Wine Label Whimsy
Fun labels can wrap around a good wine
Must be global weirding: A carny barker-snakeoil hustler gets elected president of the U.S.; ice forms on December rosebuds; and in the wine world, someone … Continue reading
Drink: Page 9
World Wines, Autumn Splendors
I was ready to break into “September Song” or my whistling riff of “Early Autumn” when Mole got up in my face. The Round Mound of Merlot almost never gets angry, but he was clearly irked: “Yuz hoit my feelins laz mont’ when yuz wrote dat I wuz smoikin’ lak da Donald. Ah wuzn’t smoikin’ ‘n’ ah ain’t lak Trump. Ah don’ even lak dat guy. He’s nasty ta wimmen ‘n’ nearly ever’body, ‘cept his pal Voldemort Pootin.’ Ah wuz jes’ smilin’ cuz weah back on track on da wines.” Continue reading
Old World/New World
Keeping pace with the hordes of wines from 'round the globe
Mole was moping. As I’ve said, a moping Mole is an awful omen. “’Zup, pal?” I asked, warily. Continue reading
World Wines
To Europe and back again
Mole squinted at me across our battered desk. It was unsettling. “What’s buggin’ ya, pal?” he asked. Continue reading
Ring Around the Rosés
Pretty pink wines go well with summer
In our lab, Mole was vigorously pulling corks and polishing rimless glasses: Time for our annual “Rosé Report.” In the last few years, rosés have really come out of the closet. Well, they never actually went into the deep closet; they just got buried (in U.S. markets anyway) under the flood of white zinfandels, sweet pink (“blush”) wines mass-produced and marketed by Cali vintners. Continue reading
Beer Beat
Drink some tasty brews
The Falling Sky Pizzeria & Public House officially opened its doors June 20 at the newly renovated Erb Memorial Union on the University of Oregon campus. Falling Sky’s newest location sells “falling pies,” which includes The Firebird, with roasted chicken, pickled peppers, fried garlic, mozzarella, spicy marinara and hot sauce. Subs, soups, salads and pasta are also on the menu, along with Falling Sky’s tasty brews. Among the current beers on tap: Daywalker Irish Red, Hard Rain American Stout and Make American Wheat Again. Head over to fallingskybrewing.com for the full menu. Continue reading
All About That Barrel
A lesson in barrel-aged beers from the new Alesong Brewing & Blending
One of Eugene’s newest breweries features some familiar faces: Matt Van Wyk and Brian Coombs, formerly of acclaimed local brewery Oakshire. In 2015, Van Wyk and Coombs, along with Coomb’s brother Doug, struck out on their own, launching Alesong Brewing & Blending, a company with a unique emphasis on barrel-aged beer. Van Wyk tells EW that Alesong, located in west Eugene, is an artisan brewery “that’s going to mainly focus on barrel-aged beer and Belgian-inspired beers.” Continue reading
Taste of the Euro-Northwest
ColdFire Brewing brings European flair to Eugene’s brewing community
Brothers Stephen and Dan Hughes want their brewery to honor community members who sacrifice a lot and don’t get much recognition — namely, teachers and medical workers. “Healthcare workers and teachers are probably two of the most unrecognized professions I can think of,” says Dan Hughes, who opened ColdFire Brewing Company with his brother in January. “There are a lot of unsung heroes out there, and we definitely wanted to recognize that those people are an important part of our community,” Stephen Hughes adds. Continue reading
The Label Makers
Oakshire and Ninkasi celebrate 10 years in brewing with rejuvenated design
In his office at Oakshire Brewing, Eric Keskeys flips through a weathered paperback revealing hundreds of ancient shapes and patterns. The room is dark, save for the glow from his dual computer screens, where working templates of beer labels have been put on pause. He stops on a page to point out some trefoils in what he calls a design bible — the Handbook of Designs and Devices: 1836 Basic Designs and Their Variations, originally printed in 1946. Continue reading
Summer Wines
Drink some wine on a hot summer night
I squinted through the grimy glass of our office window on the 14th floor of Eugene’s oldest high-rise (and eyesore). I stared down at the city’s streets lined with flushed sweetgums and pin oaks. We’re warming fast — maybe too fast — zooming into summer, maybe another hot, dry vintage, promising big bold pinot noirs, not the cool-country delicacy we’ve come to know and love. The global news on climate change (warming) has been grim: retreating glaciers, sweltering droughts, disappearing species. Continue reading