Decoded: Blends

Let’s talk blends, and what the language your local wine shop representative uses actually means. At the top of the blending language list we have Champagne and Bordeaux. The word Champagne is synonymous with being expensive, of quality, for celebrations, and from Champagne, France.  Champagne is generally made…

Decoded: Blending

Blending is essential for all wines.  It can be argued that if it were not for blending by way of cross pollination or grafting of rootstocks most varieties of grapes that wines were originally made from would have gone extinct at this point in time, replaced by a…

Decoded: Oregon Chardonnay

While Chardonnay takes a distant third place in plantings in Oregon (behind Pinot Noir and Pinot Gris), more interest, investment and development has continued to be behind growth and plantings of the grape to develop its market presence and the potential diversity of its stylings. Oregon Chardonnay runs…

Decoded: Eola-Amity Hills

While we’ve dedicated most of the month to decorating the Pinots from Oregon, Chardonnay is the third most grown grape in the Willamette Valley, and routinely compared to the Chardonnays of Burgundy – which can be credited to Robert Drouhin who “discovered” the potential of Oregon soil in…

Decoded: Chehalem Mountains

Last month saw the release of our Lot 627 Chehalem Mountains Pinot Noir, a sub appellation of the Willamette Valley in the northwestern reaches of the region.  As always, Cam’s notes will speak well towards the wine, but let’s look deeper into the region itself. While Papa Pinot…

Decoded: Dundee Hills

In March of this year we released our Lot 586 Pinot Noir from the Dundee Hills sub-appellation of the Willamette Valley in Oregon.  While Cam’s video can tell you about the wine itself, let’s look at the AVA that pretty much started it all in Oregon. As stated…

Wine Decoded: Oak vs. Stainless Steel

If you’ve ever purchased wine in a restaurant or wine shop where a Sales Associate was in tow, I’m sure you’ve heard time and time again the mention of oak aged or stainless steel aged in regard to the wines.  American oak, French oak, Hungarian oak, stainless steel,…

State of Oregon with "OR" overlaid on a vineyard photograph

It’s Oregon Wine Month!

To begin celebrating Oregon Wine Month here at Cameron Hughes Wine, we’d like to take a little time to discuss the ever-more-decorated state’s history and breakdown it’s Willamette Valley appellation. An overview: The story of Oregon Pinot and the Willamette Valley (in an organized fashion) begin with a…

Friends toasting with cocktails in bar

Proof: The Science of Booze by Adam Rogers

If you’re at all interested in going deep into the history and chemistry of the drinks we drink every day, this is an amazing, in-depth read (or listen as I’m enjoying the 15+ hour audio book version) that is far from boring and makes everyone’s favorite (insert sarcasm…