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Weinnotes, Wine Country's Hidden Gems

Discovering the hidden gems of Wine Country and bringing it to you via a weekly newsletter, podcast and iPhone App.

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🍷 Weinnotes - Monthly Oregon Wine Newsletter

A couple of mornings back, I was taking a walk just as the sun was rising. It was cold. There were a few patches of ice on the sidewalk. Christmas lights were up on houses. I was the only crazy person walking that hour of the morning in the cold. With no earbuds and no screens, I soaked it all up. There is something I enjoy so much when the day is opening up to all of the possibilities that lie ahead. Each and every day is a new start, a new beginning to enjoy what is right in front of us....

Did you miss my email last week? Yeah, I missed it too. It didn’t go out. I think there have been three times in the past 5 years where I missed my own deadline. One of those times, the power was out. Not a bad record if I say so myself, but still I know you were sorely disappointed. You might be asking why I was late. Well, there are a lot of events kicking off for the Thanksgiving weekend. One of them is Friendsgiving, which was amazing last year, but this year, Holy Toledo, Batman, it is...

The other morning, I was walking out of Starbucks at 0 dark thirty with my Chai in hand and had a weird experience. The smell of diesel immediately struck me and took me back to a summer day deep in Southern Georgia when I was in the Air Force on a training exercise. It was also a super early morning; nobody was awake yet. The mess hall was just starting to stir. The smell of diesel was in the air, along with the sounds of generators. As I took a sip of my Chai and got in the car, I thought...

Did you notice that I didn't send out a newsletter on the first Saturday of the month last week? I certainly did. I'm not one who enjoys missing my own imposed deadlines, but I have a larger deadline looming for myself, more on that in a bit. Have you watched "The Bear" yet on Hulu? I know it isn't directly related to wine, but if you haven't seen it, put it on your list. I watched Season 1 and 2 again with my daughter, and she might have had a little tear running down her face at the end of...

Here we are, the last newsletter for 2023. Where has this year gone? I could ramble off for far too long, but the newsletter is over 4,000 words this month. Part of me is sorry, but the other part says, “Nope, not sorry at all!” I adore the ever-loving heck out of the fact I don’t have anyone telling me your newsletter is too long! Enjoy, and I hope you have a beautiful Christmas full of love, warmth, friends, and family! Enjoy all of the links, so much is happening! Archery Summit is...

I wish I had an endless amount of time in a day! There is so much I want to do every single day. Choosing what to focus on and what not to focus on is challenging. Multiple times over this last month, I found myself saying, “Oh, I should write about this in the newsletter,” but there was no weekly newsletter to put it into. I am sure you and I are on the same page about missing the weekly newsletters, and one day, it will make sense, I promise. Speaking of weekly newsletters, I always enjoy...

Long-time readers of the newsletter know I have a weakness in indulging in a chai at Starbucks in the mornings. Part of the reason I enjoy this daily routine is for the people behind the counter. I have gotten to know them over the years. Everyone who works at the location I frequent knows I am obsessed with wine. Most of them don’t know I have a wine podcast. The other day, the podcast came up in conversation. I told one person Weinnotes is the podcast's name and how Weinzettel translates...

Here we are, the first of September. I am on the back deck writing with a hoodie on. Fall is coming pretty darn quickly. Harvest is already in motion for many wineries, especially those making Sparkling. Speaking of Sparkling, do you remember the rumor I started about Hazelfern doing a Sparkling? Well, sometimes rumors come true. I noticed this week that Hazelfern announced they were picking for Sparkling. Now we only wait 3-5 years! I must admit I have missed not typing some crazy, long,...

Here we are. It’s officially August. The light is at the end of the tunnel for Summer. Have you done everything you wanted to do these past couple of months? I would be shocked if you have. I know there are still many activities and events I plan to check off before Pumpkin Spice Latte goes into full effect. On the brighter side of life, signs of veraison are popping up everywhere. I would love to talk about the growing season and how it is going, but there is no way I will jink anything. We...

I always enjoy looking back on the little things that make me smile throughout my week. The other day I was picking up some precut ham for my lunch. An older lady who worked at the store saw me put the first package of ham into my cart and told me, “Pick one from the back. We just cut those this morning. I am probably not supposed to tell you, but I don’t care.” Her joy from “breaking the rules” to care for another person is outstanding! I only have a few links for you this week, and they are...