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Howard W. Hewitt

~ … The "W" stands for wine!

Howard W. Hewitt

Tag Archives: wine travel

Join Drink & Eat Oregon 2015 Trip

09 Monday Feb 2015

Posted by Howard in Food & Travel, Oregon

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Columbia River Gorge, Domaine Drouhin, Hawk's View Winery, Lange Winery, Oregon, Willamette Valley, Winderlea, wine travel, Wine Trips

Drouhin
Bill S
food
2014 group having fun tasting the wines of Alexana Winery in a beautiful outdoor setting.
2014 group having fun tasting the wines of Alexana Winery in a beautiful outdoor setting.
Barrel tasting with Alexana's winemaker Bryan Weil.
Barrel tasting with Alexana’s winemaker Bryan Weil.
The stunning Columbia River Gorge.
The stunning Columbia River Gorge.
A quick lunch of local ingredients at Lange.
A quick lunch of local ingredients at Lange.
Our 2014 group on my first Oregon Pinot Noir tour.
Our 2014 group on my first Oregon Pinot Noir tour.

I have all the details up on my 2015 Oregon Tour – this year called: Drink & Eat Oregon. Last year’s wine tour group was so taken by the fool they said I had to add food to the title. So be it.

The trip is all set for June 15-20. Read all of the details at the top of the blog under the header: Drink & Eat Oregon!

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2015 is Year to Explore, Travel

20 Tuesday Jan 2015

Posted by Howard in Newspaper Column 2015, Uncategorized

≈ 1 Comment

Tags

wine education, wine travel

The annual year-end column is normally a listing of my Top 10 wines of the year. Not this year, there are too many lists out there already. Instead, much like the days as an old newspaper editor, here is a collection of random thoughts you might test to improve your palate and wine enjoyment.

Grape Sense LogoDrink Different
Since launching Grape Sense in 2007 I’ve probably written “drink different” hundreds of times here and on the wine blog. Specifically, get into a wine shop or liquor store with a wide selection of wines and don’t rely on the grocery for all your wine purchases. Shops with a good selection of wine will have plenty of choices you’ve never tried.

For example: If you dislike Chardonnay, try the unoaked Chards and splurge a little on Chablis. Seek out French Rhone red wines. Novice wine consumers would be hard pressed to find better value wine than the delicious French Rhones made of Syrah, Grenache, and Mouvredre. They’re wonderful with food or on their own and often in the $12-$16 range.

Drink more South American wine in 2015. Argentina and Chile continue to produce wines which seem to improve with each vintage. Everyone knows of Argentinian Malbec but look for a Bonarda for something different. Bonarda will often have many of the same taste characteristics but a bit more of a smoky hint on the palate.

Don’t be afraid of Indiana wines. Nothing frustrates me more than the “oh, those are sweet wines” response when Hoosier wines are mentioned. Yes, most big Indiana wines haul in the vast portion of their bottom line from sweet and fruit wines. But Bill Oliver, Ted Huber, and others are making drinkable dry reds which get better with every vintage.

Educate yourself
Most wine drinkers want to enjoy a glass now and then and probably don’t have the same interest as a wine writer. But to really understand wine visit a vineyard anywhere and take a vineyard tour. You’ll learn more about wine surrounded by grapes than you will in 20 tasting room visits.

Lobby your Legislator
Indiana is the last of the 50 states banning Sunday alcohol sales. The issue is going to be addressed in the coming legislative session. It’s finally time. Grass roots support makes a difference when it’s overwhelming. If you don’t think so, just think back to last year’s incredible reaction – pro and con – to the legislature’s actions on the gay marriage fight. Your voice matters.

Wine Travel
A wine vacation can be lots of fun and you’re almost always in a beautiful location. A simple trip would be a nice two or three-day visit to Traverse City. Explore the wineries of Leelanau and Old Mission Peninsulas. If you’ve never been to Napa/Sonoma, make 2015 the year you check that off your bucket list. Whether you are a casual or very serious wino, Napa/Sonoma is a terrific vacation.

Or just take a Saturday and visit two or three Indiana wineries.

My favorite wine trip is Oregon’s Willamette valley. The Pinot Noir is world class, the food is amazing, and the vineyards are stunning. You’re also just a little more than an hour from one of our country’s most beautiful natural wonders, the Columbia River Gorge.

I’ll be leading another trip to that area in June after last year’s very successful first visit. More details to come soon.

Ask Questions
Thanks to all the readers who wrote in 2014 asking specific wine questions, wine travel questions and more. I’ll always respond. My email is at the bottom of today’s column.

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First Wine Tour Shapes Future Trips

15 Sunday Jun 2014

Posted by Howard in Food & Travel, Oregon

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Black Walnut Inn, Burgundy, Pinot Noir, Willamette Valley, wine travel

OREGON’S WILLAMETTE Valley – Flying home Saturday night, readying for a new adventure starting Monday, I’m reflecting on a debriefing session I had last night with the eight participants on my first wine tour.

Our five nights and four days in Oregon’s Willamette Valley were nothing short of spectacular and a rousing success. One member of the group went around the table asking couples on the trip if it had lived up to expectations and each said it was far more than they ever expected. That was rewarding.

What I learned from this group of friends is that I need to emphasize the wonderful food as much as the wine. Instead of Pinot Palooza, how about Drink & Eat Oregon?

I’ve also toyed with the idea of putting together a less costly version of this trip and after the evaluation I’m leaning strongly against it. The experience our group had in Oregon should be duplicated for others and not lessened to save a few hundred bucks a person on cost.

The fabulous Black Walnut Inn is unmatched in hospitality, location, and beauty. The views on top of the hill surrounded by vineyards, and a view of Mt. Hood on a clear day, is where I want to take groups.

The Oregon wine community hospitality was unmatched. The wine’s were off the charts. The food was simply unbelievable.
I’m going to try to get some posts, and a lot of photos, up over the next couple days from more of the trip. Meanwhile, I’m thinking I’ll repeat the trip next June and perhaps set up two trips on back to back weeks. I’ll continue to try to do the trip at 8 people, or four couples. I could do 10 but believe 8 is the perfect number. I’m going to set dates real soon and get that out for folks’ calendars.

And what happens after 2015? How about the trip of a lifetime in 2016 to France’s iconic Burgundy region? I’m also thinking about Paso Robles in the next two years.

Frankly, I couldn’t be more pleased that my first venture into wine tourism went so well!

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Looking into 2014 Crystal Ball

06 Monday Jan 2014

Posted by Howard in Newspaper Column 2014

≈ 1 Comment

Tags

Michigan wine, Moscato, Oregon, Willamette Valley, wine travel

crystal-ball

The only good thing about looking forward at the start of the year is no one remembers your predictions a week or so later. That said, there are lots of trends and movement in the wine world which will have an impact on the average wine drinker.

Grape Sense LogoFor the first Grape Sense of 2014, it makes sense to look ahead a bit.

Moscato – That sweet white wine that seems to be everywhere is exploding. But that’ s not news since it all started in 2012. Sales increased by a third in 2012 with little sign of letting up in 2013. The light alcohol and light fizz has proven wildly popular with younger consumers.

From hip-hop artists to long-time sweet wine lovers, Moscato has become the go-to beverage. California is providing most of the sweet white but look for other labels to join the band wagon. Furthermore, check out your local grocery, wine shop, or liquor store shelves and you’ll find major labels offering a variety of sweet wines.

Red wine blends are another area continuing to expand and grow. A good red wine blend can go from the inoffensive to nuanced and satisfying to even the most discerning wine drinker. Better yet, you can often get big bold flavors from a good California or Washington blend at a fraction of the cost of single variety wines. Red wine blends offer some of the best value options for better wine.

The biggest sales growth areas are Moscato, sweet red blends, and Malbec. Malbec is a great intro point for those trying to expand beyond Cabernet, Merlot and Pinot Noir. It’s a great food wine and a wonderful way to start exploring beyond your normal tastes.

wineappMillenials and apps have been the talking points for much of the wine media over the last few years. Younger people are the fastest growing segment of the wine-buying population. They do drink sweeter wines but they are also very willing to try something new.

The younger section of the market is also driving wineries, marketers, and everyone else in the wine business to go more digital. There are smart-phone applications to find wine, rate wine, and journal your own wine drinking.

Packaging is another area where innovation continues to push the market. Wine is turning up on shelves, particularly value wine, in single servings, all shapes of paper and glass containers, and other new ways to supplant the 750ml bottle.

wine-celeb_ticketsand Indiana to get the world’s attention with its small production of wine. But the quality of the ‘other states’ wines continue to improve. Each year I visit quite a few Indiana wineries, and a few in surrounding states, the quality continues to show considerable improvement. It’s not just the top producers but some of the smaller state wineries have learned to focus on quality.

Wine travel is a great vacation and another industry that just grows and grow. I will be joining that trend in 2014 by leading a boutique-type experience in Oregon’s Willamette Valley in June. Whether it’s a trip you plan yourself or an organized wine adventure, the internet has really made it easy to plan a great wine vacation. Click here if you’d like information on the Oregon trip I’m hosting or simply to add your name to my mailing list for future trips.

Happy New Year to all. Thank you for reading Grape Sense!

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Back to France: Off to Chablis Thursday

24 Wednesday Oct 2012

Posted by Howard in Food & Travel, France

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Chablis, wine travel

If I’m not a full-fledged Francophile by Christmas it’s not for a lack of opportunity. I’ll be leaving Thursday for my third France wine press trip of 2012.

I’ll join three other U.S. wine journalists as guests of the Burgundy Wine Board at the Chablis Fete des Vins, or wine festival. This is a quick trip. We arrive Friday morning, spend time at the festival and in the vineyards and wineries Saturday and Sunday and its then a quick return home Monday.

But hey, it’s France; and, it’s Chablis!

I’m going to try to blog each day and do more frequent updates on Facebook and Twitter. You can follow me through the links in the right column. On previous trips I didn’t activate a data plan for my iPhone but it’s only $30 so this time I’m going to give it a try.

Jean-Francois Bordet of Domaine Seguinot Bordet

We’re going to be staying in the nearby city of Auxxere, a town of about 40,000 people not far from Chablis. After a get-acquainted dinner Friday night, we have a very full Saturday agenda. But it seems quite an honor that we will be dining with Jean-Francois Bordet, the President of the Chablis Commission of the Burgundy Wine Board.

We’ll start in the vineyards and then taste the award winners of the 2012  Chablis Wine Awards.

Saturday afternoon will be an afternoon of tasting and discovery with more than 50 presenters of Chablis’ four appelations. They are certainly treating the journalists well on this trip. On Saturday evening we will be guests of the Confrerie des Piliers Chablisiens – “a wine society that honors those who by activity, writing, or way of doing things have served the cause of Burgundy and more especially Chablis.”

These societies are common in the great wine producing regions of France. It’s a real honor to be able to attend.

The Piliers Chablisiens parade gets us started on Sunday with visits after lunch to Domaine Billaud-Simon with Bernard Billaud and then a tasting at La Chablisienne.

We’ll be transported back to Paris Sunday evening to catch our Monday flights home.

This should be a really memorable trip. I’m not sure any region is best known for its expression of terrior through just one grape – Chardonnay – like Chablis. Follow along here and on my social media sites.

Send comment or questions to: hewitthoward@gmail.com

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To Bordeaux and burgundy for this weeks Saturday Sipps at the Wine Shop, 11-4 pm. Taste these great wines and you can buy them Saturday only for 20% off.
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