May Wine Club: Paşaeli wines from Turkey
Paşaeli Vineyard
It is May, and the flowers are definitely in bloom, as is Jet’s garden! This month, we feature wines from Paşaeli winery. Paşaeli founder Seyit Karagözoğlu will join us in the Jet Garden on May 13th for a full tasting, so mark your calendars! And, get ready to enjoy some excellent wine. In the meantime, let me tell you a little about my love for Turkish wine…
In August of 1992, I had just graduated from college and turned 21. I also flew to Istanbul – my first ever trip to any place outside the US other than Niagara Falls. I was there as an archaeology student, going on my first real dig. That stay in Istanbul, the further 20-hour bus ride to Gaziantep, and a month’s stay in Birecik immersed in southeastern Turkey, completely changed my life.
I had always wanted to travel, but family vacations were mostly limited to road trips within Indiana or to nearby states. These usually centered around an amusement park: Marriott’s Great America (now Six Flags) in Gurnee, IL (where we actually saw Johnny Cash and June Carter play! Really!!), or Cedar Point in Sandusky, Ohio. We visited horse farms in Kentucky, circus museums in Wisconsin, and car museums in Michigan. Those were fun! But I really longed to get away and go somewhere else. I wanted to see foreign lands, meet different people, eat different foods, see more colors, smell more smells.
Walking through Istanbul was an instant jolt of energy, and the realization of that dreaming about those people, food, colors, smells – also sounds and chaos. I fell in love with Turkey and travel in one fell swoop. Trips to Syria, initially, then Oman, Iraq, Armenia, and elsewhere, supplanted my work in Turkey, but I will never forget the thrills of that first trip, or the pleasures of the country on that and subsequent trips – both for work and pleasure.
Turkey was also where my wine journey began. I do not believe I’d drunk any wine beyond Boone’s Farm or a Bartles and Jaymes wine cooler before I went to Turkey. They had good beer (Efes), and a cold Efes and pistachios were perfect after work on a 42 degree C day. But, Turkey also had a (small) wine culture. Kavaklidere, Doluca, and Buzbag were the names I remember. I tried those wines now and then while in the country, but one night in Ankara in 1993, I saw a couple sitting on their balcony for dinner – with a bottle of Rosé. It was a beautiful night, I was in a wonderful place, and from then on, I associated wine with those things. I also started drinking more Turkish wine.
Over the years, more producers have started making great wine there and exporting their products. One of those is Paşaeli. The Paşaeli winery was founded in 2000 and produced its first vintage in 2010 – the same year Jet Wine Bar opened! I have never tasted that vintage, but I have come to heartily appreciate the vintages and varietals I have tried. The varietals include both international and indigenous grapes – something that the founder, Seyit Karagözoğlu, is quite keen on; he has made a concerted effort to revitalize and utilize indigenous grapes such as Yapıncak, Çakal, and Çalkarası.
In addition to their high quality, I also love the mythological connections that can be made to Turkish wine – and to Paşaeli. Paşaeli has vineyards near Izmir (ancient Smyrna) – on the Aegean Sea, and near Kaz Dağı (Mount Ida). Mount Ida in Turkey was one of two mountains of the same name that were sacred to the ancient Greeks. It is mentioned in both the Greek Iliad and the Latin Aeneid. They also have vineyards near near Tekirdağ (ancient Bisanthe) – on the Sea of Marmara. Jason and his Argonauts threaded the Argos through the Hellespont (the narrow Dardanelles Strait) – overlooked by Mount Ida – and into the Sea of Marmara past the Bisanthe coastline. Their journey and eventual arrival in Colchis, home of the golden fleece, is awesomely rendered by Ray Harryhausen in the Jason and the Argonauts film. That brilliant movie is, I think, best watched with some leblebi (roasted chickpeas) and some Turkish wine.
Paşaeli ‘Seahorse’ Blush Çalkarası
Seyit strives to identify and revitalize grapes indigenous to Turkey. The Çalkarası variety is one such grape, that is native to Çal – Denizli, located about 150 miles inland from Izmir. Thes grapes are grown in a single vineyard at an altitude of 850 meters. Fermentation is in stainless steel tanks. The wine is aged on its lees for 3 months.
From the maker: “The nose has lovely aromas of wild strawberries and raspberries. The palate is well balanced with good acidity and bright fruit.”
Fun fact: Çalkarası Rose is the first Turkish wine to be sold in the state of Hawaii!
Paşaeli Kaynaklar Red Blend
When Seyit first started, he got his feet wet with international grapes. His first vintage, in 2010, was a Bordeaux-blend from the first plantings of the Serez vineyard in Kaynaklar (Izmir): Cabernet Sauvignon, Cabernet Franc, Merlot, and Petit Verdot. This wine is the same blend, and from the same vineyard. An elevation of 235 meters affords some diurnal coolness to the grapes, helping these rich reds stay acidic and balanced. The juice is fermented with native yeast. It is aged in French oak for 24 months, and in bottle for a minimum of 12 months more.
From the maker: :”Very dark, black-cherry colour, deep crimson rim. Smoky, leathery and spicy on the nose. Lovely, peppery, savoury black fruit and chewy with dark chocolate depths. The fruit is ripe with sweet tannins. Chewy and complex with a long finish.”
Click below to listen to our May Playlist! As always, we recommend you listen while enjoying your May wines by Paşaeli!!!
