Anne Amie Vineyards, Carlton Oregon

Recipe for Success: San Francisco

A selection of amazing Oregon wine from Adelsheim, Elk Cove, Willamette Valley and Anne Amie Vineyards:

CHECK.

The incredible Michelin rated Bushi-Tei restaurant in San Francisco with a creative chef who knows how to pair wine and food:

CHECK.

An esteemed group of journalists who decided to take a chance on us:

CHECK.

On Thursday, April 24^th I had the privilege of sharing the company of three incredible wineries at an intimate Oregon tasting for the media in San Francisco.  Leah Jorgensen from Adelsheim Vineyards in Newberg, Shirley Brooks from Elk Cove Vineyards in Gaston and Meg Hursh from Willamette Valley Vineyards in Turner joined me in Japantown at Bushi-Tei Restaurant where we held a tasting for select members of the media.  Among our guests were Harvey Steinman, Lynne Bennett, Tim Teichgraeber, Ben Narasin, Michael Shapiro, Justin Linkner, Kaveish Sewalia, Raul Gallyot, Amy Sherman, Danny Ronen and photographer Bob Holmes.

The tasting consisted of five flights (see menu below) and five wines from each winery paired with five courses.  The purpose of this tasting was to bring the wines of Oregon to California and the media in particular.  We know how hard it is for people to gather for a tasting like this in their own state or city let alone get up to Oregon.  Chef Waka is so talented and showcased our wines beautifully showing how Oregon wines are diverse enough to be paired with many types of cuisine.

 

Oregon Wine Tasting & Food Pairing

Bushi-Tei Restaurant

 

FIRST FLIGHT:

Anne Amie Vineyards 2007 Pinot Gris

Willamette Valley Vineyards 2007 Pinot Gris

Adelsheim Vineyard 2006 Willamette Valley Pinot Gris

Elk Cove Vineyards 2007 Pinot Gris

 

Jamon Serrano wrapped white asparagus, green apple Parmesan dust,

upland cress olave extra virgin olive oil

 

SECOND FLIGHT:

Elk Cove Vineyards 2007 Pinot Noir Rosé

Anne Amie Vineyards 2007 Cuveé A Müller Thurgau

Adelsheim Vineyard 2006 “CH” Chardonnay

Willamette Valley Vineyards 2006 Estate Chardonnay

 

White sesame blanc mange, oyster, scallop, black tobiko,

mizuna, raspberry-ume coulis, vanilla bean oil

 

THIRD FLIGHT:

Adelsheim Vineyard 2006 Auxerrois

Anne Amie Vineyards 2007 Estate Riesling

Elk Cove Vineyards 2006 Riesling Estate

Willamette Valley Vineyards 2007 Riesling

 

Scottish halibut crepinette, coco blanc bean,

spring vegetables, fennel nage, kinome oil

 

FOURTH FLIGHT:

Anne Amie Vineyards 2006 Cuvée A Pinot Noir

Adelsheim Vineyard 2006 Willamette Valley Pinot Noir

Willamette Valley Vineyards 2006 Estate Pinot Noir

Elk Cove Vineyards 2006 Pinot Noir Willamette Valley

 

Muscovy duck breast, mushroom melange, fingerling potato, dried cherry sauce

 

FIFTH FLIGHT:

Anne Amie Vineyards 2006 Winemaker’s Selection Pinot Noir

Adelsheim Vineyard 2006 Elizabeth’s Reserve Pinot Noir

Elk Cove Vineyards 2006 Pinot Noir Five Mountain

Willamette Valley Vineyards 2006 Tualatin Pinot Noir

 

Espresso crusted Sika venison loin, kabocha squash,

wild berry chutney, coco mas disk

Winemaker Thomas Houseman’s 2007 whites, his first vintage with Anne Amie, showed very well.  The Pinot Gris, Müller Thurgau and Riesling worked beautifully with Chef Waka’s creations.  Our 2006 Pinot Noir (Cuvée A & the not yet released Winemaker’s Selection) were enhanced by the duck and espresso encrusted Japanese venison – we were all impressed at the time and thoughtfulness behind each pairing.

Special thanks to the media for taking time out of their day to attend.  Thanks to Tak, Chef Waka and the incredible staff at Bushi-Tei, Tim Teichgraeber for all your advice (and for getting Shirley to the Detroit Red Wings playoff game) and for opening your beautiful home to us. Thanks to Stephany and Mariko from the Oregon Wine Board for being there for us always.  We feel very lucky to be part of an industry in an area where everyone is so supportive. 

Cheers,

Kim

End of Harvest Party

Needless to say, everyone was ready to celebrate as harvest came to a close. We rented out 3rd Street Pizza in McMinnville, which also doubles as a movie theatre. After many large pizzas, pitches of beer and bottles of vino we chuckled through our movie pick for the evening, the British indie comedy Kinky Boots. A good time was had by all.

Digging it: Last Tank 07

Last Wednesday was momentous.  It marked the final day of pressing, and therefore an unofficial end for the harvest of 2007.  It was also a window to the past.  Five weeks ago we harvested the last of our pinot noir, from the Zena vineyard in the Eola Hills.  The fruit came in impeccably, and I opted for a large proportion of whole cluster fruit in the fermenter and a “native” fermentation.  Five weeks later we have what I consider to be the finest wine we have produced this year.  An incredibly complex wine with bountiful layers of silky tannins matched with wild game notes has emerged from the press: a perfect end to a tough vintage.  While most winemakers I have spoken with about our extended time on skins this year have shaken their heads incredulously, I have found that our patience has led to extraordinarily deep, graceful wines.  Although it is now December and we are just putting the last of our pinot noir to bed, I am happy.  Maybe not as happy as if I was on a beach somewhere in the sun, but never-the-less happy.  However, this post is not an epitaph for my first vintage at Anne Amie as these wines still have a long way to go before they are in the bottle and, despite how pleased I am about the wines we have crafted this year, I have already started formulating plans for 2008.  We'll keep you updated on the progress of these wines and our plans for the future.

Thomas

Pictured above: Todd "digs out" the last tank of 2007 pinot noir into the press.

Harvest Slideshow

The cool rainy weather that is the Oregon winter has now settled in and one-by-one another fermenter of pinot noir is drained and pressed. The whirlwind of harvest has been replaced by an almost normal pace. Now that we've caught our breath we've had a chance to look back over the harvest and assemble a photo slideshow running from the first to the last bin of 2007 grapes. You can watch and download that slideshow by following this link:

http://craigcamp.phanfare.com/slideshow.aspx?username=craigcamp&album_id=468651

Cellar to Cellar

There is no surer sign that the intensity of harvest is winding down than when cellar crews finally get a moment to go visit other cellars. One of the great things about making wine in Oregon is the camaraderie shared