Particularly at this time of year, scents can be strong memory enhancers.
For instance, if I smell mulled wine orgl hwein, I feel like I’m nine years old again, sitting in a small motel room on a ski trip to Bend in December. On the stove in the kitchenette, the grownups are warming up some red wine to add lemon segments and other seasonings. The mixture smelled wonderful, but I was never able to taste it.
I have two entertaining ideas for you if you like the glow that comes from a mug of warm wine flavored with fruit and spices. Two of Oregon’s oldest continually running wineries, Honeywood Winery in Salem and Nehalem Bay Winery in Nehalem, are responsible for these beloved Christmas wines.
You can still enjoy these wines long after the holidays are over, so don’t worry. Mulled wine can be enjoyed in Oregon for the majority of the year because they are ideal for any chilly, wet night.
Holiday Cheer from Honeywood Winery ($13–11% ABV)
Marlene Gallick is the current owner of Honeywood Winery, which was established in 1934 by John Wood and Ronald Honeyman. Perhaps none of Honeywood’s wines in its ninety-year existence have been as well-liked as Holiday Cheer, which debuted in 1995 under the name Holiday Nog.
Holiday Cheer is a riesling that has been mixed with clove, orange essence, and cranberry juice concentrate. It tastes and smells like blood orange juice, cranberry pastille, with a hint of clove. It’s not quite as sweet as I had anticipated, and it’s the color of the red stripe on a candy cane.
Leslie Gallick, Honeywood’s general manager and Marlene’s daughter, sent me the official Honeywood holiday spritzer recipe, which I modified somewhat, even though Holiday Cheer can be served hot or cold.
Fill a wine glass with four ounces of chilled Holiday Cheer and then one ounce of chilled club soda. Add orange slices, mint or rosemary sprigs, and perhaps a cinnamon stick if you like your drinks spicy.
A raging fire in the fireplace and Pink Martini’s Joy to the World CD go well with this light and refreshing delight.
10 a.m. to 5 p.m. Mon–Wed, 10 a.m.–6 p.m. Thursday–Friday, 11 a.m.–6 p.m. 11 a.m. to 5 p.m. on Saturday. Sunday (holiday hours), 1350 Hines St. S.E., Salem,honeywoodwinery.comor 503-362-4111.
Nehalem Bay Winery Santa s Elixir $25 11% ABV
Nehalem Bay Winery started when former broadcasterPatrick McCoyturned an abandoned creamery on the Oregon coast into a winery in 1974. McCoy later took on decorated war hero and philanthropist Ray Shackleford as a partner in 1991. When McCoy died in 1993, Shackleford became Nehalem Bay Winery s sole owner.
In the early 1990s the winery also began making Santa s Elixir, which mixes Nehalem Bay s very popular cranberry wine, Cranper , with orange peel and clove.
Santa s Elixir is the color of that jolly old elf s fur-trimmed suit. When tasted slightly chilled, aka room temperature in my drafty kitchen, the wine s tartness and acidity counterpoint a trace of sweetness. The aromas and flavors of cranberry do not drown out the orange and clove.
The folks at Nehalem Bay recommend heating Santa s Elixir on low in a crockpot for one to two hours, depending on taste. Pour it into a coffee mug and garnish with a cinnamon stick or fresh orange peel and clove if you want to take it up a notch.
I tried it with a small star anise, which always reminds me of the Christmas star, and it was a great combination. Warmed up, Santa s Elixir perfectly accompanies a turkey sandwich consumed while watching Christmas, Again, the 2014 holiday classic starring Kentucker Audley.
10 a.m.-5 p.m. daily, 34965 Highway 53, Nehalem,nehalembaywinery.comor 503-368-9463.
— Michael Alberty writes about wine for The Oregonian/OregonLive and Wine Enthusiast Magazine. He can be reached at [email protected]. To read more of his coverage, go tooregonlive.com/wine
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