Episode 134 of The Drinking Hour podcast is a Turkish wine special. Host David Kermode speaks to Sarah Abbott MW and Turkish wine writer and critic, Gözdem Gürbüzatik, about Turkey’s wine industry, the challenges faced by producers, the indigenous grapes, which number more than 1,000, and the country’s appealing wine styles.
Vines were first cultivated in Turkey more than 6,000 years ago and, while wine production in the country has ebbed and flowed over the centuries, it still has the fifth largest vineyard area in the world. Legislation passed in 2013 forced Turkish winemakers to focus on their vineyards as much as their wines and this has quietly revolutionised the Turkish wine scene; the result is that Turkey’s native varieties from old vineyards are now behind some of the most exciting wines in the country. Listen to the podcast to follow the journey of Turkish wine and to hear about what you can expect from the country’s most prominent and promising grapes.
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