Rose of the World

Rose of the World! That was her name. Gülcihan; when literally translated, "gül," meaning rose in Turkish, and "cihan" is world. We only met briefly, about two months ago. It was a wine-tasting event in Ankara; her smile was contagious, warm and hugging. 

Together with her husband we found ourselves deep in a conversation, when I mentioned about a friend of mine who visited them back in October. She started to tell me about the food she prepared for him, with all the details, the amazing local chickpeas she used in the hummus, the local lamb she slow-cooked in the oven, and so on. She open-heartedly invited me too, which I voluntarily accepted. I wish I could do so now. 

Last week, physicist and wine grower Gülcihan Ağaoğlu died at the age of 69.She was the co-founder of the winery Tomurcuk Bağ in Kalecik, near Ankara. Together with her husband Prof. Dr. Sabit Ağaoğlu, she embarked on a wine journey as producers of artisanal wines a decade ago, although her personal journey with wines was a lifetime.

I hardly knew them in person, but I knew their wine by heart - actually I was a fan of it, and admirer of their efforts in reviving the legendary indigenous grape Kalecik Karası. 

Years ago, when they were at the start of their courageous attempt in making all natural wines, I had the chance to visit their place; but she was away, so I was not as lucky as my friend Serhat Narsap, a passionate follower of natural wines worldwide, and a keen supporter of small wineries in Turkey, trying to find a niche market for them in the U.K. So I leave the words to Serhat to tell their story: 

"I have had the honor to visit the winery in October 2016. Our vertical tasting from the first vintage of 2009 to last 2014 was spectacular. I was...