Savor the South

New event highlights Rogue Valley wines

By Paula Bandy

Travel Medford plans to deliver the next best wine event to the Rogue Valley. With more than 75 grape varieties grown throughout the area, this celebration will include wines from the Rogue Valley American Viticultural Area, or AVA, along with its nested Applegate Valley growing region.

Carole Skeeters-Stevens, chief marketing officer at Travel Medford, explains, “The exit of Oregon Wine Experience left a hole in the wine community. We felt it was a natural evolution to do something to support it and our many wine lovers. Travel Medford’s goal is to increase visitation, so we’re working hard to spread awareness of our wineries from outside the area. As a nonprofit organization, we’re able to produce a really great event and return everything right back into it.”

Once again, huge tents and lounge areas will appear on the grassy field of Jacksonville’s Bigham Knoll Campus for the first Savor Southern Oregon. The festival, held June 13-14, includes a VIP tasting, educational wine classes along with a grand tasting.

Friday’s VIP tasting will be one of indulgence in an intimate setting when winemakers and owners pour samples of their finest library and reserve wines. It provides an opportunity to learn important vintage details while tasting special bottles only available to sip and purchase this evening.

Held in the schoolhouse, the educational courses promise to be both enjoyable and engaging. On Friday, expert winemakers, led by a moderator, will explore Rogue Valley wines– detailing information about the region, discussing the concept of terroir and why specific grape varieties thrive in the area.

Skeeters-Stevens notes, “I’m particularly excited about the second session on Saturday since it’s frequently debated in my home. What is Southern Oregon’s signature grape variety? Do we have one? Do we need one? For the past two decades, we haven’t established a definitive answer– both a blessing and a curse.

Expect winemakers to advocate for different wines, reflecting our diverse array of offerings. Samples, along with discussion, will focus on some of these wines.”
The third session, also Saturday, features an elevated blind tasting of wines scoring 90 points or higher.

What to know

Sample appetizers created by local chefs during the VIP event. Food will be available for purchase at the grand tasting, but, as Skeeters-Steven’s emphasizes, this is not a major food event. “It’s about bringing people together. Visitors to the area are often surprised by our wines. Our history is compelling and wineries are authentic. It’s exciting to introduce people to what we already know about this region– our world class, yet approachable, wines. We are lucky to have such diversity… there really is something for everyone. This is why it’s focused. It’s our backyard.”

Expect over 50 local wineries are expected to participate, with a wine competition judged by Californian Dr. Liz Thach, Master of Wine; Michael Alberty, wine columnist with The Oregonian and writer for Wine Enthusiast; and Jonathan Cristaldi, Decanter Magazine’s Napa wine critic. All awards are announced on June 9.

“From the wine industry standpoint, I’m excited to bring us back together again. It’s been a long time since the final Oregon Wine Experience. Not only is it great to share our exceptional wines, but also for our community to gather again,” Skeeters-Stevens says. “We have a strong industry of wonderful people. Bringing the Rogue Valley wine industry together to share wines with our community and wine enthusiasts from all around is really what this is all about.”

Savor Southern Oregon
June 13−14
Tickets: $48-100
savorsouthernoregon.com
Bigham Knoll Campus, Jacksonville

Paula Bandy and her dachshund, Copperiño, are often seen at Rogue Valley’s finest wineries, working to solve the world’s problems. She has covered wine, lifestyle, food and home in numerous publications and academic work in national and international journals. For a decade she was an essayist/on-air commentator and writer for Jefferson Public Radio, Southern Oregon University’s NPR affiliate. Most recently she penned The Wine Stream, a bi-weekly wine column for the Rogue Valley Times. Paula believes wine, like beauty, can save the world. She’s also a Certified Sherry Wine Specialist and creates a line of jewelry, pb~bodyvine, offered through boutiques and galleries. @_paulabandy.