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| Northwest Wine Fan Recent Adventures |
| Northwest Wine Fan visits Laura Volkman Vineyards in Newberg and tasting panel members head to Italy (again!) to celebrate Randy's 50th birthday! We hope you enjoy the photos... |
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| The Return Pages: |
| Talk To The Cellarmaster: |
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| Tim Sinniger |
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| Run your mouse over the pictures for a description |
| One of the up and coming wineries in the Willamette Valley is Laura Volkman Vineyards. Northwest Wine Fan recently visited Laura on a rainy Saturday afternoon at her facility in Newberg. She studied oenology at the Northwest Viticulture Center in Salem and went on to intern with Mike Etzel at Beaux Freres during the 2001 and 2002 crush. But Laura's dream of 20 years was to have her own vineyard and that dream finally came true when they bought a small farm in Yamhill County. Along with her husband, Jim and her children, Jacob and Rachel, the vineyard is truly a family effort. And by the way, the label depicting a woman with a straw hat strolling through the vineyard is Laura. The day we met with her she was wearing her "signature" hat. Laura Volkman Vineyards is truly a boutique winery with their 2006 production totaling only 360 cases. Her current offerings (all from the 2006 vintage) are "Bella" Chardonnay ($25, 60 cases), and two Pinot Noirs, "Jacob" ($42, 200 cases) and "Rachel" ($38, 100 cases). Laura's 2006 Rachel Pinot Noir was just highlighted in the May 15th issue of Wine Spectator and received a rating of 91 points. They say "Smooth and rich, with a sense of delicacy to the ripe blackberry and cherry flavors, weaving spicy toasty notes through the finish as it sails on and on. Drink now to 2013." These fine wines are available from Northwest Wine Fan. Contact us at 541-948-4350 or by email at [email protected] |
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| Off to Italy! Tasting panel members and friends converged on Tuscany and points beyond to celebrate Randy's 50th birthday! |
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| Meanwhile back at the Villa! Lance and Randy came up with this lovely villa, the Borgo al Cerro in the heart of Tuscany near Sienna for the group. |
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| A Visit To Rocca delle Macie One of the many outings the group went on was to Rocca delle Macie in the Chianti Classico region. Founded in 1973, Rocca delle Macie started with just 5 acres of planted vines. They now have six estates with over 500 acres in production. They make several wines including a Chianti Classico, Chianti Reserva and several other DOGC and IGT wines. They also make Vin Santo, Grappa and an olive oil. A good time was had by all and Chip even brought back some Vin Santo. Imagine Chip liking dessert wines! |
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| Chianti is an Italian wine producing region between Florence and Sienna in central Tuscany. The best wine comes from Chianti Classico in the central part of the area. A black cock on the neck brand of a bottle of Chianti guarantees a premier wine made in a tradition dating back centuries. The 'gallo nero' or black cockerel is the trademark of the Consorzio Vino Chianti Classico and appears on the neck label of members wines. The gallo nero isn't on every Chianti, only those from the premier central region. |
| Specific regulations apply to the Chianti Classico appellation to differentiate it from the Chianti. Most notably is the different minimum percentage of Sangiovese (the main grape of the Chianti region). In Chianti they must use at least 75% Sangiovese while in Chianti Classico that amount rises to 80% minimum. Additionally, in Chianti Classico there are very specific rules that must be followed as to production, storage, specific color, aroma and flavor the wine must meet. |
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| Parting Shots |
| To our friend...Happy Birthday Randy! |