Eugene weekly., May 19, 2011, Image 20

R
UNCORKED
Open Weekends!
Saturday & Sunday Noon–5pm
PLAN TO CELEBRATE AT TYEE
R
Ich Bin Ein Pfalzer
Giving German wines a go at ‘S Wine
BY LANCE SPARKS
Memorial Day Weekend
11am–5pm s Each Day
TY CURTIS BAND &
HAYRIDES on Monday
Mon. Admin:Adults: $15 @gate, Kids Free
or $12 Adults, Adv. @ GrassRoots or
www.tyeewine.com
26335 Greenberry Rd. Corvallis
541-753-8754 www.tyeewine.com
LU M OS
WINE COMPANY
Memorial Day Weekend
May 28th, 29th and 30th
Noon to 5pm
Join us in the big ‘ol barn
for the new 2010 whites, our
award-winning pinots, the
killer view and those sweet
little blue butterfl ies.
Live Jazz with the Eddie St.
Claire Jazz Trio on Saturday
and Sunday and the Hot Club
du Jour Gypsy Jazz and Swing
Band on Monday.
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www.lumoswine.com
2 EUGENE WEEKLY’S UNCORKED
ind of a fun
chapter in the lore
of Wine World
tells us that when
the conquering
Roman legions reached the northern
valleys of what is now Germany, they
decided they had also reached the
climatic limits for the growing of wine
grapes — and there was no compelling
reason to conquer a place where they
couldn’t make their wine. (Some of
this might’ve been rationalization,
as the Teutonic tribes were also
really nasty fi ghters who seemed to
delight in slaughter and mayhem, a
fact that centuries later came back
on southerners when the armies of
Goths and Visigoths sacked Rome and,
in effect, became the Holy Roman
Empire.)
In any case, the Romans were
wrong, at least in part, because wine
grapes (some) thrive in those cooler
regions, and the wines made there are
delicious, complex and versatile with a
broad range of foods.
Still, it’s well known among wine retailers that there’s
almost no harder sell — especially to Americans — than
German wines.
So why would a smart, energetic wine entrepreneur like
Monika McEachern choose to specialize in German wines,
and locate her attractive little store in, of all places, tiny,
rural Pleasant Hill? Partly, McEachern says, because she’s
German-bred (though actually born in Sydney, Australia),
and knows and loves the wines of that region. “I’m doin’
okay,” she says.
McEachern’s shop, ’S Wine, is located in the Ray’s
shopping center, in what amounts to the urban core of Pleasant
Hill, just off Highway 58, about a 10-plus minute drive from
Eugene. It’s small, warm and welcoming, with antique tables
and comfy chairs (outside seating in summer). The walls
are decorated by works from local artists, with a retail space
displaying porcelains, salad dressings, chocolates, even a few
beers. McEachern also serves her homemade soups and breads
(try her whole wheat with fl ax, chewy crust and soft middle
— delish), plus cheeses and other nibbles to accompany
tastes and/or glasses of her selected wines: whites, reds, rosés,
sparklers and incredible dessert wines.
Also on display are about 50 German wines, all from the
Pfalz and Baden regions of southern Germany, much less
known than wines from the northern river valleys of the
Moselle and Rhine. (And these are the regions where the
Romans ended up planting their grapes and making their
wines; just ask McEachern and she’ll show you the maps
and pics.)
Pfalz and Baden are warmer — “And the soils are much
different,” McEachern adds — and although the growers
there, like their northland neighbors, favor the Riesling
grape, they also grow some notable other grapes, even some
reds. “The wines really sell themselves,” McEachern says.
“The trick is to get people in here to try them. Once they
taste, they usually come back for a bottle.”
McEachern, 53, is attractive and dynamic, with short-cut
reddish hair, bright blue eyes, a snappy grin and a big laugh.
The daughter of a German diplomat, she grew up in various
capitals across the world before settling, with musician
husband William McEachern, in Pleasant Hill in 1991.
K
M O N I KA M C E AC H E R N
P H OTO BY TO D D CO O P E R
In her own terms, she’s “Small Monika” (she stands a
shade over fi ve feet) to distinguish her from “Big Monika”
(maybe 5’10’’), who is Monika Rauch, her close friend and
another force in importing (owner of Kastle Hill, importer of
select wines) and selling the wines of Pfalz and Baden.
Together, Rauch and McEachern have traveled the
regions where both originated, and they work closely to
choose and promote the wines. Recently, Big Monika
succeeded in placing, as wine specials, two of her selections
in Sabai, the popular new Thai restaurant in the Oakway
Center. The wines — an off-dry Riesling and a Scheurebe
— brilliantly complement the spicy and lively Thai dishes.
“They’re also great with Indian cuisine,” says “Small
Monika.”
These German white wines are fresh, with pear/apple/
citrus fl avors, usually with a touch of sweetness that rounds
out the fl avors but is balanced with a zesty acidity that keeps
them from seeming cloying or fl abby. The reds rely on a
grape called Dornfelder, but also include Spatburgunder
(pinot noir, though of course the Germans don’t use the
French name).
Still not sure? Daunted a little by the labels and problems
of pronunciation? Think you’d like to try before you buy? “I
let people pick,” McEachern says. “Then I’ll open a bottle,
let them taste, then sell the rest by the glass. So that’s really
kinda fun.”
Prices are moderate. Glass pours run to $6, and bottles
range between $17 to an upper end of $38 (that special
Spatburgunder) to $54 for a half-bottle of spectacular dessert
wine designated as Beerenauslese.
‘S Wine has been in its location only two months,
but it’s already a social hub, even offering live music on
some weekend nights. “I have a lot of regulars already,’
McEachern says. Easy to see why: Between the delicious
wines, the cozy space and the gracious, fun-loving presence
of “Small Monika” McEachern, the little shop just rocks
bucolic Pleasant Hill. It’s a brief drive to a good time and
new discoveries.
If the Romans had only known… F
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