Ashland Wine Cellar "Parte Seconda"

Back on 4/4/12, I wrote a blog about the Ashland Wine Cellar (AWC) being sold by long-time proprietor, Lorn Razzano. Since I had left the wine sales biz and live in Medford, I have not had the chance to revisit the AWC until recently. While I was at Cowhorn, I had the opportunity to visit the Cellar and work with Wine Steward Extraordinaire, Cheryl Garvey.  During this time, I also met Joy Light and owners Brian & Lisa Dunagan. Brian and Lisa have put together a wonderful team and have managed to keep the spirit of the Cellar, stocking unique, hard to find wines, still offering a great cigar selection, and strongly supporting the Southern Oregon wine scene, while updating and cleaning the old girl up. 

I recently received a Facebook event invite from Brian to attend a tasting. Each Thursday, the AWC hosts a "Sip & Swirl" at the store featuring different producers and distributors. Intrigued, I accepted the invitation and despite a serious downpour, I drove over to Ashland to sample and visit.  An old acquaintance, John Wren, was  pouring for Lemma Distribution and he had five wines to present, all unique and very tasty. Without getting into all of the tasting notes, I will call attention to one in particular, the 2013 Iris Vineyards Pinot gris (90 Points from Wine Enthusiast) from the Willamette Valley. It is  a crisp, medium-bodied gris with bright acidity, nice aromatics, and balanced fruit. I knew my wife, Jill, would love it and it did not disappoint. (NOTE: we will mark this for our next trip to Eugene)

During the tasting I had the chance to chat with staff member, Joy Light, who does custom hand-painted silks. I remarked how the place looked and even though I missed Lorn, they still had retained the inviting, hospitable feeling.  She told me that people still come in looking for Lorn for advice or to simply sit and shoot the breeze, as Lorn was want to do. She said that she takes messages for Lorn and gives them to him during his occasional visit to the Cellar. That is amazing and highlights the great customer service approach they all share.

I also had a chance to speak with owner Brian and catch up. I told him I loved how the place is doing and was happy that it seems to be quite successful under his leadership. I saw Brian interact with his customers and you can tell, his is a labor of love. He is very personable and takes an active, hands-on interest in his customers.

Cheryl and I had a few brief moments as she is a constant whirlwind of motion and activity. She is a first rate customer service professional and has amazing wine knowledge and palate. She never ceases to surprise me. She pulled out a few Bordeaux wines as a bonus, which were a real treat, I especially fell for a Chateau Lanessan Haut-Medoc 2002. Although it was showing a little age, it has very nice fruit with a pleasant herbaceousness, light earth and leather notes, and a complexity that was outstanding. If this is not your "cup of tea", just ask Cheryl and she will find the perfect fit for your palate and budget.

I am glad I went, I have since noticed that they also do Friday Sip and Swirls with select local producers. Hmmm, a revisit is shortly in order.

Photo courtesy of the Ashland Chamber of Commerce.

“Wine can of their wits the wise beguile, Make the sage frolic, and the serious smile” 

― Homer

                                        

Homer

Not this Homer

Have you seen Merlove, "... a documentary celebrating Merlot wine in response to the movie Sideways."

For more information, please visit their website

This is my review of it... (Amazon.com 2/10/10)
"Merlove is a truly enjoyable movie from the first sip to the last drop.
I love that fact that the film educates and promotes Merlot, but not at the expense of any other varietal. As a matter of fact, the film makers go to great lengths to encourage wine lovers to explore the multitude of wines available.
It is obvious that the film makers love Merlot and thoroughly enjoyed making this film. The photography was great, the characters engaging, the story informative and amusing, and the subject near and dear to my heart.
All in all, a great film, giving us insight to the history, process and passion that is Merlot.
Cheers!"

SOUTH STAGE CELLARS

We had a great time popping into South Stage Cellars on a recently Saturday afternoon/eve. Located in downtown Jacksonville, this historic location has a rustic charm all its own. With brick and rough hewn woodwork, a great fireplace and many hand-built pieces of locally built furniture, the tasting room is warm, inviting and homey.

The owners, Don and Traute Moore and their son Michael, own over 300 acres of grapes, many of which are sold to top winemakers throughout Oregon. The tasting room features many of these wines, as well as South Stage Cellars wines which are all crafted from the original Quail Run Vineyard.

There is a mantle along one wall that houses mason jars full of the various soils from each of the Moore's vineyards, giving customers a visual reference as to why same varietals grown at different sites taste different.

The Tasting Room is a cultural hub of Jacksonville, with a rotating artwork display, Wine & Dine Wednesday Nights (you must make reservations- it sells out), Friday Happy Hour, music on Friday and Saturday nights and a host of other, fun intriguing events that Manager Porscha Schiller dreams up. On this day, there was a wine club release being held in the garden out back. The deck and garden was full, but not crowded, and everyone seemed perfectly content. A special for the wine club was an offering of the new Carmenere, one of the original six red grapes of Bordeaux, France; now mainly found in Chile. It was being offered for a limited time and then being shipped back to the library for further aging. Unfortunately, I did not have a chance to sample.

Connie who was working the Tasting Room was professional and very personable. She even gave some great advice for our dinner that evening. Upon hearing a tasting request, we decided a skosh is slightly more than a smidgen, just for future reference.

I happened upon Michael Moore who said the vineyards look great for so early in the spring. He told me they had budbreak all on the same day throughout the vineyards, regardless of elevation or location. He seemed quite happy and was optimistic for the growing season.

We had a few tastes and then a glass of South Stage Cellars Viognier, always one of my favorites, while listening to a gentleman singing and playing guitar. It was a perfect way to end the afternoon before dinner. 

South Stage Cellars Website 

South Stage Cellars Facebook Page 

Rocky Knoll

Dunbar Farms, aka Rocky Knoll Vineyard, has started its farm stand for the spring with a great offering of veggies, bread, olive oils, and such. On Friday night, they had a small gathering to show the progress of their new Tasting Room/Farm Stand.

My better half had ordered some organic produce and farm fresh eggs and we popped in to sample their two red wines, the 2007 Dunbar Red and the 2006 Rocky Knoll Claret. I must say, wow! the Claret is aging nicely, really full bodied, great fruit and nice balance. We chose to have a glass of the Dunbar Red, the Claret's little brother. I had not tasted it in about a year and was delighted to see that it is holding up great with rich fruit and just the right amount of oomph! Easy to drink, very enjoyable. Of course a bottle made it home, but sorry to say, not through the night.

Tasting Room with a view...

The new tasting room/farm stand should be open by late summer, bureaucracy notwithstanding, and looks to be well thought out. It is very spacious with room for the tasting room, the farm stand, and a deck out back. The deck has a gorgeous view of the property, the western hills of Medford and the Table Rocks. The tasting room proper shares the view with expansive windows, making the room very open and bright. The doors leading to the deck are retractable, giving Rocky Knoll the ability to turn it all into one big space for events. The farm stand will have an honor box for self-service with a glass-front cooler and dry bin displays.

Retractable doors on the deck

David Mostue and his mother Emily, have great plans for the tasting room, keeping with the organic/sustainable theme of the farming operation. David's organic operation has evolved very well, he has added ancient grains and is having them milled the old fashion way. In turn, he is having bread made with the grains and sells the grains at the farm stand. No mechanical, modern operation is this, he does much of his farming with huge draft horses. It is this commitment to a simpler, arguably better way of living that guides the farm and vineyard in all of their efforts.

This promises to be a comfortable, relaxing and low-key atmosphere. Perfect for enjoying wine, fresh locally-grown produce, and the simpler things in life. A throwback, perhaps, but I think it genius. Aren't we all looking to find a way to step back from the day to day hassles of modern life? Rocky Knoll's tasting room and farm stand is sure to transport you back to a day when life was much more simple.

For more information, please visit... http://www.dunbarfarms.com
and http://www.rocky-knoll.com/ 

Night time at Rocky Knoll