Next weekend is St. Nicks!

Next weekend, Dec. 5th & 6th is the annual Woodinville St. Nicks Wine celebration when many of the wineries will be open - and you can visit as many as you want if you have a ticket. It's a huge bargain, and a great opportunity to discover what Woodinville wineries have to offer. A few years about, my wife & I went -- which is what set us out to discover & explore wine.

There might even be tickets still available - http://www.woodinvillewinecountry.com/Details.cfm?ProdID=39&category=0

If not, plan on going to the "big" event - Passport to Woodinville in April.

As for me, well, look for me at Covington Cellars on Saturday.

Ch. Ste. Michelle Fall Red release

Quick post...

2006 Malbec (2% merlot)

Violet.
Light pleasant on the nose but the merlot spoils the palate for me giving an acidy finish that time might help.

Arist series Meritage:

Cab forward 58% nice nose. Ruby colored. Very nice soft mouthfeel. The merlot 37% is very present on the finish.

Having some Boreal (Syrah with viognier) to clear my palate.

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August 2009 Brian Carter Cellars release

Today (8/6) Brian Carter Cellars is releasing their 2005 Solesce and 2006 Abracadabra.

I did a side-by-side tasting of the 2004 and 2005 Solesce, and I was somewhat surprised by what I found. The two are very different –last year’s release (2004) has a lovely garnet color—the 2005, although the tasting notes call it garnet is really more of a brilliant ruby to my eye.

If I was to paint with a broad brush, I’d say that the ‘05 was softer & mellower … more silky/satiny than the ‘04 in most respects. Both have blackberry & cedar on the nose – the ‘05 just a touch softer feeling. On the palate, the ‘04 has chalky tannins that sit on the sides of my tongue – and that sort of acidy fruit-ness that I’ve come to associate with merlots & merlot-heavy blends (the ‘04 is 29% Merlot from Solstice Vineyards that sits at the middle of my tongue & the back of my mouth.

Here’s the surprise – the ‘05, although it has a bit more merlot (34%), again from Solstice Vineyards in Yakima Valley, doesn’t bring that acidy-ness that makes me not like merlot. It’s smooth … silky .. almost velvety mouth feel softens the merlot component and makes it a very enjoyable wine for me. The tannins are still a bit chalky – but the superb mouth feel makes them  blend in … I’m happy.

I wonder how Brian Carter achieved it – looking at the analysis, I see the ‘05 actually is a bit more to the acid than the ‘04 (pH of 3.65 vs. 3.72) and has nearly a percent more alcohol - (14.7% vs. 13.8%). I need to learn more about how these numbers affect the palate. :0

The 2006 Abracadabra has been out for a bit – and I like it – especially the bacon notes in the nose. :) Maybe I’ll pair it with bacon-wrapped scallops or something. Or maybe bacon wrapped bacon. Hm.

Camping trips...

What's the "must have" wine for camping trips? Let me know what you think!

On our most recent trip up to Masonic Park in Granite Falls over Independence weekend, we focused on the fact that it was going to be hot -- and took summer wines. The first was a bottle from our stash of the "old" Kennedy Shah Picnic Blend, which is Chardonnay based - and to me, has always represented "Summer in a Bottle". We've only got a few bottles of this left -- I got the last of them while working at Woodhouse this past April for the Woodinville Passport event, and I'm glad that I did. Not that the new interpretation of the Picnic Blend isn't good (it's more like "Late Spring in a Bottle") -- it's just that the old one is phenominal.

The second wine we took with us is the 2008 Covington Cellars Josie Rose, which I'm pleased to note is indeed as good as the previous vintage. Unfortunately, they only made 45 cases (and we bought one), so there's probably not any of it left - but if there is, I encouage you to get some.

We did take two reds with us as well for the evenings, but due to the heat, only opened one -- the Ch. Ste. Michelle Boreal that I mentioned a post or two ago. I've been craving Syrahs, but not wanting to open any of the "good" Syrahs we have without having company to share it with, and this was a good way to satisfy my craving.

Ch. Ste. Michelle Classic Summer release. 2008 "Waussie" Reisling ... Dry citrus-y reisling ... A nice surprise. Clear & colorless...like water but very flavorful.

2006 Boreal red.. Syrah co fermented with a bit of viognier. Nice. Typical for that.

I bought a California Wine today…

I know. Lots of people buy lots of California wines. As a Washington Wine Ambassador, though, I generally prefer to support our local wineries & Washington wine producers and tend to avoid wines from a couple of states due south.

But when a Washington Winery buys some California juice, and makes it into wine in Washington, maybe that’s different?

Anyway… the winery in question is Northwest Cellars, which opened their tasting room in Kirkland (11909 124th Ave NE) today, right across the parking lot from Dance Time, the studio where my daughter takes dance, which is how I found them.

Their grand opening celebration continues tomorrow starting at noon. I recommending checking them out. They were offering four wines today:

2008 Adagio (Columbia Valley) – 61% Sauvignon Blanc, 39% Chardonnay)  A lovely crisp white blend with tropical fruit notes on the nose. Looking forward to drinking the two bottles I picked up on a hot day this summer.

2007 Chardonnay (Yakima Valley) – this barrel-fermented Chard had prominent kiwi & pineapple notes – something that would have to sit in my glass & mellow out for awhile in order for me to enjoy it – but that’s just me.

2005 Merlot (Yakima Valley) – at 75% Merlot, 13% Syrah & 12% Cabernet Sauvignon, this Gold medal winner (Seattle Wine Awards), was quite pleasing – smoky nose, with nice peppery notes on the palate. I was surprised – this one had none of the acid feeling that merlots typically have (and which are why I largely don’t like merlots).

2005 Intrigue (Columbia Valley) – a “Washington Bordeaux” blend of 50% Merlot, 28% Syrah, 16% Cabernet, 4% Cab Franc, and 2% Petit Verdot. Nice, but not memorable, although it is also a multiple award-winner. Maybe I’ve had too many merlot-forward blends.

In addition to these four, I tasted their other two current vintages:

2006 Pinot Noir (Williamette Valley, Oregon) – I wish I had known about this one when I started, since it’s too light bodied to follow the others. It seemed like a typical Oregon Pinot – exactly what you’d expect a Washington winery to shoot for when using Oregon juice :).

The last one was the aforementioned California wine: 2005 Petite Sirah, (Enver Salman Vineyard, Northern California). The best way to describe this was “chewy”. I just loved it.

I chatted with founder (his business card says “Wine Geek”!) Bob Delf about their wines and about the other side of their business – private label wines for restaurants, corporations, individuals and non-profits. The private-label idea is one that I’m going to look into further, as I’m on the Board of a charity (RiteCare of Washington) and this might be a great fundraising idea.

If you’re in the Kirkland area on a weekend, I recommend checking Northwest Cellars new tasting room out!

Seattle

Seattle

Food & Wine magazine's 2009 Seattle City Guide.

Why is it that I keep reading about Cafe Juanita and never go there, even though we drive past it all the time?