SALUD! Prints and a Pint

On the way back from hanging art at PeaceHealth's HQ in Vancouver I took a little side trip down to Carlton and took a couple of shots of Scott Paul's tasting room hoping to find the perfect one to begin my etching. This year I am printing ten small sets of etchings and one set on wood like this one in my show last year at the Jordan Schnitzer Museum.The print on the left is the one I did last year for Ken Wright.

I think I got a couple of good ones to start with. I dropped my jars off at Republic of Jam then went around the corner to taste a bit at Troon. I got there in time for Cate to pour me a taste of a wine I had not had in the states, or at least did not remember. A few years ago on a trip to Europe, Chris tasted and fell in love with Vermentino. The best known examples come from northern Italy (particularly in the region of Liguria) and the island of Sardinia, where the wines are crisp, citrusy and generally unoaked. It is a fairly common wine served with fresh seafood and is a perfect match to the daytime meals. In '06 Troon grafted it to Chardonnay roots that were planted in '72 and it is the first to be grown in Oregon. It has also been grown in the Paso Robles area since about '94.
This '11 wine is made with 12% Viognier, adding a nice nose and a little more flowery notes to a bright, clean, and crisp wine with distinctive citrus character, refreshing acidity and surprising richness. I picked up a couple of bottles and plan on serving them at our next deck outing.
After a quick visit to R.Stuart's wine bar in Mac I drove down to Salem for a bite and a beer with my friend Rebecca, winemaker savant at Ghost Hill. We met at The Brick and sat outside. Salem has done such a great job keeping the downtown vital. There is outside cafe seating everywhere and all the tables were full.
I had a beer from my home town Ninkasi's Total Domination and one of The Brick's Bun-less Burgers. Perfect match! If you have not had this beer pr any of the others they make you are loosing out. It is the best beer I have ever tasted and, at 63, I have tasted a few, both here and all over the world.
Next trip will be to take shots at Penner-Ash.