Drink: Page 19

Mysterious Pinot

Drink

Last weekend, Kat and I attended the annual salmon bake at the International Pinot Noir Celebration (IPNC) in McMinnville, urban heart of the north Willamette Valley wine country. This remarkable annual event (2013 marked the 27th version) in wine culture draws participants from nearly all the regions of the world where pinot noir is cultivated and vinified —Austria, Australia, New Zealand, Canada (!), Germany, California and, of course, France (Burgundy) and Oregon. Continue reading →

In Good Spirits

Adair Village’s 4 Spirits Distillery makes great liquor while honoring fallen heroes

Drink

Dawson Officer stood at the eighth hole of the Shadow Hills Country Club golf course, watching as golfers and prospective taste testers piled out of their cart and onto the green. “Do you want to try some whiskey?” Officer asked from behind his table, where bottles of vodka and bourbon whiskey were displayed.  “You want to golf for me? I’ll just stay here with the liquor,” a golfer joked, moseying up to the table for a shot.  Continue reading →

Brews News

Lane County’s beer scene spilleth over

Drink

Our fair county is savoring a yeasty beer boom. Aficionados have celebrated a new Whiteaker tasting room for Oakshire, Ninkasi’s plans for an expansion, Plank Town’s installation in downtown Springfield and Friday afternoon growler fills at Claim 52. The rest of the year looks like it won’t have any trouble keeping pace; on tap is a neat little package of delights for your (responsible) boozing pleasure. Continue reading →

Busing the Boozy

A party bus leaves a trail of glitter

Drink

The Facebook invite headline read “Party Bus!” It was a celebration for two friends, one moving away and the other turning 30. The theme was “Glitter.” Having never been on a party bus before, I was intrigued. And yes, there was a glitter theme, even though the party was scheduled for a sunny, Sunday afternoon. We were to be squired around to three wineries by My Party Bus. Continue reading →

A Taste of Italy

Eugene’s Elixir Inc.

Drink

In 2009, Andrea Loreto was trying to market his time-consuming creation, a liqueur called Calisaya, but working with a third-party distributor didn’t go smoothly. In spite of what he terms a distribution “disaster,” he had enough positive feedback from consumers to confidently open his own distillery. That’s how Eugene’s Elixir Inc. was born, and how Eugene got its only member of the Oregon Distillery Guild, a nonprofit that happens to be the nation’s first distillery guild. Continue reading →

Splendor in the Glass

Drink

Memorial Day has passed, so it’s OK to drink white. But, “The first duty of a wine is to be red.” That quip has been attributed to various wags, most enduringly to Alec Waugh, English novelist, who added, “the second is to be a Burgundy,” by which he meant pinot noir (not an unreasonable amendment, according to pinotphiles). Wine scholars have argued that Waugh was merely repeating an eno-adage that originated in the Middle Ages, or maybe with the antique Greeks. Whatever the actual source, a lot of bad attitudes about white wine have ensued. Continue reading →

A Pressing Issue

EW's 2013 Uncorked

Drink

May in Oregon — a month comfortably nestled between spring and summer. The rains have ceased, the days are sunny and mild, and the nights are breezy and fresh. It’s the perfect time to pop open a pinot warmed in the modest sun or a chilled rosé, grab a blanket and relax in the grass and watch the sun sink into the cool blue valley. Or throw on a light sweater, grab a friend and head for the hills of wine country, where patios and tastings await. Better yet, pour yourself your favorite vino, sit in your favorite chair and take notes on 2013’s Uncorked. Continue reading →