Thanksgiving 2015, Day 1

[stefan]

Thanksgiving 2015, Day 1

Lucie and I arrived in Eugene 12:30 AM on the Monday before Thanksgiving. On Monday, while stefanJr, Irena, and I were busy working and Shea and Elle were in school, Lucie began shopping for the busy week ahead. She came across some very fresh Alaskan steelhead at Safeway, of all places, so we began the week with grilled steelhead and

2001 Shea Wine Cellars Shea Vineyard Pinot Noir. The 2001 Oregon vintage is not highly regarded, so I did not expect much from the two ‘01s that I purchased at auction. I opened the Shea Shea an hour and a half before dinner. The nose was mesmerizing, so I recorked it. With the faux salmon it continued to sing. The body is light, but the taste is very pure. This wine is a wonderful surprise for us all. stefan 92. Lucie 96 (sic). stefanJr 91. Irena 93.

We followed with a more famous OR estate

2001 Cristom Louise Vineyard Pinot Noir. Dusty nose. This wine is more concentrated than the Shea Shea, but less interesting IMO. “After tasting this I see that I underrated the Shea,” remarks stefanJr. “Yes, indeed,” I think. Still, the Cristom is also a pleasant surprise. stefan 90. Lucie 92. Irena 93. stefanJr 89.

Monday was a very good beginning to the week. Elle and I even managed to beat Shea and Irena in Silly Monkey, mainly because I cheated just a bit better than Shea. But it was close; I will avoid playing poker with her.

Added 11/24. After dinner stefanJr was still thirsty and wanted something different, so I opened

1983 La Lagune. The best bottles of this oldish wine are outstanding, while this one was about average. My Ah-So pushed the cork down, but I was able to get it back up and extract it with a Screwball. The bouquet of the wine was very good and the tannins surprisingly strong, but the fruit was sufficient to balance the tannin. stefan 89. Lucie 90. stefanJr 88.

[Claret]

Nice start to the annual festivities stefan.

My experience with 01 is limited and it is nice to see this pair performing.

Looking forward to your notes in the coming days.

[jal]

I like Cristom, but Stefan, you have a lot more experience than I do with OR Pinots, do you think that aging Oregon Pinots that long is beneficial? I just don't remember ever drinking one that was older than 5 or 6 years.
Enjoy the Holiday, it is almost impossible to find everything we need in Israel for Thanksgiving but Jill insists on a holiday dinner so we'll do our best.

[Jay Winton]

It's always a good start to the holiday season to read your tasting notes from Oregon.

[AKR]

I like Cristom, but Stefan, you have a lot more experience than I do with OR Pinots, do you think that aging Oregon Pinots that long is beneficial? I just don't remember ever drinking one that was older than 5 or 6 years.
Enjoy the Holiday, it is almost impossible to find everything we need in Israel for Thanksgiving but Jill insists on a holiday dinner so we'll do our best.

How come other countries don't eat turkey?

It ought to be similar to raising chicken, well except that they're bigger and ornerier.

My American friends in Japan are constantly bemoaning the lack of turkeys.

Both of our houses in different states are afflicted with wild turkeys (not the kind one enjoys with cola) who will seize your lawn and squawk at the dog if allowed to establish territorial dominance.

[stefan]

Thanks, all.

Some Oregon PNs age very well, Jacques. The '02 SIs are fantastic now. I expect that the '99 SIs are near their peak. The '01 Shea Shea is certainly at its peak, and the Cristom will probably improve for my taste.

The year we lived in Israel our Thanksgiving turkey was purchased in the Christian part of the Old City. No one from West Jerusalem shops there now, of course. Neither Lucie nor I remembers if we had cranberries, but there was no problem getting pumpkin for the pie.

[Nicklasss]

Good start stefan. Looking forward for more. Looks like lot of Oregon pinot will be consumed, more than turkey.

Nic

[AlohaArtakaHoundsong]

Amazon Prime = turkey in Tel Aviv. Just saying.

[JimHow]

A great tradition continues. A lot for which to be thankful!

[JCNorthway]

Agree on both, Jim. Looking forward to the continuing days of Thanksgiving in Portland.

[Jay Winton]

I know we're not eating turkey in Argentina. I was told by a local that no one eats turkey!

[jal]

Israel is actually the world leader in turkey consumption per capita
http://www.internationalpoultrycouncil. ... Capita.pdf
It's just that it's usually consumed as cold cuts or shawarma.
Funny enough, Turkey is last. even lower than Argentina Jay.
It was very difficult to find a whole one, though. Eventually I ordered a 5kg turkey from a gourmet butcher shop who charged me an arm and a leg for a turkey that, when it came, was much bigger than 5kg and may not fit in the oven.
Oh well, time to go make some stuffing. Happy thanksgiving everyone!

[DavidG]

Stefan, I always look forward to reading your annual holiday family tasting notes.

A high-school friend spent a summer on a kibbutz where his job was to artificially inseminate the turkeys.
You can imagine the nickname which arose from that. And his lack of enthusiasm for turkey ever since.
Also gave new meaning, for him anyway, to "flipping the bird."

Happy Thanksgiving to all!

[stefan]

Were the feet stuffed into your turkey, Jacques? That is the way ours came from the Christian butcher in the Old City.

[dstgolf]

Stefan,

This has surely become an annual BWE tradition that we all look forward to. Wine notes by the bucket load and food descriptions that leave us envious.

Something about Kosher turkey that still stands out as the juiciest birds we've ever had. Not sure if they're fresher, processed differently but certainly around Ottawa when we can find them they have been the best. Only way we've come close is by brining but I don't think that this is part of the Kosher processing.

Wild turkeys have exploded in our region as well. They no longer have natural preditors with regional farmers being allowed to trap/kill coyotes/foxes and coy wolves. They've moved in to some neighborhoods and have become a menace. On the golf course they crap everywhere and foot prints through the bunkers drive us nuts. We'd love to cull the flocks but they are still protected but people are getting fed up with the increasing numbers.

Have a Happy Thanksgiving to all and keep the notes coming.

[stefan]

Danny, Koshering turkey involves brining it to get out the blood. Unlike e.g. Catholics, observant Jews do not practice vampirism (or even cannibalism, for that matter).

For a while stefanJr & Irena's yard was on the wild turkey trail, but we have not seen any this trip.

[Claret]

+1 on Kosher birds