It was at EWBC's Digital Communications Conference 2012 in Izmir, Turkey that Spaswinefood had the opportunity to taste Arcadia Vineyards wines. Arcadia Vineyards is an excellent example of the growing enthusiasm for wine making in Turkey. Prior to the conference I had visited a number of Thrace wineries
that impressed me. It was exciting for me to discover Arcadia Vineyards, another Thrace winery at the conference. It was also a pleasure to meet the winery owners, Ozcan and Zeynap Arca, a father and daughter team.
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| An introduction to Arcadia Vineyards wines © Spaswinefood |
Recent
articles, such as Business Week article by Elin McCoy, a New York Times article by Andrew Finkel and the Gray Report, all note the growing enthusiasm for wine
making in Turkey. A recent CNN video highlights a visit to Arcadia Vineyards. Arcadia Vineyards is located in Northern West Thrace. Arcadia is developing a boutique hotel and restaurant due to open in 2013. Such development illustrates the growing enthusiasm for enotourism in Turkey.
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Arcadia's winemaker greets wine blogger © Spaswinefood
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Arcadia started developing its vineyards 10 years ago. They use French and California consultants in the production of their wines. Arcadia's white wines include Sauvignon Gris, Sauvignon Blanc, Pinot Gris and the indigenous Narince. This boutique producer makes "hand made" wines with great care. The reds include Cabernet Franc, Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot and the indigenous Öküzgözü. The also produce Rosés. The wines I tasted included the following:
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| Arcadia Vineyards Sauvignon Gris Pinot Gris 2011© Spaswinefood |
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| Arcadia Vineyards Sauvignon Blanc Narince 2011 © Spaswinefood |
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| Arcadia Vineyards Sauvignon Gris 2009 © Spaswinefood |
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| Arcadia Vineyards Cabernet Franc Merlot Roze 2011 © Spaswinefood |
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| Arcadia Vineyards Cabernet Roze 2010 © Spaswinefood |
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| Arcadia Vineyards Cabernet Sauvignon 2010 © Spaswinefood |
It was so much fun to meet Arcadia Vineyards staff and taste the wines produced by this young enthusiatic winery.
I did not find any reviews of Arcadia's wines other than those posted on their webpage. I liked their wines and amongst my favorites were its Rosés and the Narince blend. Their white wines made from the indigenous Narince grape are quite inviting. I would like to taste some of their red wines made the indigenous Öküzgözü. While in Turkey I tasted not only great wines derived from the popular international grapes but from indigenous Turkish grapes, such as Öküzgözü, Boğazkere, Kalecik Karasi and Narince. I developed a special liking for Turkey's indigenous grapes. I am totally convinced that with world wide exposure Turkish wines will become popular. My best guess is that there is a special niche in the wine industry for wines made from indigenous Turkish grapes. It is wineries, like Arcadia Vineyards that can make this happen.
Turkey is considered to be one of the original source of wines in the world. DNA analyses show that all European grape varieties have their origin in Turkey, Georgia or Armenia. Both Turkey's rich wine history and the diversity of indigenous grape varieties makes Turkey a must visit for wine lovers. Check out my travels in Turkey and elsewhere at Spaswinefood, or visit my travel column at the Examiner.
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| Welcome to Arcadia Vineyards wines © Spaswinefood |
Turkey is considered to be one of the original source of wines in the world. DNA analyses show that all European grape varieties have their origin in Turkey, Georgia or Armenia. Both Turkey's rich wine history and the diversity of indigenous grape varieties makes Turkey a must visit for wine lovers. Check out my travels in Turkey and elsewhere at Spaswinefood, or visit my travel column at the Examiner.
Sharon
November 2012
Izmir, Turkey
©Spaswinefood
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