EARLY BIRDS GET THE (WINE) WORM…

The 10^th Annual World of Wine Festival will be August 22-25^th this year. A tip for all of you planning on attending- Tickets are $75, if you are a wine club member, check with your winery and see if you can get early insider tickets for $65.

For those of you who don’t know, WOW is a celebration and competition of local wines. Over 60 wineries participate; the only stipulation is the wines entered must be made from southern Oregon grapes. This means we get winemakers from all over the region involved, as well as, our local favorites.

I worked this event for a number of years as a server and arranging auction item donations and I always had a great time. When I worked the event, it was held at Del Rio Vineyards. Now they have moved to Jacksonville, where they have been able to grow the event from 1 day to a 4 day event, offering more opportunity to truly discover Southern Oregon Wines.

This is a terrific way to experience the fabulous wines that Southern Oregon has to offer. In addition to the wines, you also get a souvenir wine glass and chance to sample the area’s culinary delights- pizza, beef, jerky, cheese and chocolates in particular. There is a silent auction, raffle and wine wheel for added fun. I believe the entry fee is worth every cent.

We enjoy this event so much we have a framed collection of WOW posters hanging in our living room to commemorate the great times we have spent there.

I highly encourage you to consider the Grand Tasting Event, at the very least, on Aug. 25^th. I don’t think you will be disappointed.

http://www.worldofwinefestival.com/home

https://www.facebook.com/WorldofWineFestival

Madrone Mountain Winery

Post Script...

How could I be so remiss.  I had found out that Madrone Mountain has closed up shop in Central Point and they have landed at Red Lily.  Red Lily will be tasting and selling the tasty Madrone Mountain Dessert wines.  In addition Madrone Mountain will be having their wine club releases in the barn at Red Lily.

I had a chance to speak with Don during their first wine club release at Red Lily over a few samples. He seemed genuinely  happy with the arrangement. It gives him a popular outlet close to home and it rounds out and compliments the Red Lily offering.  

Don & Bret make wonderful artisanal dessert wine. Just don't call them ports!  They may have some Iberain vines, but they are from the Applegate, not from Portugal.  (Maybe Apports?) It is technically illegal to call a fortified wine not from Portugal a Port. Much like the rules governing Champagne. In addition the Madrone Mountain wines are not as heavy, sweet or having a high alcohol content as tradition ports. Rather they are lighter with a high acidity, smooth balance and better suited to pairing with food.

Don was sampling during their wine club release and I had a chance to taste the new  2009 Starthistle Cuvée, a brilliantly clean Reisling with just the right balance of sweet and dry. This is great little food wine. Perfect for a savory appetizer or sturdy German fare.  I do enjoy Madrone Mountain's wine and look forward to sampling more upon our next trip to Red Lily.

Madrone Mountain Website

Madrone Mountain Facebook Page

RED LILY

Jill and I went with some friends to Red Lily last weekend and had our first opportunity to check out the Red Lily “Beach”.

We stopped in Red Lily’s gorgeous Tasting Room for a quick flight to decide what bottle to take down to the seating along the river.  We decided on the Ghost Lily Viognier and the Red Blanket Tempranillo. 

The Red Blanket is the little sister to Red Lily’s signature wine, The Red Lily Tempranillo.  The Red Lily is a big, bold, chewy wine and the Red Blanket is full-bodied, yet more approachable. The Red Lily needs time and or aeration, the Red Blanket- pour and enjoy!

Red Lily is named for a rare lily, Bolander Lily, found in the Siskiyou Mountains and for their bold and daring daughter, Lily!

The Red Blanket moniker comes from an old mining legend here in Southern Oregon. Legend has it that a prospector named Ed Schieffelin, who made a fortune in Arizona by discovering the Tombstone Lode, found a huge gold strike on Days Creek and marked it with a red blanket.  But, Ed passed before he could file a claim.  Some say it existed, some say no; there was some rich ore samples in his cabin when they found him, but only Ed knows if he really struck it rich again. So, if you are ever in the Rogue River area up by Days Creek, keep your eyes peeled for an old tattered shred of red blanket.

So, after we got our wine, we moseyed on down to the “beach”, a sandy stretch on the Applegate River set up for wine tasting and picnicking.  We pulled out our pic-a-nik basket, poured some wine and had a thoroughly enjoyable afternoon.

Rachael and her staff have a beautiful place with a fun, hearty, warm atmosphere with delicious wine and a magnificent setting.  They have not missed a thing in designing, building and running this fabulous tasting room and winery. It is one of my favorite Wineries.

Red Lily Facebook

Red Lily Website