We just spent an amazing time up at Maysara Winery with their winemaker, Tahmiene Momtazi. Tahmiene (pronounced Ta-ME-nah) is an absolutely infectious person. Every time I've been around her I've learned so much about wine, and there seems to be a weird time warp where the next thing I know two hours have flown out the window somewhere. Tahmiene is the most unassuming person I've ever met. She is (according to my sources) the youngest winemaker in the US. She is 26 years old, and this year will be a featured winemaker at the annual "Pinot Camp" here in Oregon. That says a lot for such a young talent.
Kathy Campbell and I (of Wednesday Wines) were out trying to figure out a fundraising dinner for Habitat For Humanity here in McMinnville. Before we could look around we had to taste some wines. We were blessed to taste three '08 white wines still in their stainless steel containers. They are amazing wines. While we were at it we scored the last three bottles of '07 Pinot Blanc. I can not even imagine what it must be like to have one of your wines sell out, let alone to have it take place when you are only 26. If our tastes were any indication, the '08's will be every bit as good, and maybe better. The fate of the '07 Pinot Blanc was sealed when Matt Kramer the wine columnist for the Oregonian singled out Tahmiene's wine in one of his Sunday columns. My advice would be to get in line early for the '08 version. The fruit bouquet is astounding. There is a slight minerality along with a hint of natural tannins. How a white wine that was separated from the skins immediately after harvest, and spent no time in oak has these diverse qualities I will never know. Tahmiene says it's typical of the grapes that grow on their sight and in the McMinnville AVA.
There has been some concern that the '07 Pinot Noirs will be a bit off and perhaps a bit watery when compared to past years. We were privileged enough to taste a few of them, and I just want to say at least the Maysara versions are fantastic. We purchased a case of the '07 Jamsheed Pinot Noir. This is an amazing wine. It is such a blessing to find a $24 a bottle, of Demeter certified Pinot Noir that tastes this good right in my own back yard. It's a blessing to know Tahmiene. Her parents must be very proud of her and the quality of her achievements as a winemaker. She will absolutely hate this article because she would very much prefer to stay behind the scenes and not call attention to herself. (Thus the lack of picture of her for this posting--just a shot of her wines!) It is impressive to me that the Momtazi family not only blesses us with fantastic wines, but is willing to partner with us to raise funds for Habitat for Humanity. This summer we are going to have a concert out at Maysara, and we will be blessed to partake of Tahmiene's wines. At the same time, we will participate is raising funds to help another family move into a brand new home. I'm not sure life gets any better than that.