This winery is housed in an old horse stable. The buildings have all been fixed up and painted bright white, everything looked so beautiful I felt I should have been wearing a big floppy hat and white gloves. The vineyards were very well groomed but because of the harvest year, there was a lot of dropped fruit.
Wine: They poured 14 of their 16 wien portfolio, if I counted properly. There was a Chardonnay and Syrah that were aged in American oak that were both really nice. The Oak was actually Oregon White Oak, a rare specie to be coopered I'm sure. The Marechal Foch was lacking, it had an unpleasent earthiness to it of wet forest floor but the floral nose was nice. It had beautiful color too. The big reds were all alright, we bought the Syrah but I think it needs another year before we'll open it. They had 3 ports, a Foch, a Petite Syrah and the Tempranillo that they were not pouring. The Foch was thin and more like a tawny port but the PS was smooth and had a hint of coffee to it. We purchase the PS and the Tempranillo. I hope the Temp is like the PS not the Foch for our party.
Vineyards: There was a lot of sacrificed fruit which makes me sad. The 2011 vintage will be a beautiful one but a small on in the Willamette Valley. Very nicely kept, the vines were tall but spaced narrow enough they probably hand pick.
Tasting Room: They have a different clientel. They are right outside of Lake Oswego and they don't charge for tasting. They had a lot of West Linners that just sit infrom of the tables so no one else can get to the next wine. I think they should reduce the number of wines and pour a full ounce of each, I never quite got a second taste of those ports. The number of people would probably have been more manageable if they were open more than just Sundays from noon to 5pm.
Service: The owners and winemaker are their pour staff. They were nice and had great information about the wine.
Something special: They have Moonstruck Chocolate make their logoed dark chocolate circles for pairing with the Foch, that was fun.
Overall Wine Experience Score: 75
Stats: Oswego Hills
Address: 6750 Breyman Orchards Rd. Dayton, OR 97114
Tasting room is open Sunday noon-5pm
Tasting Fee: Complimentary
Website: http://oswegohills.com/
Wines: Everything - Tempranillo Port, Chardonnay, Pinot Gris, Pinot Noir, Marechal Foch, Merlot, Petite Sirah, Cabernet Sauvignon, Riesling, Syrah, Viognier, Zinfandel
Friday, October 14, 2011
Thursday, October 13, 2011
Christmas in October!!!
I am such a dork, the UPS man just dropped off my wine.com wines and I couldn't wait for him to go away so I could squeal with delight over my new case of vino. This makes my second package of wine in as many days.
Working in the Oregon wine industry I drink a lot of Pinot. Not that this is a problem, on the contrary, love me some pinot. But I am determined to branch out and try some of the delicious stylings of other growing regions around the world. We love Tempranillo and hope to travel to Spain in the next 5 years to experience the Riojas of the Old World mpre studiously.
Back to my wine shipment though...
The man in brown brought me my case of 6 bottles that included 3 different Tempranillos from Spain. They weren't expensive bottles but they are all going to be poured this Saturday for our wine pairing event "Tamales & Tempranillo" we're having with friends.
The case included 4 bottles of Protocolo 2009 Tinto, rated 89pts by Wine Enthusiast and #2 on their 2011 Best Buys list ($7.99 at wine.com). I also bought 1 bottle of Montebuena 2009 Rioja (all Temp). Google is now telling me it was rated bt Robert Parker at 90pts, awesome! The last bottle is a Marques de Riscal 2006 Tempranillo. It sounded good in the description and I couldn't help but purchase one more bottle so I could get $10 off my shipment. So that one was really only another $.29. Oh the joys of wien buying.
Yesterday I also got a package from Quilceda Creek. My allocation finally came through this summer. If you're still on their waiting list, I signed up in the winter of 2009. I can't get the good stuff yet, just the "Red Wine" but only time will tell how long it takes at purchasing a few bottles of red wine each year.
Working in the Oregon wine industry I drink a lot of Pinot. Not that this is a problem, on the contrary, love me some pinot. But I am determined to branch out and try some of the delicious stylings of other growing regions around the world. We love Tempranillo and hope to travel to Spain in the next 5 years to experience the Riojas of the Old World mpre studiously.
Back to my wine shipment though...
The man in brown brought me my case of 6 bottles that included 3 different Tempranillos from Spain. They weren't expensive bottles but they are all going to be poured this Saturday for our wine pairing event "Tamales & Tempranillo" we're having with friends.
The case included 4 bottles of Protocolo 2009 Tinto, rated 89pts by Wine Enthusiast and #2 on their 2011 Best Buys list ($7.99 at wine.com). I also bought 1 bottle of Montebuena 2009 Rioja (all Temp). Google is now telling me it was rated bt Robert Parker at 90pts, awesome! The last bottle is a Marques de Riscal 2006 Tempranillo. It sounded good in the description and I couldn't help but purchase one more bottle so I could get $10 off my shipment. So that one was really only another $.29. Oh the joys of wien buying.
Yesterday I also got a package from Quilceda Creek. My allocation finally came through this summer. If you're still on their waiting list, I signed up in the winter of 2009. I can't get the good stuff yet, just the "Red Wine" but only time will tell how long it takes at purchasing a few bottles of red wine each year.
Monday, October 10, 2011
On the Hunt!
We've been on the hunt for Tempranillo for months now. We've found that more than just Purple Cow in Forest Grove makes good Temps in the Willamette Valley.
Here are some of our findings:
Vidon - purchases from CA but it's beautiful. I wish they would have left their current release in the barrel a bit longer and maybe with a bit more new oak on the wine but with a few years I think this one will make me cry. Dave said they will be planting some Estate Temp this year or next year. Can't wait for that!
Stoller - we bought 3 bottles of their 2009 Estate Tempranillo over Memorial Weekend. I can't believe it, a Willamette Valley Estate Temp. We had one bottle on International Tempranillo Day, 9/1/11, and can't wait for a good day to start a fire in the living room, snuggle up with a blanket, the cat and a good chick flick. This wine warms my heart and I really should go back for a few more bottles before it's sold out. They have a one acre triangle on their estate that is west facing and, in my opinion, a perfect spot to grow Temp.
Oswego Hills - We had to buy their Temp Port just to try it. They only had a few cases so they weren't tasting it at the winery but we needed it for our Tempranillo tasting party on the 15th (more about that later).
Purple Cow - We always love their wine. We joined for the Marechal Foch, it was a varietal we knew nothing about but it tasted amazing and so different than the Pinots we'd been drinking. They will have their first Estate Tempranillo for the wine club this fall. We've been waiting for this for a long time now, we've watched the vines grow for several years and are so excited to taste the fruits of their labor. (Puns always intended.)
On October 15th I will be hosting a Tempranillo and Tamales dinner party for several of our wine and foodie friends. I promise to post about the party, I promise!!!
Here are some of our findings:
Vidon - purchases from CA but it's beautiful. I wish they would have left their current release in the barrel a bit longer and maybe with a bit more new oak on the wine but with a few years I think this one will make me cry. Dave said they will be planting some Estate Temp this year or next year. Can't wait for that!
Stoller - we bought 3 bottles of their 2009 Estate Tempranillo over Memorial Weekend. I can't believe it, a Willamette Valley Estate Temp. We had one bottle on International Tempranillo Day, 9/1/11, and can't wait for a good day to start a fire in the living room, snuggle up with a blanket, the cat and a good chick flick. This wine warms my heart and I really should go back for a few more bottles before it's sold out. They have a one acre triangle on their estate that is west facing and, in my opinion, a perfect spot to grow Temp.
Oswego Hills - We had to buy their Temp Port just to try it. They only had a few cases so they weren't tasting it at the winery but we needed it for our Tempranillo tasting party on the 15th (more about that later).
Purple Cow - We always love their wine. We joined for the Marechal Foch, it was a varietal we knew nothing about but it tasted amazing and so different than the Pinots we'd been drinking. They will have their first Estate Tempranillo for the wine club this fall. We've been waiting for this for a long time now, we've watched the vines grow for several years and are so excited to taste the fruits of their labor. (Puns always intended.)
On October 15th I will be hosting a Tempranillo and Tamales dinner party for several of our wine and foodie friends. I promise to post about the party, I promise!!!
Saturday, October 8, 2011
Going Mushrooming
We went mushrooming this morning and it was awesome!!! I can't believe I've never done this before. I can't wait to select a few wines to drink with these little beautiful fungi. I will post more details including recipes and pairing as we use them. They dry very nicely so I will be able to use them over the next few months to a year.
Friday, October 7, 2011
We're going wine tasting
My hubby and I don't go tasting nearly as often as we'd like to. But this weekend we're going to Oswego Hills and August Cellars to check out some local Marechal Foch wine, as well as their pinots of course. There are over 420 different wineries/labels in Oregon now. I can't believe how many have popped up in just the past few years. I think I'm going to have to start a check list to make sure we get out there to try as many of them as possible. So much wine so little time.
Thursday, October 6, 2011
My apologies - Long Time, No Writing
My apologies to anyone who reads my blog, all 6 of you? I have had an insane year+ and my wine cellar has changed dramatically. So here's a quick catch up...
***
We are still members of Purple Cow Vineyards, we love their unique take on wines and ability to find crazy varietals. I no longer work for the winery I was working for when I thought I was a wine snob. I have since learned that it is much more important to drink wine that you love rather than what Bob Parker says is the be all and end all. I don't get much wine from Grocery Outlet but I do poke my nose in every once and a while just to see what's up. I've found a few gems in there, Woodbridge Port and a few Botrytis wines from Australia, but other than that I just get my goat cheese there anymore.
I have started working at another winery. I am the Direct Sales and Hospitality Manager. That means Tasting Room Manager but doesn't it sound pretty? I won't disclose the name of the winery, I'm not bias or anything. Don't get me wrong, I love the wine we serve and it's the reason I don't purchase a whole lot of other wine anymore. But since I am not the best of writers and I can me snarky, I don't want to put the winery I work for in the wrong light.
Hoepfully I will be able to write at least a blog post every month, especially with all of the wine tasting I'm able to do now that I don't work weekends all of the time.
Cheers!
***
We are still members of Purple Cow Vineyards, we love their unique take on wines and ability to find crazy varietals. I no longer work for the winery I was working for when I thought I was a wine snob. I have since learned that it is much more important to drink wine that you love rather than what Bob Parker says is the be all and end all. I don't get much wine from Grocery Outlet but I do poke my nose in every once and a while just to see what's up. I've found a few gems in there, Woodbridge Port and a few Botrytis wines from Australia, but other than that I just get my goat cheese there anymore.
I have started working at another winery. I am the Direct Sales and Hospitality Manager. That means Tasting Room Manager but doesn't it sound pretty? I won't disclose the name of the winery, I'm not bias or anything. Don't get me wrong, I love the wine we serve and it's the reason I don't purchase a whole lot of other wine anymore. But since I am not the best of writers and I can me snarky, I don't want to put the winery I work for in the wrong light.
Hoepfully I will be able to write at least a blog post every month, especially with all of the wine tasting I'm able to do now that I don't work weekends all of the time.
Cheers!
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