Sam Slaughter (pictured above with winemaker Dave), food and drink editor for The Manual — an e-magazine targeted to men — visited us in the spring to taste through our current wine line-up. Slaughter, who is based in the South and has written for more than 40 publications, was touring the Willamette Valley specifically on the hunt for wines other than Pinot Noir. He recently recapped his findings in this article, “Where to Drink White Wine in the Willamette Valley.”
In the feature, he acknowledges the region’s abundance of Pinot Noir, writing, “The red wine is made in abundance in the area, thanks to a climate, soil conditions, and winemakers who know how to work with the notoriously fickle grape… The thing is, pinot isn’t the only thing being produced in the area. With hundreds of wineries, there are tons of options for those looking for something a little different. With the harvest season here, we decided to put together a brief guide of wineries in the Willamette Valley that are producing great non-pinot wines.”
In addition to writing about three other producers, here’s what Slaughter wrote about us:
“Located just north of Newberg, Oregon, Bells Up Winery was established by Dave Specter – a former corporate tax attorney – and his wife Sara Pearson Specter in 2012. Named both after the location of the winery (Bell Road) and Dave’s two decades of experience as a French Horn player, the boutique winery has been producing wines since the mid 2010s. Its flagship release, Titan, is of course a pinot noir, but Bells Up also produces two white wines – a Seyval Blanc (“Helios”) which is sadly sold out currently, and Rhapsody, a Pinot Blanc produced in 2018 that expresses rich grapefruit notes and a good amount of minerality. More tropical fruit notes on the palate lead to a rich drinking experience from beginning to end.”
Although yes, we’ve been sold out of the 15 cases of Fanfare Club Exclusive 2018 Helios Seyval Blanc, we WILL be pouring the 2018 Rhapsody Pinot Blanc during our Holiday Hornucopia Open House hours. There are only a handful of cases remaining of this wine, so plan to come in between noon – 4:00 p.m. the weekend before Thanksgiving (November 23-24), or the weekend after Thanksgiving (November 29, 30 and December 1). No appointment necessary during those five days.
