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Howard W. Hewitt

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Howard W. Hewitt

Tag Archives: Joe Dobbes

Grenache Blanc Great White Alternative

06 Monday May 2013

Posted by Howard in Newspaper Column 2013, Oregon

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Dobbes Family Estate, Grenache Blanc, Joe Dobbes, Oregon

If the same old Chardonnay, Riesling, or Pinot Grigio is getting you down, try something different.

Grape Sense LogoItalian Vermentino, Argentina’s Torontos, and Spain’s Macabeo are great whites with different flavor profiles. Grenache Blanc is the fourth-most planted white wine grape in France and becoming more popular each year as a single varietal wine. It’s often used in traditional Rhone and Southern France blends. It’s also a great alternative to the usual suspects.

Tablas Creek, Paso Robles, has championed Rhone whites for years. Oregon’s Joe Dobbes has become a huge fan and terrific producer more recently.

“I was making a Rhone blend for one of my Southern Oregon customers,” Dobbes explained during a Chicago marketing event. “It was Marsanne, Rousanne, Viognier and Grenache Blanc.  Lo and behold, they had two tons of Grenache Blanc left over and said ‘Hey Joe, do you want it?”

That’s been a few years ago and now Dobbe’s Family Estate Grenache Blanc sells out each year. “I wanted to be first one to say let’s hang our hat on this grape. As a winemaker, I’m always trying to do something new and different, right? Oregon is known for Pinot Noir and we have some beautiful wines in Southern Oregon. But the Grenache Blanc came along and I thought ‘what’s the risk for a couple of tons of grapes?’

Joe Dobbes

Joe Dobbes

“I want rich full-flavored, varietal fruit in my whites. I started in Germany in in 1985 and those white aromatics really helped formulate me. The Grenache Blanc is made “with no new barrels, no malolactic fermentation, and no filtration. The wine has great clarity and great richness in the mouth.

“The quintessential wine has great mouth feel, specifically whites, and beautiful fruit with great acidity. “I think this wine has all three.”

Dobbes looked at the landscape and saw Oregon winemakers selling Pinot Noir, most with a Pinot Gris but not many other choices. “I got tired of having to sell my Dobbes luxury label at a discount and thought we were going in the wrong direction. We decided to hang our hat a bit on Grenache Blanc, a specialty wine for a high-end retailer or restaurant. You’re not going to see this everywhere.”

The wine retails from Dobbes’ tasting room at $26.

The veteran winemaker acknowledged people are always looking for something different. “So we offer them some unique, fruity, esoteric whites. We’re also about Pinot Noir. Now Oregon winemakers are asking me where they can get Grenache Blanc, and I say … well, you can’t.”

Dobbes buys all of the Grenache Blanc available from the one producer who has six acres in Southern Oregon – the state’s entire production! Dobbes most popular label, ‘Wines by Joe,’ is widely available.

It might be easier to find Grenache Blanc from a California producer; still there are only 159 acres in the country’s biggest wine-producing state. The wine is characterized by its crisp acidity and often hints of green apple, orange, peach and minerality.

Besides Dobbes and Tablas Creek, try a Domaine Virgile Joly Grenache Blanc widely available in the Midwest and East Coast. Price points range from mid-teens to mid-$20 for these dynamic white wines.

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Oregon Wine Keeps Raising the Bar!

10 Sunday Mar 2013

Posted by Howard in Oregon

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Adelsheim, Bergstrom, Crumbled Rock, Evening Land, Jesse Lange, Joe Dobbes, Lange, Lynn Penner-Ash, Oregon, Penner Ash, Willamette Valley, Winderlea

Thursday's Tasting Mob at Chicago's City Winery

Thursday’s Tasting Mob at Chicago’s City Winery

Oregon wine long ago found its niche on the world stage as a home for great Pinot Noir. That reputation is growing as the wines become more widely available.

A tasting Thursday in downtown Chicago proved the wines are getting better. I’ve visited the Willamette Valley several times and find the wines improve with each visit.

More than 60 Oregon wine producers poured for 500 trade and media members Thursday afternoon and another 500 that night to customers shelling out $65 a person.

Many Oregon wineries, particularly the better boutique efforts, sell all of each year’s vintage. Jesse Lange, a winemaker who has always treated us like a friend, noted his winery has increased production nearly 10,000 cases the last five years.

The tasting was spectacular. Most of these wines are widely available in Midwestern states but not in huge supply. Obviously, the Willamette Valley Wineries Association thought it was time to expand Oregon’s presence in the Midwest with the first-ever Chicago event.

I managed to get to many different tables and still missed out on many I had never before visited. I do have quite a bit of material to use for future print stories and the blog.

Most of the wines listed here are top shelf offerings. After all, who wants to taste the entry level bottles at a tasting? Here are some of the real winners I tasted:

David Adelsheim

Adelsheim

Adelsheim 2010 Elizabeth’s Reserve Pinot Noir – It’s always safe and smart to turn to a region’s pioneers for a great bottle of wine. Big fruit, nice strawberry, and incredible balance make this one worth $55.

Bergstrom

Bergstrom

Bergstrom Sigrid 2011 Chardonnay – Karen Bergstrom defines this wine the “very best of the best” from their vineyards. It was bright and fresh Chardonnay. $80

Crumbled Rock 2010 Julliard Vineyard Pinot Noir – I tasted the Crumbled Rock wine in 2007 from their first vintage as winemakers. Gerard Koschal, owner and winemaker, had been growing and selling grapes for some time before making wine. That first vintage, released in 07, was more unremarkable than memorable. So it was a delightful surprise to be blown away by their beautifully wine in Chicago. $35.

Evening Land 2010 Mad Hatter Chardonnay – Brace yourself regular readers, the Evening Land might have been THE best wine I tasted all day. Largely whole cluster Chardonnay with Chablis-like characteristics of acid and minerality. It might have also been the most surprising wine I’ve tasted from Oregon. Without mentioning names, this was a wine more than one producer said I must taste. They were right. $40.

Dobbes

Dobbes

Joe Dobbes Grenache Blanc – Hobbes is a winemaker and consultant who wanted to use his experience to do something different. He is buying all of the grenache blanc grown in Oregon from the southern Rogue Valley and making a light, spectacular version of the southern French classic. If you’re unfamiliar with Grenache Blanc, one critic suggested thinking of Pinot Gris with more richness. I’d agree. I loved this wine! $26

Lange

Lange

Lange 2011 Reserve Pinot Noir – It’s simply one of the most consistent wines, at a reasonable price, you can find at the price point from Oregon. Full disclaimer: Regular readers know I’m a Lange fan. Jesse and Don have always been available and accomodating during my visits to the valley. But their wines just get better and better. Don wasn’t one of the original pioneers, but his name belongs right beside them. $32

Penner-Ash

Penner-Ash

Penner-Ash 2011 Dussin Vineyard Pinot Noir – A classic bottle of Oregon Pinot with nice big fruit and the balance of one of Oregon’s great, great winemakers – Lynn Penner-Ash. $65.

Sweat

Sweat

Winderlea 2009 Ana Vineyard Pinot Noir – Winderlea makes the term ’boutique winery’ work every time you taste their wines. Bill Sweat and Donna Morris produce just 2,000-3,000 cases annually but they make gorgeous Pinot and wonderful Chardonnay. The Ana Vineyard is classic Oregon. $48

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