In our Reader Survey 2010 Wine to Watch, Woodinville’s William Church Winery came out on top with their 2008 Malbec. This is an annual award where readers nominate and vote on wines to be released the following year that they are most excited about. Next weekend, William Church is offering visitors the opportunity to see the bottling of this wine and three other future releases – the 2008 Cabernet and Syrah and the 2009 Viognier.

Saturday, February 13^th from 12-5pm “Bill the bottling guy” will be on-site packaging up each of these wines. Visitors will get an explanation of the bottling process and watch it in action. Wines will be available for “adoption” right off the bottling truck, complete with “adoption papers” saying either to drink now or hold four to six months while the wine recovers from bottle shock. Bottles will be discounted 10% off the release price for this event. The winery will also be pairing chocolate truffles with their current releases. (Note: The current and future releases will also be poured on Sunday but the bottling is Saturday only).

For people not stopping by the winery this weekend but who are interested in these wines, the Viognier will be released in April or May; the Malbec in July; the Syrah in September; and the Cabernet in March of 2011. Don’t get your heart too set on the 2008 Malbec or the 2009 Viognier for that matter. These wines are sold out!

This is part of a report on the South Seattle Artisan Wineries. Additional sections of the report will be posted to the blog. Download a complete .pdf copy of the report here.

Laurelhurst Cellars is a partnership among Gabe Warner, Greg Smallwood, and Dave Halbgewachs. Smallwood says “We wanted to produce wine for ourselves originally. The process was infectious and we decided to get our license…and start producing wine.”

Laurelhurst Cellars’ first commercial vintage was 2005. Before moving to its current South Seattle location, winemaker Gabe Warner made wine in the basement of his Laurelhurst home. In a nod to their beginnings, the winery has stuck with the Laurelhurst branding. A laurel hedge maze adorns the label and two of the wines are named after botanical terms, the Laurus Nobilis and Azorica.

Laurelhurst Cellars focuses on producing red wines that showcase the vineyards they work with. These include exceptional vineyard sources, such as Kiona, Boushey, and Klipsun. Although the winery intends to keep red wines the focus, whites will be added in the future.

The winery started out making 400 cases annually but is slowly moving up to 900. Laurelhurst Cellars enjoys both the benefits and the banes of being a small production winery. In terms of benefits, barrels get individual attention and everything is tightly controlled. In terms of banes, experimentation with different techniques, styles, and barrels, is necessarily slow as each barrel is significant.

The wines from Laurelhurst Cellars are all intriguing, small production wines. Each shows good tannic structure and fruit expression as well as the hallmarks of the vineyards they come from. The wines display characteristic chocolate flavors. The taste occasionally comes off as a bit sweet but overall works on these wines.

Note: All wines sampled at 60 degrees.

Laurelhurst Cellars Cabernet Sauvignon Red Mountain 2006 $38
Rating: * (Excellent) A prototypic Red Mountain nose with earth, flowers, slate, and cherry along with pencil lead accents. A delicious palate with lots of fruit, chocolate, and a good tannic structure. Chocolate gets a little sweet at times. Klipsun and Kiona vineyards. 52 cases produced.

Laurelhurst Cellars Syrah Red Mountain 2006 $38
Rating: NR (Not Rated) Dark and intense in color. The nose is showing a lot of strange biscuit aromas along with iodine, chocolate and purple fruit. Rich with chocolate flavors on a fairly soft palate. This wine is in a strange spot right now as mentioned by people at the winery (for this reason, I have not rated the wine at this time). Perhaps it will settle down and flesh out with additional time. Ranch at the End of the Road, Songbird, and Kiona vineyards. 120 cases produced.

Laurelhurst Cellars Cabernet Franc Boushey Vineyard 2006 $36
Rating: * (Excellent) An outrageous, Boushey-only nose with earthy funk, flowers, milk chocolate, and purple fruit. A fun, engaging wine that dips slightly in the mid-palate but then comes back on for a strong finish. Fruit seems to want a bit more structure at times on an otherwise very enjoyable wine. 28 cases produced. 28 cases produced.

Laurelhurst Cellars Laurus Nobilis Red Wine 2006 $28
Rating: +/* (Good/Excellent) Brick colored. Nose marked by red fruit, chocolate, mineral, and floral notes. A dry and pleasing palate that is chock full of fruit and chocolate. An enjoyable wine that is exceptionally well priced. 61% Merlot, 32% Cabernet Sauvignon, 5% Cabernet Franc, 2% Petit Verdot. Boushey, Klipsun, and Kiona vineyards. 160 cases produced.

Laurelhurst Cellars Azorica 2005 $28
Rating: + (Good) A big nose with tons of chocolate and floral notes along with earth and licorice. Big and chocolatey on the palate with a lot of structure. Give 1-2 years. 34% Cabernet Sauvignon, 28% Merlot, 22% Cabernet Franc, 16% Syrah. Boushey, Patch of Blue, and Kiona vineyards. 100 cases produced.

This is part of a report on the South Seattle Artisan Wineries. Additional sections of the report will be posted to the blog. Download a complete .pdf copy of the report here.

Falling Rain produces three proprietary blends, each of which is unique and compelling. The first is a Semillon/Sauvignon Blanc called Irise. The 2007 vintage of this wine was barrel fermented and underwent full malolactic fermentation. The first of the two red blends, Cloudburst, is an intriguing blend of Syrah, Merlot, Cabernet, and Malbec. The second, Mischief, is a Bordeaux-style blend. Judith Papesh serves as winemaker.

Note: All reds sampled at 63 degrees.


Falling Rain Irise White Wine Columbia Valley 2007 $22
Rating: + (Good) Pale straw colored. An appealing nose that is almost champagne-like in style with yeast and lemon aromas. Rich and creamy on the palate without being thick. A pleasant balance of fruit and dryness. This is quite an intriguing wine unusual in style for Washington. 55% Semillon, 45% Sauvignon Blanc. Sampled at 55 degrees.

Falling Rain Cloudburst Red Wine Columbia Valley 2006 $25
Rating: * (Excellent) Black licorice, cola, chocolate, and blackberry mark the nose. Impressively balanced on the palate with chocolate and black fruit flavors. Hits all of the right notes and hangs on for the finish. 30% Syrah (Lewis Vineyard), 30% Merlot (Wahluke Slope Vineyard), 30% Cabernet Sauvignon (Lewis Vineyard, Wahluke Slope Vineyard), 10% Malbec (Gilbert Vineyard). Aged in French and American oak.

Falling Rain Mischief Red Wine Columbia Valley 2006 $25
Rating: * (Excellent) Ground black licorice aromas pair with black fruit on an enjoyable nose. Rich with chocolate and fruit on the palate with a lingering finish. 45% Merlot (Wahluke Slope Vineyard), 42% Cabernet Sauvignon (Lewis Vineyard, Wahluke Slope Vineyard), 13% Malbec (Gilbert Vineyard). Aged in French and American oak.

Falling Rain Mischief Red Wine Columbia Valley 2007 $25
Rating: * (Excellent) A bit closed up at the moment with pencil lead, black fruit and chocolate. Big and brawny with fruit and tannins on the taste. Needs time in the bottle as it comes off as a bit dry and tight right now but this will be an impressive wine. Give 1-2 years. Cabernet Sauvignon, Cabernet Franc, Merlot, Malbec, Petit Verdot. Aged in French and American oak.

A round-up of stories on Washington wine from January 22^nd to 31^st.

Buckle your seatbelts boys and girls, this round-up is a big one.


From around the world

Sommelier India writes about Chateau Ste. Michelle.


From around the country

Milwaukee Magazine writes about Washington state wines with callouts to Chateau Ste. Michelle and Columbia Crest.

WineBusiness.com writes that the Walla Walla Wine Alliance has partnered with ReCORK by Amorim, a North American-based wine cork recycling program.

The Modesto Bee writes about Washington wine with callouts to Chateau Ste. Michelle, Snoqualmie, Columbia Crest, and Magnificent Wine Co.

Business Week writes about Milbrant’s 2006 Merlot.


From the blogosphere

See a list of Washington wineries on Twitter put together by Bean and Ed at Wine and Beer of Washington State.

Wine and Beer of Washington state also writes a restaurant wine service wish list, review the 2007 Columbia Crest Grand Estates Cabernet (Note: This was the January Virtual Tasting wine. Thanks for participating!), writes about wine dreams with a callout to DeLille, rose with callouts to Lullaby and Silver Lake, and a Washington wine series at Seattle’s The Local Vine.

Drink Nectar checks out some under $10 wines (including the January Virtual Tasting wine; thanks for participating!). Josh Wade also talks with Woodward Canyon about Twitter and checks out some wines from Trio Vintners, Barrister, and Naked Winery. He also gives a Spokane winery tour.

Yak Yak Wine writes about Naked Winery. Chris also writes about the 2006 Portteus Zinfandel, Masset’s 2006 le Petit Rouge, Gregutt’s Washington Wines and Wineries, and Upland Estates’ 2007 Malbec.

Beyond the Bottle writes about Benson Vineyards Pinot Gris, Viognier, and Chardonnay. Thad also writes about the 2008 Pacific Rim Gewurztraminer and writes part 2 of an argument for disclosing the ingredients in wine.

The Oregon Wine Blog makes a border incursion and writes about Washington Syrah. See part II here.

The Good Grape says Washington is the place to live for wine lovers.

Through the Walla Walla Grapevine writes about Walla Faces. Catie also talks with Amy Mumma of the World of Wine program at CWU.

WAWineman writes about the 2008 Woodinville Wine Cellars Sauvignon Blanc. He also writes about the Cooper 2007 L’Inzio (Part II here), Adams Bench 2007 Red Willow Cabernet, and Ch. Ste. Michelle 2006 Tempestade.

Washington Wine writes about Columbia Crest’s 2007 Two Vines Sauvignon Blanc.

Wine Peeps checks out the 2008 Columbia Crest Two Vines Gewurztraminer. Kori also talks with Ashley Trout of Flying Trout Wines.

The Grumpy Winemaker asks what is going on at Sagelands. He provides some answers here.

WINO Magazine writes about Greg Fries of Desert Wind Winery.

The Wine Commentator writs about Cadence and Mark Ryan.

Northwest Cork and Fork writes about Chandler Reach.

Writing for Tourism Walla Walla, Denise Slattery of Trio Vintners writes about wine clubs.

Woodinville Wine Update writes that tickets are now available for Passport weekend. Shona also writes that Alder Ridge is now open, Goose Ridge is opening, asks whether Alexandria Nicole is moving, and writes about Elevation – the former Arlington Road Cellars.

Walla Walla Wine News writes about Cayuse changing their release weekend.

Riding Shotgun on the Hell Express writes about Reininger.

One Rich Wine Guy writes about Forgeron Cellars and Goose Ridge Winery.

See a cool listing to Walla Walla wineries at Walla Walla Wine.

Write for Wine writes about some new Washington wines.

Vashon Winery writes about racking the 2009 wines.

The Examiner.com writes about wineries using a Riesling tasting profile. This would allow consumers to have a better sense of where the wine is on the continuum of dry to sweet.

Wine Muse writes about Madsen Family Cellars.

Cellarmistress’ Cellar Talk writes about Ch. Ste. Michelle Riesling.

Science Blogs writes about Wines of Substance periodic table of wines (a very cool website if you haven’t checked it out; look for a writeup on the Substance wines in the future).

Queensryche.com writes about Geoff Tate’s new Insania wine.


From the locals

Seattle Metropolitan Magazine writes about Efeste’s Brennon Leighton.

WSU Today writes about winemaking.

Writing for the Seattle Times, Paul Gregutt writes about Chardonnay.

The Tri-City Herald writes about the continued growth of the Washington wine industry.

Writing for the Spokesman-Review, Paul Gregutt writes about Robert Karl, Caterina, and Lone Canary.

The Seattle Times writes about the lack of glass recycling in Yakima.

South Oregon’s The World writes about Merlot with callouts to Columbia Crest and Fourteen Hands.

That’s all folks!

This is part of a report on the South Seattle Artisan Wineries. Additional sections of the report will be posted to the blog. Download a complete .pdf copy of the report here.

While Sodovino’s name may puzzle those from outside Seattle, it will be immediately understandable for those from the area. SoDo is the name of the district south of downtown Seattle where the winery is located. In deciding on the name, winemaker Jim Musielewicz says “We are located in Sodo and we make wine, but more than that we were looking for something fun and quirky.”

Like many, Musielewicz and his wife started as home beer makers before turning their attention to wine. Musielewicz says “We naturally evolved into wine and then things just got carried away…Our basement and garage were quickly full of various varietals and vintages.”

While the Musielewiczs first started making wine in 2000, it wasn’t until 2006 that they made their first commercial vintage. Since their initial release – 150 cases - Sodovino has slowly grown in size, producing 550 cases for the 2008 vintage. The winery aims to focus on Rhone varietals using grapes from Lewis, Rosebud, Alder Ridge, Doc's, and Clifton vineyards.

Note: All reds sampled at 63 degrees.

Sodovino Sylvia James Viognier Rosebud Ranch 2007 $11
Rating: + (Good) Very light in color. Nose comes off as faint initially with creek aromas, floral notes, and white peaches. Surprisingly weighted with fruit on the palate with just a touch of residual sugar. Fermented in stainless steel. Sampled at 55 degrees.

Sodovino Red Wine 2006 $19
Rating: + (Good) An intriguing nose with pencil lead, diesel, black fruit, chocolate, and anise. An enjoyable wine on the palate with a pleasing balance of fruit, acid, and tannins. 62% Cabernet Sauvignon, 32% Malbec, 6% Syrah. Aged in French and American oak. Recommended.

Sodovino Red Wine 2007 $19
Rating: . (Decent) A lot of pepper on the nose along with black fruit and anise. Dry chocolate flavors and cherry dominate the palate. An enjoyable palate that is offset by a nose that shows a bit too much pepper. 50% Cabernet Sauvignon, 27% Mourvedre, and 23% Syrah.

Sodovino So Syrah 2007 $19
Rating: ./+ (Decent/Good) A vibrant nose with black fruit, chocolate, and a whiff of pepper. Needs a bit more uplift on the middle on what is otherwise an enjoyable wine. 86% Syrah, 14% Mourvedre. Aged in French and American oak.

Sodovino Syrah Lewis Vineyard 2007 $25
Rating: + (Good) A stinky, gamey nose that is loaded with berry fruit. Well put together on the taste with chocolate and berries. 100% Lewis Vineyard Syrah. Aged in French and American oak.

Below is a summary of posts for January 2010.

Five Under Fifteen - January

January Virtual Tasting '07 Columbia Crest Grand Estates Cabernet

Buyer beware: Misrepresenting price and points on the shelves

Washington Wine Round-up: January 15th to 21st

Stomani Cellars (SSAW Winter 2010)

The Local Vine hosts series on Washington winemakers

January Virtual Tasting - Columbia Crest 2007 GE Cabernet

Cayuse Changes Release Weekend from November to April

Elsom Cellars (SSAW Winter 2010)

Fall Line Winery (SSAW Winter 2010)

Washington Wine Round-up: January 8th to 14th

:Nota Bene (SSAW Winter 2010)

OS Winery (SSAW Winter 2010)

Cadence Winery (SSAW Winter 2010)

South Seattle Artisan Wineries Winter 2010

Zero One Vintners Wild Sky Cabernet Sauvignon 2006

Washington Wine Round-up: January 1st to 7th

Off-topic: A sad day for me. Sad times ahead for the New York Times

Tasting Note Database

Washington Wine Round-up December 22nd to 31st

Washington Wine Report Rating System

About Washington Wine Report

Goals for the New Year

In tough times, we continue the search for good, inexpensive wines.

My father was fond of saying “Sometimes you eat the bear. Sometimes the bear eats you.” This month unfortunately the latter was more often the case.

The best of the bunch comes from Columbia Crest. This winery needs no introduction. I have written about them extensively in the past. Additionally, Columbia Crest’s wines have been featured in a number of our monthly Virtual Tastings (indeed, one of the wines below is from the January VT). Columbia Crest is, quite simply, the Quality-to-Price-Ratio (QPR) standard bearer for Washington wine – a position the winery cemented after having their 2005 Reserve Cabernet named Wine of the Year by Wine Spectator in 2009. Columbia Crest’s wines show consistent quality across their four tiers – Two Vines, Grand Estates, H3, and Reserve. While I found the 2007 H3 Merlot had much to offer, it also, had a number of distracting components that make it a good, but not great wine. The 2007 Grand Estates Cabernet was a bit of a disappointment. While a solid value wine for an under $15 cabernet, it didn’t transcend the price point in the way the wines from this tier often do. The Merlot-Cabernet is an interesting wine mainly in that the Cabernet referred to in the name is mostly Cabernet Franc (20%) instead of Cabernet Sauvignon (5%).

Clubhouse Cellars IQ2 Friends is a red blend made by Page Cellars with the branding “Two IQs are better than one.” I first tried this wine about a month back and found it to be dreadful. Not flawed but also not drinkable. I was therefore quite surprised to see it listed as Compass Wines’ Wine of the Year in their monthly newsletter. The decision was based on the high QPR of the wine making it just what people were looking for in a bad economy. Although I had poured the first bottle down the drain, I decided to give it another try. However, the results were the same. I would like to think that this is just a difference in palates but frankly I find that hard to believe. It seems like we are talking about two different wines here (and I respect Doug Charles' taste in wines).

Pacific Rim has long been known as a Riesling specialist. The winery, founded in 2006 by a group of Bonny Doon expats, makes a wide variety of Washington’s signature white grape, from organic to biodynamic to single vineyard wines, from dry to sweet. Autumnus is Pacific Rim’s first red wine. The winery set out to make a wine to accompany food (here here). For this reason, Pacific Rim took an unusual approach for Washington, making a wine that is lower in alcohol, higher in acid, and minimally exposed to oak. They also used an interesting blend: Sangiovese (for “bright fruit and tannins”); Barbera (for “acidity and raciness”) and Primitivo (the only one aged in oak, for “rich meaty characteristics”). For all of this, Pacific Rim should be commended. Unfortunately, the 2007 Autumnus Red Wine doesn’t entirely come off, showing a bit too much acidity to be in balance and coming off as a bit green. When I tried it with food, it provided an interesting accent to the meal, but the accents didn’t move in the other direction with the wine not having the legs to stand on its own. Still, I look forward to trying the next release as the concept is right.

If you have favorite Washington wines under fifteen dollars, leave a comment or send me an email at wawinereport@gmail.com and I will check it out.

Columbia Crest H3 Merlot Horse Heaven Hills 2007 $15
Rating: + (Good) A pleasing nose with blackberry, spice, and oak aromas. Palate is a bit frontloaded. Oak seems heavy handed, especially at higher temperatures. Shows a lot of chocolate but a bit too much overall A good dose of tannins for a wine in this price range, but they are somewhat drying. Overall, has a number of positive things about it but bit too many negatives to recommend. 79% Merlot; 11% Cabernet Sauvignon; 6% Cabernet Franc; 4% Syrah. Aged in French and American oak (33% new, 67% older). 14.5% alcohol.
Purchased for $12 at Safeway

Columbia Crest Grand Estates Cabernet Sauvignon Columbia Valley 2007 $12
Rating: . /+ (Decent/Good) Wood, spice, and chocolate in the background on a nose that is quite muted. Taste shows a fair amount of oak influence with the fruit in the background. While this is often the style of this label, it doesn’t seem to work as well as usual on this vintage. Lingers in a slightly unpleasant way on the palate. 95% Cabernet Sauvignon, 5% Merlot, Cabernet Franc, and Syrah. 13.6% alcohol.
Purchased at Safeway for $9

Columbia Crest Two Vines Merlot-Cabernet Washington State 2006 $8
Rating: . (Decent) Fairly light in color. A lot of chocolate and berry aromas along with a touch of green pepper. Cherry cola comes to the fore when the wine sits for a moment. Unoffensive but ultimately unremarkable on the palate. Pleasantly low in alcohol. 75% Merlot, 20% Cabernet Franc, 5% Cabernet Sauvignon. 13.5% alcohol.
Purchased from Fremont Wine Warehouse for $13

Clubhouse Cellars IQ2 Friends Red Wine Columbia Valley 2007 $10
Rating:. (Decent) A lot of berry aromas along with a bizarre lemongrass aroma on a nose that is fairly off-putting. Reasonably even but ultimately unremarkable on the palate. A decent but ultimately fairly uninteresting wine. Tasting twice with consistent notes. Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot, and Syrah. 14.1% alcohol.
Purchased from Pete’s Bellevue for $9.29

Pacific Rim Autumnus Washington State 2007 $14
Rating: . (Decent) A light nose with red fruit, spice, potpourri aromas, and green elements. A bit flat on the palate with a healthy dose of acidity along with some citrus components. Provides some accent with food but alone is wanting. Sangiovese, Barbera, Pinot Nero, and Primitivo. 12.8% alcohol.
Purchased from Fremont Wine Warehouse for $13

January’s Virtual Tasting is tonight! The wine is the 2007 Columbia Crest Grand Estates Cabernet Sauvignon. This wine is widely available in grocery stores and wine shops and retails for $12, although it can frequently be found on sale.

The tasting will take place from 7-9pm. Look for updates to this post and comments from the virtual tasters during this time (click on “Subscribe by email” after commenting if you want to follow the comment thread via email). I will also be tweeting @wawinereport.

What you need to do to participate:

1. Buy this month’s wine from a local retailer

2. Post your comments/tweets tonight between 7 and 9pm. Comments can be as long or short as you want (my personal favorite comment ever was “Blech!”). A good place to start is, did you like the wine or not? Not sure? Think about whether you would buy it again.

If you can’t participate tonight, feel free to try the wine at any point in the future and post your comments.

Read about previous virtual tastings here.

7:05 Update: And we're off!

Some background information. Columbia Crest has four tiers of wine – the Reserves (one of which was named Wine Spectator’s Wine of the Year in 2009), H3 (for Horse Heaven Hills), the Grand Estates series, and the Two Vines.

Starting with the outside of the bottle, the 2007 Grand Estates Cabernet has undergone one of the more significant label changes the winery has made in recent years. Usually Columbia Crest has made slight alterations in color to distinguish between the vintages of the GE wines. With the 2007 release, it has a quite different looking label. Personally, I think the new label looks a bit more classy and contemporary. What do you think? Also interested to see that it says “Washington grown” at the bottom of the label. Don’t remember seeing this before. Does anyone else?

Time to pour this sucker…

If you’re leaving a comment and want to receive email comments from the other virtual tasters, remember to click on “Subscribe by email” in the comments section. For those tweeting, I’m using the hashtag #wawine.

7:20 Update: Opening the bottle up, a composite cork which is very lightly stained. Overchilled the wine a bit (58 degrees). As many of you know, I like to drink my reds between 62-66 and the room was a little warmer so I through it in the fridge. At this temperature the nose is light and the wine shows a lot of barrel aromas (vanilla but mainly wood and some spice). Not a lot of fruit showing through. Letting it warm up a bit.

7:30 Update: While the wine has warmed up, the nose has remained fairly stable. Light and dominated by vanilla, chocolate, and oak aromas. Fruit seems fairly far in the background. The nose and the taste definitely seem to match up on this wine. Taste shows a lot of chocolate (fairly consistent with the GE Cab and Merlot series) and lots of barrel influence. The palate has some weight but a lot of it seems to be coming from the wood rather than the fruit. The fruit is there but it is playing a secondary role. Palate seems to dip down and come out of balance about 2/3 of the way through. Leaves a bit of a strange taste lingering.

7:45 Update: A bit of background on the wine. 95% Cabernet Sauvignon, 5% Merlot, Cabernet Franc, Syrah. 13.6% alcohol. No listing of the case production but Columbia Crest has generally made about 200k cases of this wine.

Tasting notes from the Winery: “Soft, yet intense aromas of chocolate cherry, cassis and slight spice lead to a medium-bodied palate of fruit- forward flavors. This concentrated wine trails into a supple finish that offers silky tannins, notes of dark chocolate and a slightly spiced finish."

8:10 Update: Four reviews on CellarTracker. See them here. Average 85.8 pts. and median of 84 pts. in 4 notes. No reviews yet from Wine Spectator, Wine Enthusiast, or Wine Advocate.

8:30 Update: A nice tech sheet on this wine which you can access here.

Like many who participated tonight, I purchased this wine at the grocery store for a bit under $9. The wine retails for $12 but can frequently be found on sale.

8:45 Update: Overall I find the wine disappointing. Given that 2007 was such a spectacular vintage in Washington, I had higher hopes. The nose on this wine is dominate by oak aromas and the fruit is far in the background. The taste is about the same with a lingering aftertaste that I find a bit unpleasant.

That said, the main reason I am disappointed is due to the way that this wine - and the other wines in the Grand Estates series - have consistently over-performed over the years. This is a wine that more or less matches its price point. Generally, under $15 is an extremely tough price point for Washington cabernet. It's hard to think of one that is particularly compelling, outside of the Columbia Crest H3 Cabernet 2007, off the top of my head.

I would rate this wine somewhere between a dot (.) and a plus (+). If I were rating on a 100 point scale I would say 86 points. It's not a bad wine by any means but overall fairly unremarkable and a bit of a step down from its predecessors.

Final Update: That’s all folks! Thanks to everyone who participated and commented on the blog. Thanks also to those virtual tasting Tweeters: @nectarwine @winebeerwa @riche88 @boxboylover @sturat (forgive me if I missed anyone!).

If you didn't get a chance to try the wine tonight, feel free to do so and post your comments in the future.

We’ll do it all again next month. Let me know if you have any suggestions for the wine. Until then…

Final Final Update: Just added some food to the mix. Cheese and smoked salmon. Drinking this wine with this food is like putting a magnifying glass on the food. Everything about the cheese and salmon got larger! It didn't really go the other way with the food bringing more out of the wine. Interesting...

REMINDER: January's Virtual Tasting is the Columbia Crest Grand Estates Cabernet. The tasting will take place on Thursday January 28th starting at 7pm. Read more about it here.

While diamonds have the four Cs, wine has the two Ps - Price and Points. These are the primary drivers of wine sales. It is therefore not surprising that retailers often misrepresent them both.

In terms of price, the classic misrepresentation is the retail price of the wine. One frequently sees a sign that lists the retail price and a lower sale price. In fact, the wine retails for something closer to the sale price listed. Grocery stores seem to particularly favor this type of chicanery although wine stores are not immune. This is, of course, a classic sales technique that retailers everywhere use. Consumers think they are getting a better deal than they are actually getting, so they make the purchase.

The misrepresentation of points is more pernicious. The most frequent one here is the erroneous shelf talker - the signs on the shelf below the bottle that frequently give a score and a tasting note from a wine reviewer. The most frequent offense is a shelf talker from a different vintage. This is usually done carelessly rather than maliciously when retailers and distributors are restocking shelves. The highly rated vintage runs out, the next one comes in, and the shelves are restocked without removing the shelf-talker. Sometimes, of course, the wine is as good or even better. Sometimes it is not. Regardless, the consumer might be making a purchase based on misinformation.

Recently I have noticed a variation on this theme – the misattributed shelf talker. Here the shelf talker attributes a score from a widely known source when in fact the score comes from a different source. Several weeks back I saw an inexpensive wine with a high score attributed to Paul Gregutt who writes for the Seattle Times, Wine Enthusiast, and Spokesman-Review (NB: Gregutt also writes a blog which if you are not already reading you should stop, go to this link, thoroughly consume and enjoy the entire blog, and then return to the rest of this post). A person on the floor I spoke with even mentioned Gregutt by name when talking about the wine (I’m sure this was done naively by the way). Intrigued, I picked the wine up and found, to my surprise, that it was dreadful. A bit of research showed that Gregutt had never reviewed the wine. Rather, it had been reviewed by a blogger at Seattle’s other newspaper, the Seattle Post-Intelligencer (Note: the Seattle PI is now on-line only. It has a number of bloggers with no affiliation to the paper who have sites set up there of which this was one). While this is the most egregious misattribution I have seen, I have seen others. While most are made out of carelessness, they are – quite simply – unacceptable.

So what does all this mean to you the wine buyer? Unfortunately, as is often the case, it means that if something seems like too good of a deal to be true, it probably is. That said, there are always good deals out there. Consider doing some research about a wine you are interested in, especially if you are spending more than $10 to $20. Wineries list retail prices on their websites and often list high scores as well so do some checking before making the purchase. Also, look for whether the shelf talker lists the vintage of the wine. If it doesn’t, it might be worth checking on-line before making a purchase. Personally, I always recommend talking with people at a wine store rather than relying on shelf talkers.

What does all this mean to you the wine retailer? Time to be more careful. While I am assuming these mistakes are made out of carelessness, reputation and customer loyalty is at stake. If consumers start to see this type of thing frequently, it is hard to believe it is not done knowingly. Checking for accuracy means extra work – being aware of wine reviews and when new releases are being put out - but that comes with the business. I would also suggest putting vintages on all shelf talkers to make it more obvious to everyone involved if there is a discrepancy.

REMINDER: January's Virtual Tasting is the Columbia Crest Grand Estates Cabernet. The tasting will take place on Thursday January 28th starting at 7pm. Read more about it here.

A round-up of stories on Washington wine from January 15^th to 21^st.

For your reading pleasure, the Winter edition of Wine Press Northwest is now available on-line (Note: It’s in an on-line reader).

From around the world

The Sydney Morning Herald writes that New Zealand winery Villa Marie has formed an export partnership with Ste. Michelle Wine Estates.

From around the country

Wine Spectator writes about the fire at Arbor Crest’s Cliff House (skip past the Mariah Carey story). They also write about fifteen 'spectacular' reds from Washington.

The North Dakota High Plains Reader writes about ice wine with a callout to Covey Run.

WineBusiness.com writes that the number of US wineries has increased to 6,223. California has about half of them and Washington about one in ten.

From the blogosphere

The Oregon Wine Blog writes about Crayelle Cellars.

Through the Walla Walla Grapevine writes about Tranche Cellars 2004 Red Wine.

Beyond the Bottle writes about disclosing wine ingredients. Thad also writes about Nefarious Cellars viognier.

Woodinville Wine Update writes about the possibility of Covey Run opening a tasting room in Woodinville. Shona also writes about Maison Bleue leaving their tasting space in Woodinville, Tempest Sol, and Woodinville wineries who tweet.

Yak Yak Wine writes about the McCrea Cellars 2007 Mourvedre.

WINO Magazine does Part IV of a Walla Walla roundtable.

WAWineman writes about the 2004 Columbia Winery Red Willow Syrah and 2008 Red Willow Sangiovese. He also writes about the Alexandria Nicole Cellars 2007 Grenache.

The Wine Muse writes about the Renegade Wine Company.

Wine and Beer of Washington State writes about the 2007 Icicle Ridge Merlot.

Wine Peeps writes about Washington Riesling with callouts to Eroica, Trust Cellars, Poet’s Leap, Nefarious Cellars, Cave B, and Columbia Crest. They also check out Efeste’s 2008 Evergreen Riesling and try merlots from Januik and Fielding Hills.

Waddle Journal writes about barrel tasting in Walla Walla.

Wine the Blog writes about Gilbert Cellars.

Pour Wine Review writes about the 2007 Waving Tree Sangiovese.

General Wine Thoughts writes about Walla Walla wines with callouts to Woodward Canyon Winery, L’Ecole No 41, Gifford Hirlinger, Beresan Winery, Balboa Winery, Basel Cellars, Trio Vintners, Kontos Cellars, Dunham Cellars, Cavu Cellars and Waterbrook.

From the locals

KNDO reports on construction of a distillery in eastern Washington which will be owned by Joe Tefft of Tefft Cellars.

Writing for the Seattle Times, Paul Gregutt writes about box wines.

Woehler writes about the Covey Run Quail Series.

The Bellingham Herald writes about Idaho’s Pend d'Oreille Winery using Washington grapes for their wines.

The Walla Walla Union Bulletin writes about Queensryche’s Geoff Tate bottling his wine at Three Rivers Winery.

That’s all folks!

REMINDER: January's Virtual Tasting is the Columbia Crest Grand Estates Cabernet. The tasting will take place on Thursday January 28th starting at 7pm. Read more about it here.

This is part of a report on the South Seattle Artisan Wineries. Additional sections of the report will be posted to the blog. Download a complete .pdf copy of the report here.

Stomani Cellars focuses on “Italian style artisan wines.” The winery is family venture for the Stothers and Manoni families, and Stomani’s name is a combination of these two surnames. Alex Manoni serves as Stomani’s winemaker. Manoni seeks to make wines that are food friendly and a bit higher in acid compared to some in the state. Stomani focuses on Italian grape varietals, particularly Pinot Grigio, Sangiovese, Barbera, Dolcetto, and Aglianico. Manoni says “The blends we produce focus on something for each of the three areas of the palate, front, mid and back using Sangiovese as the backbone for the blend.”

Stomani Cellars currently produces 1,000 cases annually.

Stomani Cellars Pinot Gris Yakima Valley 2008 $15
Rating: . (Decent) Clear in color. Nose marked by an aged cheese aroma along with melon, sweet, honeyed fruit, and mineral aromas. The nose is appealing once the odd cheese aroma comes off. A pleasing, straight-forward wine that doesn’t show a lot of movement on the palate. Wants a bit more acidity to lift up the fruit. 100% stainless steel. Sampled at 55 degrees.

Stomani Cellars Dolcetto Yakima Valley 2006 $20
Rating: . (Decent) Cloudy and showing a bit of age. Bright red and blue fruit on a fresh, fruity nose that also shows an under-layer of ground cranberries. Crisp, tart, and acidic on the palate. A fun but overall somewhat unremarkable wine. Sampled at 60 degrees.

Stomani Cellars Sangiovese Wahluke Slope 2007 $25
Rating: + (Good) Fairly dark in color. Initially a touch of mint on the nose that is replaced by earth, chocolate, and red fruit. Wood flavors get in the way on the palate overwhelming what otherwise seems to be very good fruit. The oak may settle down with additional time in the bottle. Sampled at 62 degrees.

Stomani Cellars Insieme 2007 $25
Rating: + (Good) Nose marked by prune, cherry, and plum aromas along with black licorice and milk chocolate. An impressive palate with a lot of fruit across the mid-palate and a good amount of grip along with cherry and vanilla flavors. An impressive taste but the nose is a bit wanting. 50% Merlot, 35% Sangiovese, 15% Cabernet Sauvignon. Aged in French and American oak. Sampled at 62 degrees.

Stomani Cellars Terromoto Red Wine Columbia Valley 2007 $25
Rating: . (Decent) Dark and purply. A lot of earth aromas along with spice, black cherry, chocolate, and ground black pepper. The nose seems a bit overloaded with pepper and spice. Tart, puckering, and very drying on the palate. Needs food to offset it. 45% Cabernet Sauvignon, 30% Syrah, 22% Sangiovese, and 3% Petit Verdot. Aged in French and American oak. Sampled at 62 degrees.

For four Mondays starting February 8th and ending March 1st Seattle's The Local Vine will conduct a tasting series looking at Washington winemakers and the regions that made them famous. Classes - which will be limited to 12 people - will be from 6:00-7:00pm and cost $25 each ($80 for all four). Each class will feature four wines which will be served blind.

Information about the series is below. Call 206-280-1429 or e-mail cole@thelocalvine.com for reservations.


Monday, Feb 8th - Kimberly Bonebrake from Chateau Ste. Michelle will lead a tasting of two of Germany's most revered Riesling producers, Ernst Loosen of Dr. Loosen and Armin Diel of Schlossgut Diel. See how their interpretation of Washington Riesling, arguably our two best, compares to some of Germany's most hallowed vineyards.

- Dr. Loosen's, neck-breakingly steep Graacher Himmelreich vineyard's Spatlese from the Mosel river valley in Germany squares off against his Chateau Ste. Michelle collaboration "Eroica" from our Columbia Valley.
- Schlossgut Diel, Goldloch vineyard Kabinett, in the Nahe Germany butts heads with his small production Long Shadows Vintners "Poets Leap," Columbia Valley Riesling

Monday, Feb 15th - This tasting highlights Washington wines made by two of Italy's wine royalty. The Antinori and Folonari families have been making wines in Tuscany for over 600 years and now each has a foot firmly planted in Washington. Here are their interpretations of what our growing regions have to offer.

-Much revered Marchese Antinori's Tenuta Guado Al Tasso from Bolgheri, Italy vs. Washington's first "Super-Tuscan" Chateau Ste. Michelle Col Solare "Red Wine," from the Columbia Valley
-One of the Folonari's most prized estates, Tenute del Cabreo "Il Borgo," Italy vs their Long Shadows Vintners "Saggi," Columbia Valley

Monday, Feb 22nd - Join Erin Dobson, the National Sales Director for Long Shadows Vintners to lead a tasting of four of the United States finest wines.

Winemaker John Duval led Penfold's Winery into the wine worlds limelight by crafting the iconic Australian wine Penfolds Grange for over 20 years. He has now set off on his own with the boutique sized John Duval Wines in the Barossa Valley, Australia and teamed up with Long Shadows to show us what Washington Syrah can do. French born wine-icon Philipe Melka was one of the original flying winemakers, having spent time honing his craft at Haut-Brion, Petrus, Dominus, Bryant Family, 100 Acre and what many consider to be his top project Quintessa. Philipe has seen the great potential in our states wine regions and has brought his talents to Long Shadows Vintners.

-Long Shadows Vintners "Pirouette," Columbia Valley vs Quintessa "Red Wine," Napa Valley California
-Long Shadows Vintners "Sequel," Columbia Valley vs John Duval Wines "Entity" Shiraz, Barossa Valley Australia

Monday, March 1st - Comparing what many consider to be the top grapes in Washington-Merlot and Cabernet Sauvignon. Randy Dunn of Dunn Vineyards has been working in Napa Valley for over 30 years and his wines ability to age is legendary. The Bookwalter family, longtime grape growers, are quickly establishing themselves as one of the states top wineries and the addition of legendary wine consultant Claude Gros ensures this winery's position as
one of Washington's elite for years to come.

-Bookwalter Merlot, Columbia Valley vs La Fleur Morange St-Emilion Grand Cru, Bordeaux France -Long Shadows Vintners "Feather," Columbia Valley vs Dunn Family Vineyards Cabernet Sauvignon, Napa Valley California

January's Virtual Tasting will be Columbia Crest's 2007 Grand Estates Cabernet Sauvignon. This wine, which was recently released, is widely available and retails for $12.

The tasting will take place on Thursday January 28th starting at 7pm. As usual, I will be posting my notes on the wine to the blog and tweeting @wawinereport. Please join us in trying this wine and posting your comments.




Previous Virtual Tastings

December Virtual Tasting - Brian Carter Cellars Abracadabra 2007

November Virtual Tasting - Columbia Crest H3 Cabernet 2007

October Virtual Tasting – Owen Roe Sinister Hand 2008

September Virtual Tasting – Novelty Hill Cabernet CV 2006

August Virtual Tasting – Barnard Griffin Cabernet 2007

July Virtual Tasting – Charles Smith Kung Fu Girl Riesling 2008

June Virtual Tasting - Waterbrook Melange Noir 2006

May Virtual Tasting - Charles Smith Boom Boom! Syrah 2007

April Virtual Tasting- Columbia Crest GE Shiraz 2006

March Virtual Tasting - Magnificent Wine Co. House Wine 2006

February Virtual Tasting - Hedges CMS Red 2007

January Virtual Tasting - Columbia Crest GE Merlot 2006

December '08 Virtual Tasting - Ch. Ste. Michelle Indian Wells Cab 2005

November '08 Virtual Tasting - Russell Creek Tributary Red 2006

October '08 Virtual Tasting- Columbia Crest H3 Cabernet 2006

September '08 Virtual Tasting - Tamarack Firehouse Red 2006

August '08 Virtual Tasting- L'Ecole No. 41 Recess Red 2006

CORRECTION: In the original post, the days of the week for the next Cayuse release event (April 8th and 9th 2011) were listed as Thursday and Friday. This has been updated and corrected below to Friday and Saturday.

Cayuse Vineyards announced a change in their release event weekend from November to April. Cayuse wine shipments will still occur in November. However, those who have historically picked up their wine at the winery will either have wait an additional five months for the April release event or pay to have the wine shipped. Cayuse’s next release event will be April 8^th and 9^th 2011 (a Friday and Saturday). The change from “chilly November to vibrant April” will be permanent the winery said.

Cayuse Vineyards has historically released their new vintages the first weekend of November. This has been the only time throughout the year the winery is open for mailing list members to pick up pre-ordered wine. Cayuse’s annual release event became such an attraction in Walla Walla Valley that the weekend has long been known, unofficially, as “Cayuse Weekend.” Many of the valley’s wineries opened to take advantage of the large number of visitors coming to the area. Last year, this weekend became an official event weekend called “Fall Release.”

Cayuse’s move from November to April will most likely impact any plans to continue maintaining the first weekend in November as Fall Release. In the past, some wineries have expressed a desire to move Holiday Barrel Tasting from December – when highway pass conditions can affect turnout – to November. There may be increased interest in consolidating these two events. However, the proximity of the November date to crush can present some difficulties for wineries. Additionally, a new unofficial/official event weekend could be expected to form around Cayuse’s new April event. Walla Walla’s annual Spring Release is one month later, the first weekend in May.

A complete transcript of the (amusing) letter sent to mailing list members is below.

Save the date: April 8 & 9, 2011
Lusting for warmer days

We caught him staring out the window today. His face was pressed against the glass, and he gazed into the gray with a vaguely wistful look in his bulging eyes. It didn't take a graduate degree in psychiatric herpetology to know the Frog had a touch of the blues.

And no wonder.

When winter comes to the Cayuse Vineyards farm, he's forced to suspend his frosty libido in a reluctant state of temporary hibernation. Sipping God Only Knows while idly thumbing through an aging copy of Better Ponds and Gardens, he patiently waits for better, brighter days.

For he knows that as surely as light follows night and caterpillar becomes butterfly, winter will end. The vines will shake the ice from their cordons, the grass will flush a vibrant green and the frozen world will once again transform into his romantic playground.

In the randy renewal of springtime, with the birds talking naughty to the bees and the vines throbbing in the sunshine as their roots tingle expectantly in the stones, the Frog will be reborn.

Recharged.

Rejuvenated.

He'll feel it from the tip of his tongue to the webs of his feet. And then he'll want to party. With you.

That's why he's moving the annual Cayuse Private Release festivities from chilly November to vibrant April. Out of the cold, and into the sunshine.

Permanently.

So mark it on your calendar. Tap it into your smart phone. Scribble it on your refrigerator in bold, black Sharpie.

The next Cayuse Weekend will be April 8 and 9, 2011.

The Frog will be reveling in the Glory of Spring and the wonder of extraordinary wine. And he hopes you'll join him.

What Else is Changing: Nothing, really. As in the past, ordering will begin in September each year, and your wines will ship the following November. If you're blessed with unusual self-control and prefer to personally pick them up four months later at the Private Cayuse Release Weekend, you're still welcome to do that. Otherwise, we'd be glad to assist you in changing your delivery preference from pick-up to shipping.

As always, we appreciate your incredible support of Cayuse Vineyards. We apologize for any inconvenience this change may cause you. Please don't hesitate to call or email if you have questions.

See you at the weekend in April, 2011. Best wishes and santé!

The Cayuse Gang

This is part of a report on the South Seattle Artisan Wineries. Additional sections of the report will be posted to the blog. Download a complete .pdf copy of the report here.

Elsom Cellars’ goal is to provide “Exclusively bottled wines that offer distinctive flavors, borne of a singular desire – to create the quintessential gesture of hospitality – served at our table or yours.”

After years of home winemaking, Jody Elsom decided to start a commercial winery. Elsom, who studied enology and viticulture at Washington State University, says “I was looking for a career change that would provide a balance between art and science, hard work and celebration…The winery offers such a balance.”

Elsom made its first commercial release in 2006, a limited production of Cabernet Sauvignon and a Red Wine composed of Malbec, Cabernet Sauvignon, and Syrah. The winery has continued to focus on these varietals using fruit from Lewis, Two Blondes, Artz, Doc (Wahluke Slope), and Alder Ridge vineyards. Elsom says “Our focus is on creating wines we enjoy – big bold Cabernet and earthy Malbec with a bit of peppery spice.”

Though currently located in South Seattle, the winery will be opening a Woodinville location near Januik/Novelty Hill in the first quarter of 2010. This facility will serve as Elsom’s production facility (fruit from the 2009 harvest was pressed here). The winery plans to keep the South Seattle tasting room, called ‘The Vineyard Table,’ open for winemaker dinners, artist events, and other occasions.

With the move to its new Woodinville facility, Elsom increased production to 1,200 cases for the 2009 vintage.

Note: All wines sampled at 62 degrees.

Elsom Cellars Red Wine Columbia Valley 2007 $28
Rating: + (Good) Fairly quiet on the nose with dusty chocolate, blackberry, and spice. An engaging palate with loads of black fruit and a healthy bit of grip. A bit dry at times. Needs time to open up. Give 1-2 years. 50% Malbec, 40% Cabernet Sauvignon, 10% Syrah.

Elsom Cellars Malbec Columbia Valley 2007 $32
Rating: + (Good) Brilliant and purply in color. An attractive, peppery nose rich with blackberry and cedar aromas. Quite dry and puckering on the palate with bright acidity. Comes off a bit green at times but an impressive wine overall. 91.7% Malbec (Gilbert Vineyard), 8.3% Merlot (Wahluke Slope Vineyard).

Elsom Cellars Cabernet Sauvignon Reserve Lewis Vyd 2007 $36
Rating: + (Good) Lewis Vineyard aromas jump from the glass with cola, black licorice, black cherry, and ground spices. Again, fairly dry on the palate with lighter and more lithe fruit than the other wines sampled. A bit front loaded on the palate with drying tannins. Time may settle this wine a bit. 80% Cabernet Sauvignon, 20% Syrah. Lewis Vineyard.