Willamette Valley Vineyards Estate Rosé (2016) Wine Review

Salmon-Safe Certified. While reading the label of this week’s Wine Wednesday feature, the 2016 Willamette Valley Vineyards Estate Rosé, I noticed that this wine is Salmon-Safe Certified.  I don’t believe I’ve seen that before so it caused me to do a little research. No, this doesn’t mean that the wine is safe to drink with salmon, though it most certainly would be. It refers to ecologically sustainable viticulture.  With winegrowers, the certification focuses on reducing runoff from hillside vineyards and enhancement of native biodiversity on vineyard sites. I also learned that nearly half of the wine grape acreage in Oregon’s Willamette Valley is Salmon-Safe Certified.

I recently visited Willamette Valley Vineyards while visiting family in Oregon. The location and facility are quite impressive and the view from the entrance, breathtaking.

This is one of the wines we tasted and decided to bring home with us. I always like it when I taste a wine at the winery and then when I get home and try it again, it’s as good as I remembered it being.  Sometimes, especially in cases like this, where the setting and ambience contribute greatly to the experience, I worry whether the wine will hold up without it. FYI, it most certainly does.

A rosé made from Pinot Noir, it is left with skin contact for 48 hours resulting in the medium pink color.  On the nose, slightly floral, hints of citrus and a pleasant minerality. Having been fermented in stainless, it is lively on the tongue with strawberry and honey notes on the palate.

This is a great summer picnic wine, quite versatile for pairing with lighter fare. We enjoyed it with Oven-Roasted Cornish Game Hens and Sage and Garlic Infused Whipped Potatoes. It occurred to me that this could be my Thanksgiving 2017 wine. As I think about it, in all sincerity, it would also be perfect with my Salmon Cucumber Canapés.

I also noticed on the label that if you bring the bottle back to the winery, they’ll give you a 10 cent refund.  Perfect, I was looking for an excuse to go back. Click the links below for recipe paring suggestions.

Salmon Cucumber Canapés

Sage and Garlic Infused Whipped Potatoes

Kitchen Sink Reserve White Table Wine Review

Everything but the kitchen sink! This idiom came to mind as I was tasting this week’s Wine Wednesday feature, Adler Fels, Kitchen Sink Reserve White Table Wine.  I have to admit, the label lured me.  With a name like Kitchen Sink, I knew it had to be a blend and I always enjoy a blend - trying to figure out what each varietal is bringing to the table, or in this case the sink.

Adler Fels sources their grapes from top producers all across California - maybe that's where the "reserve" comes into play. The varietals and the percentages used for this wine are a well-kept secret. This happens to be an NV or non- vintage wine, which could be part of the secret - a blend of different vintages.  On the nose, tropical fruit and faint floral and vegetal notes. On the palate, pear and citrus with a somewhat herbaceous, almost medicinal ( but not necessarily in a bad way) finish. 

What varietals are in this blend? Well, it’s more like, what varietals aren’t. I found this wine to be more of a hodge podge than a blend.  There was too much going on all at once.  The wine didn’t unfold or evolve. It seemed as though the winemaker was trying to be everything to everybody, but that's sort of what the name implies.

We paired this with Spicy Chicken Lettuce Wraps. Try also with Shrimp Po' Boys.  Click the links below to print or save the recipes.

Spicy Chicken Lettuce Wraps

Shrimp Po' Boy