Life in the Slow Lane

I am one of the luckiest people on the planet! I really mean it! I live in the Umpqua Valley with it’s natural beauty, tremendous climate and the amazing wine. Each weekend is an adventure for me touring the Umpqua in search of fabulous wines and meeting other like minded, kindred wine spirits on the same quest!

So Sunday, my husband and I found ourselves with a day off. It was time to do a bit of wine research on our own and we knew exactly where we needed to go. The day before we had visited Palotai Vineyards and found Gabor’s "Indigo" a big red blend, recently released, better then ever. Yum! Yum! Yum! And we had stopped with our guests at Giardet Wine Cellars and really enjoyed the Grand Rouge as well
as their well known Baco Noir. But this day it was the newly released Pinot Noir by Becker Vineyards we were out to try.

As we arrived at The Becker Vineyards tasting room, we were greeted warmly by Peggy and Charlie Becker. They had some wine guests just finishing up tasting and we all talked wine for a few minutes. Their Pinot Gris and Rose were not new to me and I had tasted their Pinot before, but only out of the barrel. As we sipped the Pinot I marveled at it’s evolution from barrel to bottle. The tannins were soft and the cherry fruit easily identifiable. As the Becker’s poured us another taste I was struck by how accessible and easy to drink this wine was. Somewhat unusual for such a young wine! We were then treated to a taste of their Syrah and Cabernet Sauvignon
both still in barrels. These wines were impressive with the Syrah exhibiting classic Syrah pepper notes and the Cabernet Sauvignon, deep and rich with plenty of cherry and black cherry fruit.

Since the day was winding down and the tasting room was closing, the Becker’s invited us to join them on their beautiful deck overlooking their vineyard for a further examination of their delicious Pinot Noir. How could we refuse? So for the next hour we talked wine and friendship and hard work and passion and through the whole wonderful discussion,we were sipping this great wine. The weather had begun to change a bit earlier in the day and it now began to thunder,lightning and rain! Big drops and loud bangs were upon us and we were delighted. The magical weather seemed fitting for this magical time the four of us were experiencing. We continued sipping Pinot talking and watching the lightning bolts as they crackled through the sky. No one even considered moving out of the rain!

This amazing afternoon spent on the deck of Becker Vineyards won‘t soon be forgotten! It does not get any better then this. Yes, I am one of the luckiest people on the planet. And for those of you reading this who live right here in The Umpqua Valley,you are as well! Truly memorable, magical experiences that occur when you bring fine wine, beautiful surroundings and passionate people together are available to all of us living here. Just spend an afternoon visiting one or two
of our family owned wineries and I have no doubt a magical afternoon will emerge for you too!