Anne Amie Vineyards, Carlton Oregon

Wine Events this weekend: San Francisco, Anderson Valley and Minnesota!

 We are excited to be a part of THREE great wine events this weekend. 

Saturday, February 20th - 5th Annual International Alsace Varietals Festival, Anderson Valley California

If you’re in and around Anderson Valley, CA this weekend, Thomas and I will be pouring our pinot gris, riesling, muller-thurgau and pinot noir at the Grand Tasting at the Mendocino County Fairgrounds in Boonville.  Stop by and say hello and enjoy ours and other Alsace-style wines from around the world, plus food and music.

Tickets are $65 and are still available online at Anderson Valley Winegrowers Association.

 

Saturday, February 20th - The San Francisco Chronicle Wine Competition Public Tasting, San Francisco, California

This incredible tasting showcases gold medal wines from over 4,800 entries of over 1,200 wineries throughout the United States.   Our 2006 Winemaker’s Selection Pinot Noir was given the gold so it will be featured!  The tasting is held at the Fort Mason Center and is much more than just a wine tasting – it’s a wine and food experience. Featured at this event will be a sampling of hand crafted creations from premier artisan food purveyors, which will include award winning artisan breads, savory meats, exotic oils, hand crafted cheeses, delicious desserts, sumptuous sauces, and other exquisite delicacies. Enjoy!

Tickets are $60 in advance or $80 at the door.  To purchase, click here. 

February 18-21 – Minnesota Monthly Food & Wine Experience, Minneapolis, Minnesota

Last but definitely not least we are very excited to be part of the Minnesota Monthly Food & Wine Experience.  We are new to Minnesota so go out and taste the new kid on the block!  Anne Amie’s Winemaker’s Selection Pinot Noir will be featured at the reserve tasting on Saturday at the Convention Center.  Enjoy a weekend of lip smacking, glass clinking, celebrity watching, swishing, swirling, mouthwatering events! You won’t want to miss the fine wines, specialty beers and delicious gourmet food sampling! Increase your food and wine IQ from some of the country’s best chefs, authors and wine professionals. Plus, shop for the latest culinary products, gadgets and more! All tickets are limited, so put your snow shovel aside and warm up your taste buds at the most delicious weekend of the year.

For more information or to purchase tickets, click here.

Thanks to our distributor partners and loyal customers for all of the support!

Cheers,

Kim

 

Willamette Valley Wineries Block Party in Seattle

 

Join Viticulturist Jason Tosch and I along with 50 other Oregon wineries in Seattle on March 11th for an evening of Willamette Valley wines. 

Enjoy this unique opportunity to taste the wines of 50+ Oregon wineries, both large and small, at Willamette Valley Wineries first tasting in Seattle. Meet the faces behind the wine in a casual and personal setting. Winery owners and winemakers will showcase their current releases including Pinot Noir, Pinot Gris, Chardonnay, Riesling and other cool-climate varietals. Wines will be complemented by delicious Pinot-friendly appetizers featuring regionally sourced ingredients from sustainably focused producers.

Join the Block Party! Get to know the Willamette Valley’s special wines and enjoy a taste of our unique place.

Date: Thursday, March 11, 2010
5:30 – 8:30pm
Location: Sodo Park by Herban Feast
3200 1st Avenue South, Seattle WA (one mile south of Safeco Field)
Tickets: $45* (before March 1st)
              $55* after March 1st and at Door
*plus handling fee

To purchase tickets visit the Willamette Valley Wineries Association website or click here.

Note: Tickets will be mailed starting February 1. Tickets are non-refundable after February 14, 2010. Tickets are limited and the event can sell out. Advance purchase is highly recommended. This event involves the tasting of alcoholic beverages. Ticketholders must be 21 years of age or older.
If you have any issues purchasing tickets online or have questions, please call 503-297-2962 or email us at [email protected].

Trade Tasting: Trade tasting will take place from 2-5pm on March 11. Click here for more information and to reserve a space (advance reservations required).

Look out, Avatar!

There’s a new starlet on the scene and her name is Anne Amie!  Click on Jason’s movie star mug in the photo above to view the newest, most talked about blockbuster movie of the season.  See your favorite Anne Amie characters in action doing what they do best- making wine!

I have put together a little “movie” from my cell phone pictures I snapped this past harvest.  If something caught my eye, it was captured on film.  Yes, it is rough, and the pictures are a bit fuzzy, but think of it as film noir- Pinot noir that is!

Enjoy,

Thomas

 

 

 

Technorati Tags: Anne Amie Vineyards,Harvest 2009,Willamette Valley,Pinot noir,Herb Quady,Alloro Vineyards,Pinot gris,Riesling,Viognier,Chehalem Mountain,Yamhill-Carlton

Finding Anne Amie wines in your hometown

 

 

You’ve made the trek to Oregon.  You discovered Anne Amie.  You’re in love.  Now you’re home and you want more.

We understand.

We are happy to announce that you can now find our classic label Anne Amie and Cuvee A wines in 29 states (yellow) with 7 more (green) to be added in 2010!

While we’re able to ship to many states, compliance is still an issue and because we’re a small winery, our wines can be hard to find.  Ask for them at your favorite retailer or restaurant and if you’re still having trouble, call us at 503-864-2991 or [email protected] and we’ll help make your dreams of sipping Anne Amie Pinot noir in your very own home a reality.

Happy New Year!

 

Anne Amie Harvest - Live Web Cam

Click on the photo to see 'Live' footage from our crush pad camera. 

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Rosé - Not just for summer anymore

Katherine Cole of the Oregonian wrote a great article last week about Oregon rosé.  Her point being that rosé isn't just for summer sipping anymore.  Pinot Noir rosé is a great accompaniment to fresh fall cuisine, it's just as food friendly as it's big brother pinot noir and usually half the price. 

If you're a local or visiting Portland, here are some sweet spots to sit and savor some good Oregon bounty paired with good Oregon pinot noir rosé...

Many of our favorite local restaurants and wine shops have been supportive of our 2007 Cuvée A Pinot Noir rosé all year long.  Sip it by the glass with one of chef Troy MacLarty's amazing creations at Lovely Hula Hands on North Mississippi or with one of the organic and delicious vegetarian selections at The Farm Café off Burnside at SE 7th.  Try it at Amalie Roberts sweet little wine bar Kir on NE 7th with her famous smoked trout.  Amalie is a true lover of rosé offering up to 10 by the glass at times!  You can also find it by the glass or by the bottle at the french bistro Sel Gris.  Located in Ladd's Addition on Hawthorne, this restaurant has amazing dishes best enjoyed sitting at the bar counter where you can watch chef Daniel Mondok working his magic in the kitchen.

Another place to enjoy our rosé on premise is at Lupa on Mississippi, one of my favorite wine bars owned by one of my favorite wine girls.  Lupa is small and intimate and a perfect place to cozy up on the fall nights ahead.  And p.s. Amanda bakes and sells her own cookies too.  yum. 

Thanks to our Henry Wine Group rep Bonnie Crocker for sharing her love of our rosé with these accounts!

Enjoy,

Kim

Travelogue New York: Planes, Subways, Trains & Automobiles - Part I

Last month I traveled to New York to spend time with our distributor Domaine Select Wine Estates.  Day one was my first NY City "work with" with Mauro who visits accounts all over Manhattan.  These wine reps are incredible - after one day of walking miles and miles and riding the subway many times, I was beat!   You can see Mauro pictured below with his rolling case full of wine (which p.s. he has to carry up and down subway stairs!)

Mauro and I visited a number of retail shops throughout the day including Pasanella and Son owned by a local designer Marco Pasanella.  Wines are arranged by the foods they pair with and the shop is vintage cool.  

We stopped for lunch at the historic Bridge Cafe located right beside and almost under the Brooklyn Bridge.  This gem is hidden down on the old cobblestone streets of the financial district - was built in 1794 and is the oldest drinking establishment in NYC.  They serve both our pinot noir and Amrita by the glass.  The food was incredible.  One taste of the roasted autumn squash bisque with ingredients so fresh I felt like I was back in Portland.  

My favorite find while in NYC was the very hip new wine shop and bar Clo, recently opened by sommelier Andrew Bradbury (formerly of Las Vegas' Aureole) in the Time Warner Building.  Clo sells wine by the pour in an enomatic system and has an incredible digital catalogue (pictured below) that beams down on the bar counter giving consumers instant information at their fingertips.  I visited the bar initially to see hand blown glass decanters that my boyfriend created for Clo (glass cases surround the bar showcasing awesome glassware - lucky for us they're all available for purchase).  Imagine my excitement when I saw Anne Amie's Deux Vert Vineyard Pinot Noir alongside the other great wines! 

Day 1 was a great experience getting to meet like minded wine enthusiasts and seeing much of the great city of New York in the process.  Exhausting but worth it - thanks Mauro!

Stay tuned for New York Day 2 and my visit to the land of Bill & Hillary Clinton and the Headless Horseman of Sleepy Hollow...Westchester.

Whidbey Island Washington

I have a very bad habit of taking photos while I'm driving.  It's terribly easy to get carried away with the pacific northwest sunsets.  The photo above is one I took on my way to Whidbey Island, Washington a few weeks back when I was headed up for an in- store tasting with Cole from our WA distributor, Cascade Trade. 

Whidbey Island is simply gorgeous.  The south island and more specifically Langley is a sweet little town full of artists, amazing shops and restaurants and you can feel the sense of community the moment you get off the ferry.  Cole and I started our Saturday morning at Useless Bay Coffee Company where we sat out in the sunshine and enjoyed coffee and live music before heading to the tasting. The in store tasting was at Vino Amore a great little wine shop owned by husband and wife team Brian and Gail pictured behind the bar below (who are not only entrepreneurs but great local actors as well!). 

After our day of tasting we headed to the wonderful Prima Bistro where we were joined by Chef Sieb Jurriaans and Star Store owner Gene Felton.  I didn't get to spend nearly enough time there but thankfully it's very close so I'll be back.  For all of you looking for a peaceful little getaway, Whidbey's the place - and drink some Anne Amie wine while you're there!

Thanks to Cole, Brian & Gail and Chef Sieb for a fantastic day on Whidbey!

P.S. Congratulations to Cole (pictured below on our ferry ride back to the mainland) and his wife on the arrival of their first child - Camile Rose Ratliff a couple weeks ago!

Labor Day Wine Deal and Lunching on Leftovers

Thomas glided into the kitchen lead by his nose, and eyes growing wider with each advancing step asked, “What are you making?”

“My favorite,” I replied, “leftover surprise.”

“I don’t really have a recipe, I was just going to see what I could come up with,” was my response to his eagerly growing interest in lunch. 

“Shall I see what I can forage from the garden?” Thomas asked, and was already out through the door before I could respond. 

30 minutes, a sunburst squash, one handful of fresh savory and thyme, two zucchini, and some leftover veggie stock later, and we had ourselves a nice end-of-summer stew close to completed. As we rummaged around the kitchen looking for that one missing ingredient that would transform our stew into something special, we found ourselves involved in a conversation that I frequently try to incite when Thomas is around. “What can I learn today about winemaking that I don’t know yet?”

The conversation turned towards the dark and oenologically-sinister when Thomas began describing how wines develop symptoms of reduction; those unpleasant rubbery, often overwhelming, odors that mask everything else in the wine.

“Reduction, great idea!”

My exclamation was met with a glare from Thomas implying that no good can possibly come from even a little bit of reduction.

In the cellar it will ruin the final product. In the kitchen, however, reduction is a whole different story. I quickly began ladling the sumptuous but thin stock into a shallow pan, and turned the heat up to high. 

“This is going to make a great sauce!”   

It took about 10 minutes to get the stock to reduce down to a nice thick sauce. All the flavors condensed into a rich, sweet, tangy, deep flavored red-brown sauce. We spooned the stewed veggies into bowls, crumbled some Willamette Valley Cheese Co. Fontina all over, and then spooned the hot reduction sauce over it all to melt the cheese. A little fresh basil from the garden to finish it all off and there was only one thing left to decide. Which one of our wines were we going to taste with this perfect summer dish? 

Thomas reached for the ’07 Rosé and I grabbed some ‘07 Amrita and we washed our lunches down sip by sip. For a casual lunch made of leftovers and garden-fresh veggies, this was an incredibly satisfying lunch. It also became very clear that we could have served any of our white wines with this summery stew. Our ‘07 Müller Thurgau and ‘07 Pinot Gris were equally great matches, each enhancing the dish in their own way. 

The crisp, clean, summer wines made such a simple meal into something special. It was easy and fun to throw everything together, and was a good reminder of why I like working here.

We can’t share our lunch with everyone but we can make it easier to see how great these wines are with your own summer fare. From now through Labor Day we will be selling 4 packs of Pinot Gris, Amrita, Müller Thurgau, and our Pinot Noir Rosé for just $50.

 

The forecast calls for warm weather this Labor Day Weekend, and we have chilled wines ready for you, just bring your picnic and we’ll see you in the tasting room or out on the terrace.

                                             

Cheers,

Ksandek Podbielski
Director of Hospitality.

The Splendid Table

 

The Splendid Table is a one-hour program on American Public Media that celebrates culinary, culture, and lifestyle giving public radio listeners a fresh take on their love of food and drink.  A few weeks ago host Lynne Rossetto Kasper (pictured left), producer Sally Swift and a group of excited foodies came to tour the Willamette Valley and enjoy the bounty of our region. 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

The tour kicked off with a wine tasting on the roof of the Ecotrust building in Portland on one of the hottest days of the summer (yesterday and today being the hottest). 

With the Oregon Wine Board (OWB) as their guide, the guests sampled wines from A to Z/Rex Hill, Anne Amie, Brick House, Broadley Vineyards, Raptor Ridge and Soter Vineyards.

Above Thomas and I try to to keep stay cool while pouring our 2007 Cuvée A Amrita, 2007 Cuvée A Rosé and 2005 Willamette Valley Pinot Noir.  Pictured below is Thomas alongside the lovely and talented Stephany Boettner of OWB.