A Rose Is A Rose Is A Rose
Date: Wed, Aug 6, 2008 Wine Tasting
Gertrude Stein said that, but not all roses are created equal. So many Rose wines are flat, boring and too sweet. Not the one made by French winemaker Isabelle Dutartre at De Ponte Cellars in the Dundee Hills of Oregon's Willamette Valley. When Deborah tasted this one she was blown away. "Better than any French Rose, I've ever tasted." Of course, this comment encompassed all other Rose, too. Deborah tasted this wine blind. Little did she know that the grapes were from Oregon and the winemaker from France - Provence, actually, home of France's best Rose. At $14, it's a real bargain considering the quality.
Wine Boxes
Date: Mon, Jul 28, 2008 Wine Tasting
It seems I've switched from wine to wine boxes. One hundred forty wine boxes, another sixty or so to go. Why wine boxes? They are just the right size for packing books, much better than the shipping boxes you can buy online. The hunt for wine boxes led me to some interesting encounters with wine people. The Washington State liquor stores used to be a great source, but now they hoard all the good one for themselves and only put out the odd sized liquor boxes. Scott at QFC has been helpful, but needs his boxes, too. I struck gold this morning at Safeway where Celeste, a merchandiser for Young's-Columbia was unpacking wine and I had the good fortune to catch her before she broke the boxes down. A real bonus was meeting Mohammad, the new wine steward - definitely my kind of man. The "local" wine section at Safeway has improved tremendously. In fact, I think they just started a Northwest section recently under the leadership of Mohammad. Doug at Metropolitan Market was more than generous which induced me to buy some champagne from him and I also checked out some Saumur and Saumur- Champigny in anticipation of our trip to the Loire in September. Doug has an extraordinarily focused top notch selection of wine from around the world, including the Northwest concentrated in a very small space at the back of the store. He is definitely a "go to" guy for wine selection, so is Scott at QFC. Mohammad is definitely moving in that direction. How wonderful to have someone to ask for help when faced with the overwhelming shelves of a supermarket. Once in a while you will run into a knowledgeable sales person at the state liquor store but usually you are on your own, so here are some tips for upcoming Washington Wine Month in August. Most wines from the following wineries will be good buys when on sale next month. They can be purchased at the state liquor stores and most of the supermarkets mentioned above. They are listed in no particular order.
- Columbia Crest "Two Vines"
- Columbia Crest Reserve
- Red Diamond
- Barnard Griffin
- Sagelands
- Hogue
- Gordon Bros.
- Pine & Post
Wine Boxes
Date: Fri, Jul 25, 2008 Wine Tasting
It seems I've switched from wine to wine boxes. One hundred forty wine boxes, another sixty or so to go. Why wine boxes? They are just the right size for packing books, much better than the shipping boxes you can buy online. The hunt for wine boxes led me to some interesting encounters with wine people. The Washington State liquor stores used to be a great source, but now they hoard all the good one for themselves and only put out the odd sized liquor boxes. Scott at QFC has been helpful, but needs his boxes, too. I struck gold this morning at Safeway where Celeste, a merchandiser for Young's-Columbia was unpacking wine and I had the good fortune to catch her before she broke the boxes down. A real bonus was meeting Mohammad, the new wine steward - definitely my kind of man. The "local" wine section at Safeway has improved tremendously. In fact, I think they just started a Northwest section recently under the leadership of Mohammad. Doug at Metropolitan Market was more than generous which induced me to buy some champagne from him and I also checked out some Saumur and Saumur- Champigny in anticipation of our trip to the Loire in September. Doug has an extraordinarily focused top notch selection of wine from around the world, including the Northwest concentrated in a very small space at the back of the store. He is definitely a "go to" guy for wine selection, so is Scott at QFC. Mohammad is definitely moving in that direction. How wonderful to have someone to ask for help when faced with the overwhelming shelves of a supermarket. Once in a while you will run into a knowledgeable sales person at the state liquor store but usually you are on your own, so here are some tips for upcoming Washington Wine Month in August. Most wines from the following wineries will be good buys when on sale next month. They can be purchased at the state liquor stores and most of the supermarkets mentioned above. They are listed in no particular order.
- Columbia Crest "Two Vines"
- Columbia Crest Reserve
- Red Diamond
- Barnard Griffin
- Sagelands
- Hogue
- Gordon Bros.
- Pine & Post
Bogged Down
Date: Mon, Jul 21, 2008 Wine Tasting
Bogged down by moving, so no bandwidth for blogging for a while. Don't worry we are not leaving Seattle, just packing shelves of books and boxes of wine.
The 4th Of July In Redwood Shire
Date: Tue, Jul 8, 2008 Wine Tasting
Oregon Pinot Noir finally faces a serious threat. Not from Burgundy, nor New Zealand! Alas, from California! Not from the big names in California, but from a small Robin Hood band of winemakers in Sonoma near Sebastopol. We had the good fortune to spend the 4th in a Redwood Glade where the King and Lady Lin rule over an unruly bunch from all over the world who gathered in the forest to celebrate the founding of this country. The groaning board overflowed with good food, good wine, and goodwill. Some of these rascals actually belong to a wine club, but unlike so many they make their own wine and have their own winemaker's dinners. Don, Bim and King, with their damsels, offered up wondrous wines (no headaches from these homemade wines!) King's Cab is mindblowing and Bim's 2004 Pinot Noir in an unlabeled double magnum easy ranked with the best from Oregon - Ken Wright, De Ponte, Tori Mor. These guys are really not amateurs or home winemakers. They are like the best of the best from the Boeing Wine Club in Seattle who have gotten bonded and are selling their fabulous wine from their small boutique wineries. But, does Robin Hood want to become the Sheriff? Do they want to get too serious and take all the fun out of winemaking. Here, just North of Marin County, we have people who have values - cameraderie, excellence, do-it-yourself, freedom, family. Wow! What a great way to celebrate American values just north of Marin County. Rush, are you listening? Ann, are you listening? BTW, the fireworks were spectacular.
First Class!
Date: Tue, Jul 8, 2008 Wine Tasting
Well, I finally copped a free upgrade to First Class in Alaska Airlines. Knowing I wouldn't get anything worth eating, even in First Class, I brought a sandwich on board. When the stewardess asked what I would like to drink, I said, "Chardonnay." She brought me a real glass filled to the brim with a very strange Chardonnay. She later confessed that, in fact, it wasn't Chardonnay, but Pinot Grigio, or was it Pinot Gris from "Three Blind Moose." These mice must have also suffered from anosmia, too. She kept wanting to refill my glass, but I had to demure. Now I know how my friend, Seattle Times wine writer, Tom Stockley died on an Alaska flight. The FAA insisted it was a rudder screw, but I know better. He didn't have a prayer. In fact, I think Alaska stopped serving prayers as well as food shortly after Tom died. Ironically, Alaska is now one of the best run airlines compared to most others. I knew I should have bought that Gulfstream.
The Tovey Report
Date: Mon, Jun 23, 2008 Wine Tasting
The Steins and Toveys made their annual wine pilgrimage to the Willamette Valley this year. Our last trip was in May 2006 and lots of things have changed - new motels, new wineries, new ownership at some wineries. Despite the large numbers of people participating in the three day Memorial Day event, we were able to get around with relative ease. It helped to avoid the big name wineries. Our focus was on wineries only open once or twice a year. Of course, some wineries that are regularly open were closed - Econ 101.
We ate at the following three restaurants. Nick's Italian Cafe is now operated by Nick's daughter and her husband - as usual, excellent food and service. The food and service at Tina's was terrific. Tina's reputation is well deserved. The last night at Maison Bistro, the food was good but maybe a notch below the others.
On the wine front, there were the usual disappointments, some surprises, and a little bit of "wow." Several of the big name wineries had some very good wines, but nothing that said "wow." On the first day, we were able to visit six wineries in the Yamhill area: Aramenta, Groshau Cellars, Beaux Freres, Lachini, Penner-Ash and Patricia Green. We also visited Panther Creek and Eyrie at the end of the day. Our palates were most impressed by Lachini, Eyrie and Panther Creek. At these last two, we were able to taste from the barrel and chat with the winemakers both of whom are young, personable, accessible, and full of great ideas about how to make wine. We thank them for a great way to top off the day.
On Sunday we spent time in the Dundee area visiting Bella Vida, De Ponte, Erath, Lange, Maresh, Tori Mor and Winderlea. The four that caught our palates, were Tori Mor, Maresh, Winderlea and De Ponte. Tori Mor had many outstanding wines. At Maresh, we had a great conversation with Jim Maresh, one of the Willamette Valley pioneer grapegrowers. Winderlea's first Pinot Noir was rich, fruity and well-made. Their new winery building on the newly purchased Goldschmidt vineyard is modern in style with an open feeling and a grand view of the vineyards. The "wow" of the day was De Ponte. Every wine we tasted was outstanding, both the reds and whites. All the wines had a terrific sense of fruit, were rich, and clung to your palette with a long lasting finish - another friendly, open, creative winemaker.
Go! You will not be disappointed!