But if you're driving don't take your eyes off the road. The hairpin turns and the occasional oncoming traffic will require your full attention.

Our principal reason for going to Newberg was to visit the Cecil & Molly Smith Rhododendron Garden in St. Paul, Oregon, just south of Newberg. It was a beautiful walk. The garden is situated in an old stand of trees that seemed to have defied the saws of the settlers who long ago clear cut all of the farm land that surrounds this little woodland paradise.

Smith Rhododendron Garden

From Newburg, we traveled west on route 99 to McMinnville. A small town that is turning into the center of the North Willamette wine industry. With a lively downtown filled with restaurants, wine bars, wine tasting establishments, and gift shops it's a great place to spend an afternoon strolling, eating, drinking, and people watching. It has a rustic sophistication to it that is best explained by the various types of vehicles that one might see parked along 3rd street: a group of Harley Davidson motorcycles, a classic MG, a beat up 1960's VW van, a BMW 3 Series sedan, a Honda Insite, a Dodge 4x4 diesel truck, a Ferrari.

We ate at Gem Creole Saloon. I had the Crispy Fried Chicken Wings with Bourbon Molasses BBQ Sauce. They were very good. So were the biscuits, the hush puppies, the fries, and my wife gave a big thumbs up to the Crawfish Etouffee. So, sated and happy, we strolled down the street to the Willamette Valley Vineyards Tasting Room. I had the daily flight:

     1. 2013 Pinot Gris

     2. 2012 Dijon Clone Chardonnay

     3. 2012 Estate Pinot Noir - 93 pts

     4. 2014 Whole Cluster Pinot Noir

     5. 2013 Riesling

They also threw in a taste of a Syrah from Southern Oregon. Right now I am hooked on red wines from France, especially Rhone Valley wines. I enjoyed tasting these local wines, and I preferred the Pinot Gris and the Riesling to the Pinot Noirs, probably because of the strong fruit. Oregon Pinot Noir is, as I have been told, an acquired taste. There is a smoky, dark fruity flavor to it and a lingering wisp of alcohol at the finish that always seems to float up my nose. These Pinot Noirs are not as fruity and dark as the reds I have been drinking from France, which at times are like drinking the blood of hundreds of massacred grapes. But to compare the local Pinot's to these other varietals isn't accomplishing anything here. The local wine is a major focal point of this blog, and finding the diamonds in what could be a heap of rhinestones will take some time, personal education, and the patience to learn how to tell a diamond from a rhinestone.

I will say this though, the Willamette Valley Vineyards 2013 Riesling is one of the best Oregon white wines I have yet tasted. It already has a place on my list of "Summer Wines" simply because it was crisp, fruity, honest and straight to the point. It was served chilled. 

If you travel, if you have spent meaningful time in other places sampling the culture, you occasionally get the longing to return and smell the air, taste the food, drink the wine. On such a beautiful day as this, in my own backyard, I bet there were people from other places tasting the food, drinking the wine, sniffing the air - planting the seeds of memories that some day will leave them longing for another day like today - that will perhaps bring them back for another taste of this place.

Cheers,

Wine Tasting at The Wine and Spirit Archive

I had a really great wine tasting experience at The Wine and Spirit Archive in Portland. I found this little gem of a place while looking for a course in Wine Tasting, Wine Education, or perhaps a certification to help move my "career" forward.

The Wine and Spirit Archive is a cross between a laboratory and an artist's studio. The big windows that look out over Ash street provide a warm, comfortable light. It was a cozy setting for some wine experimentation!

Our sommelier for the evening, Mimi Martin-Director of The Wine and Spirit Archive, was a gracious host. She was very knowledgable about the five wines we were tasting, all from southwest France. A nice assortment of cheese, flat bread, pate, nuts, and salt was set out for us to pair with the wines.

As she poured a wine into your glass, she would tell you about its origin while simultaneously projecting images of the AOC (the wine's place of origin) on the wall, which added to the enjoyment of tasting these wines from such far off and remote places. If you're on a small, tight budget, these images of vineyards, medieval towns, winding rivers and rocky slopes can stick in your mind and can turn drinking one of these wines at home into a cheap form of travel. A good wine, a good coffee, a good piece of chocolate will actually take you somewhere. So, there we were, stimulating all the senses; melding the projected images of these rustic places with the the scent, texture, and taste of their local wines.

The wines we tasted, in order of serving:

1. Domaine l'Enclos (Cotes de Gascogne) 2013
2. Domaine Castera Sec (Jurancon) 2012
3. Clos la Coutale (Cahors) 2012
4. Domaine du Cros Lo Sang del Pais (Marcillac) 2012
5. Domaine Brana Ohitza (Irouleguy) 2010

Three of these wines really got my attention. 

The Domaine l'Enclos, the first wine I tasted, was so crisp and refreshing. After a long day at work and then driving across town in rush hour traffic, I felt that this made it all worth while. Been a while since I had such refreshing white wine. So crisp and simple. I bought a bottle with the idea that I would share it, mainly to see others reaction to it. I think anybody would love this wine. You don't have to tell your friends it's just a ten dollar bottle of wine. Instead, let them think you pulled one of your "special" bottles off the shelf in honor of their presence at your table. Serve it chilled.

The Clos la Coutale from Cahors also got my attention. There was a dark, fruity richness to it. The wine had weight as it washed across my tongue; like many of the red wines I have been enjoying from France. I'm a coffee drinker who roasts his own coffee, presses it a cup at a time, and relishes the feel of the beverage in my mouth and over my tongue. Some of these red wines approximate that sensation. Again, being budget minded, I passed on buying a bottle to bring home. But the taste of a good wine lingers on in the imagination and I wound up in New Seasons this afternoon and bought a similar wine from Cahors made with Malbec.

The third wine that REALLY got my attention is the Domaine Brana Ohitza from Irouleguy. Oh, I have been savoring this wine each night as I sit and write. More expensive than the other four wines, ($26.00, while the other four wines were all under $20.00) it was so worth it. If you buy wines frugally you don't always run into a more expensive wine that is really deserving of the price, like this one. This wine provides a longer finish than I am used to. The acid and the alcohol are both there but not up front; they don't get in the way of the grape. What a wonderful wine!

The tastings at The Wine and Spirit Archive usually happen once a month. Last time I checked members pay $10.00 and visitors pay $12.00. See you there.

Let's begin...

You want your first post to be memorable. You worry over it - way too much! Eventually you realize that you just need to write it, do some QA on it, then post it. 

This blog is about wine. It’s about my attempt to learn everything I can about wine. I admit that I’m a novice. If everything works according to plan the blog will reveal my path from novice to journeyman. Ha! Plans! We'll see where we are in a few months.

I live in Hillsboro, Oregon just on the edge of the Chehalem Mountains AVA in the North Willamette Valley. I’ve lived here for five years and I admit I have taken my local vineyards for granted. So, one promise I can make about this endeavor is to find out what the local wine is all about, and through them, to get a taste of the place that I live in: Terroir. 

I'm pretty sure I incorrectly pronounced terroir as I typed it. Even after taking French in high school and spending several summer semesters in the French speaking portion of Switzerland, I know I’m not quite pronouncing it right. But, terroir is one of the most interesting subjects in regards to wine (or coffee). For me, here is where the romance, the mystery, and the art of winemaking converge. The idea that not only can you drink a wine and taste the earth it sprung from, but you can drink the very rain that fell in that place, at that time - a year ago, or perhaps twenty-five years ago. By drinking it, contemplating it, you get to be part of the process.

(And for some reason I can't help but think of Duchamp’s 50 cc of Paris Air.) 

So, as I write this journal I’ll just try to be practical and informative. I'll let the blog take shape before I worry too much about its organization. And I’ll get to writing about last weeks wine tasting I attended, and about the four Pinot noir grape vines I just planted in the back yard.

I’ll end with what I am drinking tonight: Ohitza Irouleguy 2010. A red wine from the Appellation Iroulegay Controlee in France.

It has substance to it… on the tongue… it has body like you get with french pressed coffee. It is fruity with a little acid and finishes long. A bit of Gruyere cheese with the wine really made it snap. I really like this wine. Now I’m curious about other years and the place in which it is grown and how it is made. 

Warm regards,