Happy Mother’s Day! Today we honor Susan Sokol Blosser, and suggest a Mother’s Day pairing of takeout Thai with the 2020 Sokol Blosser Evolution Lucky No. 9 White for all the hard working moms out there. Because while moms may enjoy cooking, sometimes it’s nice to have Thai takeout and a bottle of nice yet affordable wine when the schedule gets too busy and intense.

Why Susan Sokol Blosser and this wine? Back in 1998, when people didn’t believe that anyone could grow Pinot Noir or Chardonnay in Willamette Valley, Susan Sokol Blosser did– and now May celebrates Oregon Wine Month with plenty of great Oregon Pinot Noir and Chardonnay (read more here)! That took some mothering! With a deep reverence for the environment, Susan led the efforts for Sokol Blosser in Dundee Oregon to get B Corp-certified– more mothering for planet and people. As a forerunner in instituting environmentally friendly business practices and practicing the triple bottom line concept of people, planet, profit Susan led efforts for certification for their 98 acre organic vineyards, to build the first LEED certified winery building in the U.S., and other business practices based on the Natural Step model of sustainability. They farm estate vineyards organically and received full USDA (United States Department of Agriculture) organic certification in 2005, plus they are certified through Oregon Department of Agriculture. Under Susan’s leadership, Sokol Blosser Winery made social responsibility and its environmental ethic priorities. More great mothering efforts.

Susan started out with a B.A. from Stanford University, and later she was awarded an Honorary Doctorate of Public Service from the University of Portland because of her entrepreneurship within the context of environmental and social responsibility. As an author,  her memoir, At Home in the Vineyard: Cultivating a Winery, an Industry, and a Life, was published by the University of California Press in 2006, and her business philosophy, Gracious & Ruthless: Surprising Strategies for Business Success, came out in 2008, the same year she turned the presidency of Sokol Blosser Winery over to her children, stepping back with the title of Founder.

Yes, Susan is a mom too, and she instilled these environmental and triple bottom line values in all three of her children, Nik, Alex and Alison, who have lend their hands to the success of Sokol Blosser today. About 15 years ago Alex and Allison took over the business from Susan, but recently Alison Sokol Blosser stepped down as co-presidents with Alex to shift her focus to her  own family. Winemaker Robin Howell joined Sokol Blosser in 2012 as enologist, taking over sparkling wine production in 2018, and she continues today.

More on why this wine and this pairing to honor Susan Sokol Blosser and moms everywhere: in 1998, Susan Sokol Blosser asked for a white blend to complement some of her favorite foods like sushi and other Asian-fusion style foods. Evolution Lucky No. 9 blended nine grapes and today includes eight: Riesling, Pinot Gris, Muller Thürgau, Semillon, Sauvignon Blanc, Muscat Canelli, Chardonnay and Gewürztraminer.  So we went with a neighborhood Thai restaurant, Moon Thai takeout; read the results below. 

Pro-Tip: Pick up a card, a gift card for a favorite Thai restaurant, and order this wine (and maybe a sparkling!) for the mom in your life to present today! Oh and flowers are always nice too– either a live one to plant or a bouquet.

Cheers to the moms in your life!

2020 Sokol Blosser Evolution Lucky No. 9 White Wine Blend

ABV: 12.0%
SRP: $16
Grapes: blend of 8 grapes Riesling, Pinot Gris, Muller Thürgau, Semillon, Sauvignon Blanc, Muscat Canelli, Chardonnay, Gewürztraminer sourced 88% Columbia Valley, 12% Willamette Valley 
sample for our review plus a $50 gift card for pairing

Thank you, Sokol Blosser, for giving us the opportunity to sample your wine with spicy take out foods. We would not have done this on our own, but we definitely enjoyed our night off. We were both exhausted and this option was such a sweet relief! We enjoyed the wine so much I neglected to get any straight bottle shots! 

Appearance:  Pale lemon, straw, very clear.

Aroma: Jack fruit, chamomile, guava, ripe kiwi, white flowers, would make a lovely perfume, 

Palate: Pineapple, nice bright acidity, tart lemon, terragon, minerals, fleshy, not austere, good acidity but not mouthwatering. 

Pairing: Very tasty with our spicy chicken satay, loving the rich flavors of the peanut and the grilled chicken, would be great with grilled chicken in the summertime. The wine was perfect with the Tom Yum soup loving the heat, sweet and complexity of the soup. With the Crab fried rice I got the essence of cat pee and licorice while Sue found it lovely bringing out fresh peach and nectarine flavors in the wine. Our pumpkin curry was a bit too sweet for the wine;  it likes the richness but the sweetness of the pumpkin overwhelms the wine. 

Here’s to all the moms and all the mothering that takes place to take care of people and planet! 

And to finish off this post, here’s a picture of my son and I at Burning Man 2022. Isn’t that what every mother-son dup dreams of doing together? This was our 9th year– his first year at Burning Man he wasn’t quite two and I was still breast feeding him!