Serving Waitsburg, Dayton and the Touchet Valley
Serving Waitsburg, Dayton and the Touchet Valley
Sorted by date Results 51 - 75 of 82
The entry-level Pinot from Stoller is as good or better than many of the top Pinots of 25 years ago. That's a measure of state-wide progress as well as a reflection of the many good grape sources available to Stoller. This is full-bodied and forward, offering a generous mix of marionberries, raspberries, and cherries. It's buttressed with ample acids and ripe tannins and finished with a screwcap, which keeps it fresh longer and makes it easy to grab a glass and reseal it quickly. Note that this...
This is pure Walla Walla Syrah – rich and loaded with black fruits, along with notes of coffee, chicory, graphite and baker's chocolate. Without the usual co-fermention with Viognier there is little citrus and none of the bitterness, just lush and delicious fruit. Lujon is based in the Willamette Valley but winemaker John Derthick has always made Washington wines as part of his overall program. The QPR (quality/price/ratio) on Lujon wines is exceptional, not only for this holiday-ready Syrah b...
Troon's history dates back to the 1970s, and new ownership wanted to honor that past by reviving this blended red. The spiral on the label expresses the Druid's connections to the mysteries, energy, and power of the natural world - concepts deeply connected to Troon's biodynamic farming and winemaking. The wine itself is what I like to think of as a 'kitchen sink' blend – meaning it's akin to a pot of stew that has a little of everything tossed into it – yet nonetheless finds a focus and a bal...
This southern Oregon winery is a bit under-the-radar but well worth a visit if you are traveling through the Ashland area. All of their wines are well-made and fairly priced, and they do especially well with Rhône varietals. Grenache is a personal favorite, and this is sure to please anyone who loves this engaging red wine grape. It’s front-loaded with cherry and blackberry and marionberry flavors and has just the right touch of earthy grapeskin highlights to frame and focus the fruit. Light ac...
Founded in 1987, Argyle jump-started the current trend for Champagne-caliber sparkling wines in Oregon. Nothing is more festive on a holiday table than a bottle of great bubbly. There’s nothing wrong with cheap alternatives such as Prosecco, but if you want true Champagne quality it’s going to cost a bit more, which makes this $30 bottle a relative bargain. The blend is 80% Pinot Noir and 20% Pinot Meunier, and brings a fine bead (tiny bubbles), refreshing acids, a light hint of spice and ple...
The national wine press unfortunately branded the 2020 vintage as a failure in Oregon due to wildfire smoke. But as the wines have emerged, and I've tasted hundreds of them, it's clear that the 2020 white wines were exceptional. Why? Because it was a great vintage until the smoke hit, and these grapes were picked before it got smokey. As with so many other 2020 Oregon Chardonnays, this exceeds all expectations. It's leesy, with a palate-refreshing yeastiness, and anchored on a core of lemon,...
Always a reliable budget bottle, this version of The Jack draws upon some well-known Walla Walla and Columbia Valley vineyards (notably Lewis!) for its fruit. In the blend are small amounts of Grenache and Mourvèdre. Ten percent new oak adds just the right toasty touch. It's a supple, clean, varietally-true wine with plenty of purple fruits and hints of bacon fat. The Jack has been a popular value brand since Saviah introduced it over a decade ago and now includes a large number of different...
The Abondante blend changes significantly from vintage to vintage and this year it is essentially a 50/50 Zinfandel/Merlot (Zinlot? Merfanndel?) sourced from vineyards on the Oregon side of the Columbia Valley AVA. It's a well-made wine showing ripe and fresh flavors of berries and cherries. There's even a hint of milk chocolate, suggesting some exposure to French oak. Unlike all too many cheap red wines it is unmanipulated, ripe and absolutely fresh. The alcohol pushes near 15% so you get a...
Dineen is a family-owned and operated Zillah winery that offers a range of estate-grown wines. Among a solid lineup of red varietals, this Syrah/Cab Franc/Cab Sauv blend offers a low-cost look at the portfolio’s strengths. It’s a style more often reserved for expensive Washington reds – ripe, dark fruit and tannin flavors spiced up with the Syrah component. Though still young, it’s already in a good drinking condition. It finishes with some tannic astringency, suggesting a burger or tri-tip...
Pike Road is a sister label to Oregon's Elk Cove. The wines are finished with a screwcap which provides extra protection from potential cork taint and is easy to open and reclose. It's perfectly fine to drink a glass or two and put the cap back on to preserve the wine for a second or third day. This delicious Pinot Gris (the same grape as Pinot Grigio) leads with a big whiff of fresh cut pears as you explore a wine loaded with ripe fruit flavors. The natural acidity and texture keep the palate...
One of a pair of Chards from Jay Somers, this is a blend of grapes from the Anahata Vineyard (Eola Hills) and the Corrine Vineyard (Chehalem Mountains). Fermented and aged in 600 liter barrels, it’s fresh and spicy, with juicy apple and pear fruit and a squirt of lemon. You won’t find a better Chardonnay if you are one of those like me who love this high acid, low oak style. That’s not to say this is sour or thin – it’s lip-smacking and palate-cleansing, a perfect match to any dishes with lemo...
King Estate is best known for being Oregon's leading producer for Pinot Gris. But the winery portfolio has expanded to include a lineup covering almost every fine wine style made in our neighboring state. This tart and refreshing white wine is sourced from nine different vineyards; the blend includes 4% Semillon. It's stylish, fleshy and firm, with a deft mix of citrus rind, fresh verbena, crisp green apple and a hint of cucumber. There's a suggestion of residual sugar, just enough to cut the...
The casual label reader might easily miss the layers of puns and jokester references scattered on the wine labels and throughout this winery's highly entertaining website. Here the name puts the letters GSM in caps, which tips off the blend: 47% Syrah, 27% Grenache and 27% Mourvèdre. Another sensational value from TruthTeller's Miscreant Project, this layered and textured wine mixes light red fruits, sandalwood, almond butter, smooth almost silky tannins and a finishing hint of buttered...
Maybe it's all the hot weather we've been locked into, but my Wine of the Week choices keep flipping back and forth between Chardonnay and Riesling. Riesling – you're up again, this time from pioneering Oregon winery Ponzi Vineyards. This is not an estate wine – Alloro and Elk Cove provided the grapes for this new vintage. Nonetheless, this is an outstanding effort, dry and textured, with an immaculately fresh lime and grapefruit core backed with appealing minerality. It's a style def...
The talented team of winery co-founder Trey Busch and production winemaker Keith Johnson have elevated all of the SoH wines in recent years, while expanding production capacity and opening up new venues across the state. This summertime Riesling is sourced from a vineyard near the Gorge Amphitheater in an AVA called the Ancient Lakes. The calcareous soil is perfect for white wines, as this steely, stony example – dry as an ancient lake – amply demonstrates. The flavors focus on lemony cit...
Gärd 2019 Chardonnay Chardonnay two weeks in a row? Why not! I’ve been researching a deep dive into Chardonnays from Washington, Oregon and California and this beauty from Gärd is one of the standouts. The Lawrence family owns Gärd, and their estate vineyards include eight separate sites in the excellent Royal Slope AVA in north central Washington. They also farm and get grapes from Conner-Lee, which supplied 43% of the blend here. This is a powerful wine, packed with orchard fruits and show...
I’ve been drinking a lot of Chardonnay during the recent hot weather, and if you put a slight chill on the bottle (about 20 minutes in the fridge) it can be a most refreshing choice. This Waterbrook Chard is labeled as a reserve but falls into the value category for me as it is difficult to find this kind of flavor at this kind of price. It’s more generous than pretentious, done in a straight-ahead style with bold fruit flavors of apple and lemon meringue pie. A wash of toasty oak puts a pre...
Pacific Rim makes a wide range of affordable Rieslings in a variety of sweetness levels. The Dry Riesling featured here is richly fruity with a luscious blend of peach, apricot, and papaya fruit. Though it is accurately labeled as dry the ripeness of the fruit provides a slight impression of sweetness, which rounds out the palate and cuts through the tart acidity. The flavors extend into a pleasing finish with a mix of orange blossoms, Meyer lemon, pink grapefruit, and a cascade of ripe...
The first vintage of Cymbal was in 2018, and it has quickly become a tasting room favorite. The 2021 was sourced from Gamache, Boushey, and Bacchus vineyards – a terrific trio. It's an ideal summer wine, immaculately fresh and loaded with zesty flavors of grapefruit, white peach, and lemongrass, brushing against the edges of more tropical fruits. Fermented in a mix of cement egg and stainless-steel drums, it was finished briefly in French oak barrels, one-fifth new. By any measure, it's b...
Pinot Noir rosés are abundant in Oregon, and this outstanding example charms from the first sniff with its heady mix of watermelon, strawberry, and cherry lifesaver fruit. The winery calls it “summer ready,” and indeed, it is made for warm weather chillin’ and swillin’. The acids keep it fresh and lively, and once in the mouth, flavors of rhubarb, raspberries, and citrus pile on. This is ripe and full-bodied, delicious from start to finish. 1250 cases; 14%; $28 https://www.br...
The Horse Heaven Hills AVA (American Viticutural Area) is home to many of Washington's oldest and finest vineyards, not the least of which is Champoux. Famous for its red wines, especially Cabernet, it's a pleasure to find a well-made example at a relatively modest price. Robert Larsen (formerly with Rodney Strong) consults for Beckstone, which is vinified in the Tri-Cities. This vintage is principally sourced from the Wallula vineyards overlooking the Columbia River. The wine is medium-bodied...
Acquilini owns a lot of Red Mountain acreage and offers several different brands from their expansive vineyards. Since we're heading into BBQ season, with the 4th of July right around the corner, it seems to be the right time to feature this big, bold red. Yes it's a bit of a splurge, though it represents the value end of the Acquillini portfolio. The blend is 63% Cabernet Sauvignon, 26% Merlot, 6% Petit Verdot, 3% Malbec and 2% Cabernet Franc – classic stuff. Aged 20 months in 35% new French o...
By the time you read this note, actual summer weather may be back. There's no better way to celebrate that happy occasion than with a nicely-chilled bottle of rosé. The Mercer family goes back a long way in eastern Washington and pioneered the planting of grapes in the Horse Heaven Hills AVA. This all-Grenache rosé is sourced from one of their finest sites. It has a palate-pleasing cherry candy character, though any initial perception of sweetness is a function of well-ripened fruit rather t...
For a number of reasons, the best dry rosé wines have gotten more expensive, especially those Oregon rosés made exclusively from Pinot Noir grapes. Pinot Noir is costly to grow and turning it into rosé doesn't make that part of the process any cheaper. Additionally, the fires of 2020 meant a number of wineries lost some or most of their crop, so 2021 is a recovery vintage. This estate-grown, pale copper, generously flavorful wine mixes strawberries, blood oranges, watermelon, and jicama ac...
Tranche and its Blue Mountain Vineyard occupy a spectacular setting on the eastern edge of Walla Walla. The focus is on Rhône-style varietals and blends that may be enjoyed picnic-style on the expansive grounds. Regular weekend concerts are held outdoors throughout spring and summer (full disclosure – my band plays there once or twice a year). It's fair to say you cannot get anything less than a wonderful wine at Tranche, but this week's feature is a particularly good value. An estate-grown bl...
