Fifty Shades of Rosé

            It’s all I asked for as a Mother’s Day gift.  It’s all I wanted.  I longed for a unique experience.  I desired what I had seen elsewhere.  I wanted—I needed—fifty shades of…rosé!

            In my travels the past year, I’ve been collecting bottles for this rosé extravaganza.  I purchased bottles from Texas and Oregon, found examples from Sonoma to Chile. 

            I’ve already started my tasting of these beautiful bottles, in shades of barely-there to deep-dark pink.  Here is my list of rosés I will be drinking this summer.  Many price points are represented, as are many styles.  However, all are worth a sip on a summer patio. 

            Enjoy these fifty shades of rosé, in no particular order…oh wait, they are in an order—from light to dark.  No judgements here, just good wines for the warm weather.

 

Rosé of Pinot Noir—Sokol Blosser, Willamette Valley:  barely-there pink from Willamette Valley pinot noir grapes makes this the prettiest sip of the year. 

Tatum Rosé—William Chris, Texas Hill Country:  what a beautiful baby-pink color this bottle is.  Named for the assistant winemaker’s daughter, Tatum, from grenache and mourvedre grapes.

Rosé of Pinot Noir—Cartograph Wines, North Coast:  just a shade darker here, this pinot noir pink is produced in Sonoma County and longs for a Sonoma summer evening.

Cabernet Sauvignon Rosé—LaPlaya, Colchagua Valley:  this pink is given an undertone of orange from the cabernet grape.  Add in the small amount of viognier, and this Chilean wine stands out.

Pinot Noir Rosé—Ponzi Vineyards, Willamette Valley:  moving to a gorgeous salmon color, this pink is made from Oregon’s premier region’s premier grape.

Dry Rosé of Pinot Noir—Toad Hollow, Sonoma County:  a darker Sonoma County example, the Toad Hollow tasted was 2014, but look for the newest vintage to enjoy this season.

Pinot Noir Rosé—Firesteed Cellars, Willamette Valley:  still a deep salmon, Firesteed’s rosé of pinot noir is another example of what this state can do with its favorite grape.

P

Roséo—Penner Ash, Oregon:  this wine moves to the fuchsia shade with pinot noir grapes sourced from Oregon and produced in Penner Ash’s beautiful Willamette Valley facility.

Texas Dry Rosè—Pedernales Cellars, Texas Hill Country:  the deepest shade of fuchsia—almost red—this is a blend of Texas grapes produced in the picturesque Texas Hill Country.    

            Use this list to begin your summer experimentation...with fifty shades of rosé.  They will not disappoint!   

A Classic--Ponzi Vineyards

As we wound our way up the gentle hillside, the overcast sky was barely letting the sun through.  However, the looming rain clouds provided one of the most beautiful views:  lush, green knolls in every direction we looked.

We passed houses and farmland, and then entered the sloping vineyards just before we glimpsed the gorgeous facility.  Modern, with a rustic feel, the wood and glass seemed to fit into the hill itself, part of the environment as if it had always been there.

But it hadn’t.  This was actually Ponzi Vineyards' new tasting and production facility.  Though these structures were only recently completed, it is the quintessential example of Willamette Valley wine—a family-owned winery that cares about the environment so much that it feels as if it is actually a part of the environment.

Dick and Nancy Ponzi were Willamette Valley winemaking pioneers.  They came to Oregon from California in 1970 looking for the perfect place to grow pinot noir.  Vines were planted and worked by the Ponzis, and as the children grew, they helped their parents work the vineyards.  The first commercial sale of wine was in 1976, and the entire Ponzi family has been involved on some level ever since.

Today, Dick and Nancy’s daughter Luisa is the winemaker, having learned the ropes from her parents and at school in Beaune, France twenty vintages ago. Luisa’s husband, fellow winemaker Eric Hamacher, and their children are active in the business and even live with views of the valley’s vineyards.

Luisa’s sister Anna is the president at Ponzi Vineyards.  She is the marketing force behind making Ponzi’s wonderful wines known around the world.  Anna’s family is also active in the winery life, especially her architect husband Brett, who helped design and build the new tasting room that opened in 2013.

Luisa and Anna’s brother Michael was active in the family business for nearly twenty years before he and his wife branched out to move to Italy and focus on another product:  olive oil.  

However, don’t believe for a minute that Dick and Nancy passed the winery to their children for a relaxed, retired life.  They are still active at the winery and have delved into other business ventures as well, including an early-Oregon craft brewery.  One of their accomplishments has been the Dundee Bistro and Bubble Bar, a restaurant with an outstanding food program featuring locally grown and raised products, known for excellent regional cuisine and an extensive wine list.    

The pioneer story makes this family-owned winery a classic, but so does the winemaking facility.  The winemaking was moved from the original, historic Ponzi vineyard site (which is still a working vineyard and winery) to the new facility—Collina del Sogno—in 2008, where 45,000 cases are made a year.  This is gravity-flow production; the grapes come in at the top level, move to the second level for fermentation, go to the third level for barrel aging, and end at the fourth level for bottling and storage.  Gravity does the work during these processes, meaning that the wine sees less oxygen and softer handling, leading to a high-quality wine. 

The new tasting room was opened in 2013 at the same site as Collina del Sogno.  The wood, concrete, and glass create a welcoming environment for tasting.  The windows let in clear views of the Willamette Valley while customers warm themselves near the indoor fireplace.  The Bocci ball court is just one place to spend time when the Oregon weather is beautiful.  The outdoor patios offer more amazing views of the greenery and vines below.  All of the winery offices are also located here, as well as a small museum area that chronicles the Ponzi Family’s story over the last forty-five years of making wine.    

However, all wine lovers know that the best wines start in the vineyards—Ponzi is no exception.  The vineyards are LIVE certified sustainable, “the world’s highest standard for sustainable viticulture.”  These environmentally-sound strategies can be seen almost everywhere:  from cover crops to compost, from organic pest control to eco-friendly glass.  Yet, the only other resource that is as important to the Ponzis as their grapes is their people, another vital part of a thriving winery.

The beautiful wines of this winery also show Ponzi Vineyards as the classic example of what the Willamette Valley can produce: beautiful pinot noirs and chardonnays. 

The 2014 Chardonnay, aged in stainless steel, is a spectacular example of chardonnay’s tendencies to be a chameleon.  In the steel tank, the light, mineral characteristics show before the fruit, and then the tropical fruit shows through to the finish—a more Chablis-like example.

The 2012 Avellana is the other side of the chardonnay coin.  This wine, twenty-five percent aged in oak for twenty months, is full of butter and pear, richness and cream.  The tropical fruit finish ends the quintessential example of a quality, buttery chardonnay, all without being overdone or overripe.

Pinot noirs are showcased here, too, like the 2013 Willamette Valley Pinot Noir, with the archetypal favorites of an Oregon pinot:  bright strawberry, deep cherry, crisp acid, and tasty eucalyptus.  From the bright color in the glass to the long finish, it is a perfect Willamette Valley pinot noir.

The Aurora Vineyard Pinot Noir uses fruit from the most prized vineyard site, situated at slightly higher elevations (300-600 feet) and planted in prestigious laurelwood soil.  This is a deeper, richer, darker wine with great fruit, but the wet earth makes this incredibly complex, while showing the characteristic signs of pinot delicacy.

Lest one think that Ponzi Vineyards is not a diverse producer, think again.  Indigenous Italian varieties are grown by the family, like arneis and dolcetto.  Rosés and sparklings are also made, and, recently, even a lightly-sparkling muscat was produced—a Moscato di Ponzi. 

Though Ponzi does make a select few unique wines from unique grapes, Ponzi Vineyards is the classic example of a Willamette Valley winery.  The Ponzis were early pioneers in the wine industry in the valley.  Still today, they produce excellent examples of the region’s top grapes.  The Oregon philosophy of caring for the environment is first and foremost for this winery, as is caring for the people who work there.  The gravity-flow winery is not specific to Oregon, but has become an Oregon mainstay.  The tasting room is new and modern, yet fits into its surroundings like it has been there for decades. 

Yes, Ponzi Vineyards is truly a classic—the perfect example of what a Willamette Valley winery can…and should…be.

More March Madness--Oregon Wineries

            It’s that time of year again.  The time when people go a little crazy.

On Sunday, sports fans everywhere waited with baited breath as they watched ESPN to fuel their craziness.  Instantly, they began planning their brackets, deciding who would win, who would lose, who would be the Cinderella team, and who would go all the way.

While everyone around me is going crazy with March Madness and the NCAA tourney that starts later this week, I am nursing a sickness, too.   My illness is just as serious, but comes in a different form. 

Hello, my name is Kara, and I have spring fever.  Bad.

How do I feed my fever?  No, I don’t look up win-loss records.  I don’t investigate shooting percentages.  Rebound records mean nothing to me.

My spring fever is only remedied by travel…wine travel.  

This time last year I was busy researching my upcoming summer stay in Sonoma by choosing the elite eightwineries of northern California that I wanted to visit.

The initial list was incredibly long, and whittling it down to just eight seemed almost impossible.  I made the final cuts after having quite strict criteria:  I would spread my choices between Napa and Sonoma, visit both historic and newer producers, choose producers who used diverse grapes, and taste only labels which I never had. 

My list was fantastic, and it led me on an incredible voyage of tasting.  I still hate to admit I never made it to all eight. Not because I didn’t try…but just because there were wineries everywhere, and others—many others—were added to my list. 

This year’s spring fever is being cured with a trip to Oregon, one of my favorite regions that just happens to produce large quantities of my favorite grape:  pinot noir.

My trip is much shorter, just a week.  The area to cover is large, over 150 miles long and 60 miles wide.  My criteria this year is a little more relaxed:  I am going to visit both north and south Willamette Valley and stop at early Oregon producers.  However, diversity in grapes is not a concern…bring on the pinot noir!  Finally, producers that I have tasted before are not only allowed, they are encouraged.  Winemakers whose wines I know well are actually top on my list.  New wines I have longed to try will be part of my eight, but that is not a must this time around.

Ponzi Vineyards—Ponzi qualifies as both an historic producer and one I have been dying to try.  Oregon pioneers Dick and Sandy moved to Oregon in the late 1960s and planted vines in 1970.  Wines can be tasted at the new facility which opened in 2008 or at the historic, original vineyard.  No matter, I look forward to stopping at this elite winery, though I haven’t decided which location I will be visiting just yet—I want to stop at both!

Domaine Drouhin—“French soul with Oregon soil” was the premise for the Drouhin family, long-time Burgundy winemakers, to search for the perfect New World location to make great pinot noir.  Several tasting options are available at the state-of-the-art gravity flow facility.  However, the comparative tasting between Drouhin wines from both Burgundy and Oregon seems an intriguing way to get to know this producer. 

 Penner-Ash—Lynn Penner-Ash studied at UC Davis and trained in Napa Valley, creating a very prestigious resume.  She then moved with her husband Ron to become the first female winemaker hired in Oregon.  In 1998, Lynn and Ron took the risk to open their own winery, Penner-Ash.  Though the focus here is on pinot noir, other wines are made from syrah, riesling, and viognier.  There is an absolutely beautiful view from the winery, but a hike through the vineyards is also a tasting option I may want to try. 

Sokol Blosser—Susan Sokol and Bill Blosser also graduated from a respected California university—Stanford—and then left the state to start fresh in Oregon in the 1960s.  By 1977, they were making their own wine from estate vineyards and raising a family on site.  Today their wines set the bar high for Oregon producers.  Farming is still in the Sokol-Blosser blood, shown in their demonstration vineyard for customers to see firsthand how vines grow each season.  Unique tasting options abound here with a vineyard hike and an ATV tour in the summer. 

Erath—Dick Erath started making wine in his garage in 1965.  From there he planted 23 varieties of grapes in the Dundee Hills.  Pinot flourished in Oregon, as did his eventual winery.  Erath and subsequent winemakers have created the quintessential Oregon pinot noir:  delicate, complex, fruit-forward, and earthy.  Though the winery is no longer family owned, it is definitely a must-taste experience, and even though many Erath wines are widely available, I am ecstatic to experience the winery and the pinot noirs not available to the masses. 

Firesteed Cellars—Firesteed is a much smaller and lesser-known winery than many on my list, but it shouldn’t be.  This is perhaps the one I am most excited about visiting.  I have developed quite a fun social-media relationship with Shellie Croft--wife of winemaker Bryan.  For over a year now I have watched the vineyard and cellar work at Firesteed, as well as gotten familiar with the Croft family.  Their riesling and pinot noir are available in my tiny state of Wyoming, but I can’t wait to meet the dedicated producers of these wonderful wines…and make a real-life social media connection. 

King Estate—The southern Willamette Valley also has wineries to visit, most notably, King Estate.  Just south of Eugene lies one of Oregon’s largest producers, as well as the largest organic vineyard…not just in the state, but in the world.  The on-site restaurant is known for using products from the surrounding area and organic produce from the estate gardens.  Of course, the wine is stellar and worth drinking in the beautiful tasting room with sweeping views of vines.  A reason, in and of itself, to go further south.

Sweet Cheeks Winery—To top off my eight wineries on my Oregon list is Sweet Cheeks Winery, another southern Willamette destination.  After growing grapes for other winemakers for over three decades, the producers decided to make some of their own wines.  Sweet Cheeks is known for its fantastic staff, beautiful views, and tasty wines.  Picnics are encouraged when the weather permits, and on Friday nights, live music adds to the entertainment provided here.  This also happens to be one of my Oregon friend's favorites, so I must see what she loves about Sweet Cheeks—other than the name that just makes me smile.

 

I have been bitten by the bug.  I have spring fever…and it’s a bad case.  While others cure what ails them with their basketball brackets and hours spent contemplating who will be successful in the NCAA tournament, I spend my time reading travel books and planning winery visits. 

To each his—or her—own, but travel is the one remedy for me, and this year, Oregon is the prescription.  I’ll take one trip and call the doctor in the morning.