Two Tastings this Week!

Teutonic Wine Company Tasting
with special guest Owner/Winemaker Barnaby Tuttle

Wednesday, May 3rd
5:30 - 7:00

We've got a great mid-week tasting for you this Wednesday as we welcome Barnaby Tuttle, the owner and winemaker of Teutonic Wine Company out of Oregon.  Their wine style is all cool climate, all the time. Teutonic Wine Company is a small-production winery that strives to make the finest German-style wines in Oregon. The climate in Germany's Mosel region, famed for producing some of the worlds finest Rieslings, is ideal because of its cooler growing climate which allows the fruit to hang longer on the vines without over ripening. A longer hang time gives the fruit more time to pull up complex flavors from the soil. Therefore, the vineyard sites where Teutonic sources its fruit in Oregon are located in cooler areas and at higher elevations. They only work with dry-farmed vineyards (non-irrigated farms) so that the roots grow deep into the earth, drilling through many layers of soil strata, absorbing the various mineral components from the terroir.
This generally means aromatic, high toned wines with low alcohol, vibrant acidity, and not infrequently a bit of residual sugar, all of which make them mouth-wateringly delicious and great food companions. Barnaby's new releases are some of his most fun, playful, and distinctive yet, as he appears to be some kind of Germanic blood hound finding off the radar vineyards that make wines completely outside of the mainstream of the Willamette Valley. But don't worry about it or over think it. The main thing here is the wines are yummy and will make your meal a happy one whether you have a fatty pork dish, an epic vegetarian salad, or fiery Thai food.  These are truly unique wines, from a unique individual!

Pinot Gris
Crow Valley Vineyard, Willamette Valley, 2015

"Sprockets" White Blend
Scheurebe, Huxelrebe, & Pinot Noir
High Pass Vineyard, Willamette Valley, 2016

"Recorded in Doubly" Muscat
Wasson Vineyard, Willamette Valley, 2016

"Bergspitze" Pinot Noir
Laurel Vineyard, Chehalem Mountains, 2015

"Bergspitze - Whole Cluster" Pinot Noir
Laurel Vineyard, Chehalem Mountains, 2015

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Rhone Wines of Maison Brotte

Saturday, May 6th
4:30 - 7:00

For our weekly Saturday tasting this week we will taste through selections from one of our favorite producers from France's Rhone Valley.  Maison Brotte has specialized in Rhone Valley wines for four generations, dating back to the early 1900s.  While best known for their Chateauneuf-du-Pape, they produce wine from nearly all of the Southern Rhone appellations, and many of the Northern Rhone as well.  We will focus on their great everyday Cotes du Rhone for this tasting, and we will sample the Blanc, Rouge and Rosé.  We will also taste a second rosé, which is a wonderful Tavel that Brotte produces.  Tavel was a favorite drink of Louis XIV, and was refered to by French Author Balzac as the 'King of Rosé". The Village of Tavel is situated on the right side of the Rhône River, close to Avignon and Châteauneuf-du-Pape. This is the oldest rosé appellation in France and only rosé wines are allowed to be produced.  To finish off, we will pop up to the Northern Rhone, and taste their Saint-Joseph.  Saint-Joseph is an appellation to the North of Lyon and East of Hermitage, and like other Northern Rhone reds the focus here is pure, intense Syrah.  This should make for a pretty tasty Saturday!

Esprit Barville Blanc
Grenache Blanc, Clairette, Viognier
Cotes du Rhone, 2015

Esprit Barville Rosé
Grenache, Syrah
Cotes du Rhone, 2016

Les Églantiers
Grenache, Syrah
Tavel, 2016

Esprit Barville Rouge
Grenache, Syrah
Cotes du Rhone, 2014

Marandy
Syrah
Saint-Joseph, 2013