"Something special happens in the Pacific Northwest when the sun returns and the flowers bloom. It is hard to beat the first nice days of spring here in Portland. The city comes alive, parks fill up, patios get crowded, and wineries all across the Willamette Valley are packed. Everyone has a smile on their face as we all soak up the much needed vitamin D after a long gray winter. When I was asked to curate the Eater club for the month of May, I immediately thought of the saying “April showers bring May flowers.” All of the wines curated for this club bring out the essence of spring. Many showcase floral and herbaceous aromas; while some are wines that are the perfect pairing for an evening on the patio or an afternoon in the park with friends while you admire said beautiful May flowers. I hope you all enjoy this selection of wine and I hope these wines bring a little spring sunshine into your life. Cheers!" - Whitney Grant, Head of Customer Success at Studio Beverage Group.

Discover each bottle below: 

• Rus Jimenez, Manchuela | La Mancha, Spain; red, moravia agria: “ Crafted from the moravia agria grape, a rare varietal usually only found in central and eastern Spain. This wine is deep and complex with aromas of sweet botanicals and violet; flavors of dark plum, black berry, and tree bark. On the palate the wine is deep, full-bodied with moderate tannins and tangy acidity. Everything cultivated on this farm is certified organic. Yields are just 50 hl/ha and sulfur is kept to a bare minimum. Whole clusters get cold soaked for 4-5 days and the wine is made semi-carbonic. Rus boasts her penchant for minimal intervention.” —  Whitney Grant
• Filipe Ferreira, Douro Branco | Douro, Portugal; white blend, malvasia fina, viosinho, rabigato, gouveio: “A white wine blend of malvasia fina, viosinho, rabigato, and gouveio — all grapes indigenous to Portugal. These varietals have big personalities and created a blend that I really enjoy. It’s bursting with flavors and aromas of citrus blossoms, beeswax, stone fruits like apricots and peaches, and honeysuckle. The finish for me had a nice, citrus-y acid with a touch of minerality. Winemaker Filipe Ferreira takes a low intervention approach when making his wines. Hand-harvested and foot trodden in large concrete troughs, this wine is distinctly Portuguese, and a pure expression of the unique grapes and terroir of the Douro.” — Whitney Grant
• Zajc, Full Circle Frankinja | Posavje, Slovenia; red, blaufränkisch, gamay: “This red wine is fresh and light with a lower alcohol and refreshing acidity; the perfect wine for an afternoon in the park. The blend is 85% blaufrankisch and 15% gamay. Here we have earthy characteristics with flavors of fresh forest berries. The Zajc family winemaking tradition dates back to the second half of the 19th century in a region that is known for fresh and light red and white wines. One of the specialties of the region is Cviček. Also known as the national drink of Slovenia, made only in the Dolenjska region, Cviček is a unique, traditional wine of controlled origin and composition; and, along with Tuscan chianti, is protected by law.” — Whitney Grant
• Christina, Rosé |  Carnuntum, Austria; rosé, zweigelt:  “This bottle screams spring from the label design to the vibrant color. On the palate, this succulent rosé bursts with ripe fruit flavors of strawberry and cherry. It is light and fresh, a wine you can enjoy all spring and well into summer. The zweigelt grapes are hand-harvested and directly pressed in stainless steel tanks, with just a few hours of contact with the skins to provide color. Fermentation takes place under temperature control and lasts about 2 weeks. The wine rests for another 4 weeks and then is racked once, then rests on the lees for another 8 weeks. The wine is bottled unfined and unfiltered, with a small addition of sulfur. ” — Whitney Grant
• Bura-Mrgudić, Plavac Mali ‘Fresh’ | Dalmatia, Croatia; red, plavac mali:  “The Bura Plavac is friendly and inviting, a medium-bodied wine that I serve slightly chilled. It is very aromatic with flavors of black currant, black plum, and cherry. This wine also has hints of fresh herbs which reminds me on a spring herb garden. Croatia, when it comes to wine and winemaking, there is Niko Bura and then there are the rest of the winemakers. This red is the pinnacle of Croatian winemaking and is what all winemakers in Croatia strive for and aim to be. Niko Bura's vineyards are fully organic and are the truest expression of the microclimate and land of Croatia's southern Dalmatian coast.” — Whitney Grant
• Benjamin Ravies, Abymes | Mokelumne River, United States; white, jacquère: “Made from 100% jacquère this wine is light straw in color. It opens with delicate aromas of white flowers, apple blossom, citrus. On the palate, the wine has flavors of citrus and lemony freshness with a mineral finish. Benjamin Ravier works the vines according to HVE 3 standards of sustainability. The vineyard is maintained to protect the integrity of the crop with rigorous attention and minimum phytosanitary products, as well as bare minimum additions of sulphur.  The grapes are hand harvested, pressed very gently, and fermented without maceration in stainless steel. In addition, indigenous yeasts are selected from the vineyards and the wine does not experience secondary malolactic fermentation. Three months of lees contact lend a pleasant textural quality of the wine, as well as a roundness that balances its liveliness and minerality.” — Whitney Grant
• Swick Wines, Chillable Red | Yakima Valley, United States; red, mourvedre, malbec, verdelho, pinot noir:  “Being from the Pacific Northwest I am excited to include a wine from Oregon winemaker Joe Swick. Joe is a 5th generation Oregonian winemaker who captures the true taste of the Pacific Northwest through his wines. Joe sources his grapes from organic, biodynamic, and sustainable vineyards in Oregon and Washington. After years of traveling and harvesting in various pockets of the world, such as Piedmont, Portugal, and Tasmania, Joe returned to Oregon to start his very own label in 2013. He embraces the minimal approach when making his wines such as using native yeasts, aging in old barrels, and adding minimal sulphur during bottling (only when absolutely necessary). While Joe started out with a focus on making Oregon pinot noir, he now has explored many other grape varietals and experiments with different techniques.” — Whitney Grant
• Joannes Protner, Riesling | Styria, Slovenia; white, riesling: “Pretty aromas of spring time flowers, roses, blossoms, along with stonefruits like apricots and peaches with a touch of petrol on the nose. The perfect balance of acidity and residual sugar, this wine is a classic riesling. Environmentally friendly integrated cultivation (sustainable farming) on a small family farm.  Manual harvest of totally clean, healthy grapes, de-stemmed, fermented in a steel tank with no added yeasts, and then matured for one month. Aged for 8 months on lees in old 2,000 liter oak barrels and bottled after one coarse filtering.” — Whitney Grant