New Year’s Eve – Oregon Style

Tonight I’ll be ringing in 2013 with a toast to Oregon, Oregon wine and the Oregon wine industry. I absolutely, positively LOVE Oregon Pinot Noir. Our Pinots are elegant, lush, juicy, fruity, silky and just plain beautiful all around – they are, for sure, some of the world’s finest. So, what better way is there to celebrate than to pour some of Oregon’s world-class Pinot Noir and Oregon Sparkling Wine into my glasses on New Year’s Eve? None. This is the way an Oregon wine gal celebrates:

Ingredients for an Oregon-style New Year’s Eve Celebration ~

Hot Caramelized Onion Dip with Bacon and Gruyère and a bottle of Blakelsee Vineyard 2010 Vineyard Estate Chehalem Mountains Oregon Pinot Noir. Oregon Dungeness Crab,1 bottle of King Estate 2008 Blanc de Noirs Methode Champenoise Oregon Sparkling Wine.

I make the Hot Caramelized Onion Dip with Bacon and Gruyère every year for New Year’s Eve. The creamy, melted cheese along with the sweetly tangy onions and salty bacon is simply divine with Oregon Pinot Noir. I chose Blakeslee Pinot for two reasons: 1. This Pinot showcases the Chehalem Mountain AVA terroir to perfection – aromas and flavors of ripe blackberries, dark juicy cherries, fall pie spice and earth are well rounded by beautiful acidity. A Luscious front and mid-palate mouthfeel ends with solid tannins and earthy notes. Delicious. 2. Winemaker Robert Brittan, who I wrote about here, makes wine for the Blakeslee’s, starting with the 2010 vintage. I have yet to have a wine made by Brittan that is anything less than out-of-this-world delicious. Blakeslee Pinot Noir + Dip = Heavenly. I’ll toast to that.

Oregon Dungeness Crab, the best crab in the world in my humble opinion, comes from the breathtakingly beautiful Oregon Coast, and this year, December 31 happened to be the first day of the crabbing season. HOORAY! There’s nothing like Oregon Dungeness Crab alongside a chilled glass of Oregon Sparkling Wine. Steam it and dip it in melted butter. King Estate’s 2008 Blanc de Noirs is a Brut style sparkling wine that was aged sur lie for 26 months prior to riddling and disgorging, which adds complexity to the honeycrisp apple and lemon zest aroma and flavors. The zesty lemon qualities are exactly why this sparkling wine is an immaculate match with Oregon Dungeness Crab. Pure bliss.

Now it’s time to sign off the computer, and tune into the Big Apple on the TV, the festivities are about to begin! Cheers and Happy New Year from Oregon’s beautiful Willamette Valley!