Tag Archives: France

Free Tasting & Happy #HugelDay November 14th @BlackBirdWines

Posted on November 14, 2015 by waywardwine

Celebrate all that fantastic France is by enjoying the nationwide celebration of Alsatian wine producer Hugel today, November 14th. Blackbird Wine Shop will pour five scintillating whites from 2-5pm for free in Northeast Portland. Be there!

Posted in Uncategorized | Tagged #hugelday, Alsace, Alsace France, France, free tasting, Paris, riesling, White wine, wine | Leave a comment

Halloween Wine: Cheval des Andes Lujan de Cuyo Mendoza Argentina 2009

Posted on October 16, 2015 by waywardwine

One day we will stop referencing Sideways. Today is not one of them. Eleven years on, the film continues to kill Merlot. Although Miles railed against the grape, his prized bottle turned out to be an iconic Merlot: Cheval Blanc, 1er Grand Cru classé A, Saint-Émilion 1961…that he drank with fast food: Continue reading →

Posted in Uncategorized | Tagged Bordeaux, cabernet, Cheval Blanc, Cheval des Andes, drink, Food, France, Halloween, malbec, Mendoza, Mendoza Argentina, Saint-Émilion, travel, wine | 2 Comments

Thirsty Thursday: Beaujolais Done Right: Stephane Aviron Chenas 2011

Posted on June 18, 2015 by waywardwine

This Thirsty Thursday, I melt into a gelatinous ball of sweat and irritability. Summer’s heat pushes me to white, rosé, and sparkling wines. But I’m already bored. A low tannin, light red that could handle a slight chill sounds perfect. … Continue reading →

Posted in Uncategorized | Tagged Beaujolais, Beaujolais Nouveau, France, French wine, Stephane Aviron, summer, Summer wine, wine | 1 Comment

Strasbourg 3: French Beer from Brasserie Uberach & Meteor

Posted on November 24, 2014 by waywardwine

After visiting Strasbourg’s Christmas markets and its Hospice Wine Cellar, we switch gears. Germany waits across the border. In honor of Strasbourg’s bipolar Franco-Germanic nature, we shed Alsatian wine for beer, glorious beer. But first, the Cathedral’s Astronomical Clock must … Continue reading →

Posted in Uncategorized | Tagged Alsace, Astronomical Clock, Beer, Brasserie Uberach, Brewery, Christmas market, France, French beer, German beer, meteor, Santa Claus, Strasbourg | 3 Comments

Strasbourg Part 2: Historic Wine Cave beneath a Hospice: Cremant and Pinot Gris Grand Cru

Posted on November 17, 2014 by waywardwine

Last Monday’s EU Austerity Drinking Tour landed us in Strasbourg’s Christmas markets, on top of its Cathedral, and enjoying its wine. Today, we descend into the caves of the Hospice de Strasbourg.

As with our visit, not ten days prior, to Burgundy’s Hospice de Beaune, we find Strasbourg had its own, even older medical, religious, wine cellar. Since 1395, cellars beneath the city’s hospital provided wine as medicine and sacrament. Like Beaune, this hospice gained vine-land from guilty proprietors bent on heaven. Although wine-making stalled during the last century, it reformed as a cooperative in 1995. Let’s see what survived the centuries. Continue reading →