Round Table: Walla Walla, Pt. 4

The last installment of the Walla Walla Round Table, we bring you the Syrahs (at long last!). Not nearly a complete list of everything Walla2 has to offer, our Round Table session with scads of bottles brought back from Walla Walla was a daunting one. But, with a panel rostered with seasoned and disciplined professionals, we studiously worked our way through the lineup to bring you a mere sampling of our long weekend in Onion Town. Now, you’ll have to get over there yourself to try these and the myriad other wines flowing through the land of many rivers.

The Syrahs

Saviah Cellars
2006 Syrah
Red Mountain
$30

On the nose, striking notes of dark fruit and smoked meats with floral characteristics peaking through. On the palate, it has even more sizzle and pep, with smoke, meat and intense, dark fruit seasoned with anise, while maintaining a surprising freshness. Expressive and complex, it’s the total package of Syrahs. An overall favorite of the panel.

Saviah Cellars
2006 Syrah
Walla Walla Valley
$32

With less oak than you would expect, this WWV Syrah greets you with herbs and spices. Light and elegant on the palate, it’s a refreshing switch from the intensity of most Syrahs, while it still has enough oomph to go the distance on the finish with flavors of cherries, plums and olives.

Round Table: Walla Walla, Pt. 3

We brought back so many wines from our trip to Walla Walla this year that we decided to split them up into four Round Table segments. In this third part, we examine the Cabernet Sauvignons that we snagged in the land o’ many rivers. Stay tuned for Part 4, where we delve into the many Syrahs in Walla2.

The Cabernet Sauvignons

Whitman Cellars
2005 Cabernet Sauvignon
Walla Walla Valley
$36

The Whitman Cab Sauv combines seriousness and glee in the manner of Mary Poppins. On the nose, you get some green pepper and other vegetal notes, along with a hint some Juicy Fruit gum. On the palate, it’s earthy and textured along with tart, sweet fruits and a Bing cherry finish. Really well balanced and structured, this wine has a little something for everyone. You may find yourself singing, “A spoon full of sugar helps the medicine go down…”

Dusted Valley
2006 Reserve Cabernet Sauvignon
Columbia Valley
$45

Thick, rich, chewy and viscous, this Cab has the texture of a late-harvest, though it isn’t. It’s an artery-clogger in wine form. Most interesting on the attack, it has some earthiness and a little funk, along with suggestions of chocolate covered cherries. Big and lush, the flavors meld together on the mid-palate, and slowly fade through the long finish. This is a wine that eats like a meal.

Round Table: Walla Walla, Pt. 2

Among all the wines we brought back from Walla Walla, there were just a few Merlots, but boy were they worth talking about. Keep checking back, because in Part 3 of this Round Table, we’ll take a look at Cabernet Sauvignon, and in Part 4, we’ll look at the many Syrah’s Walla Walla wineries are turning out.

The Merlots

Pepper Bridge Winery
2006 Merlot
92% Merlot, 3% Cabernet Sauvignon, 3% Malbec, 2% Cabernet Franc
Walla Walla Valley
$50

From the nose to the palate, the Pepper Bridge Merlot is like the freckle-faced adolescent girl who suddenly stuns the schoolyard boys at her own debutante ball. On the nose, the Merlot brings red rope licorice, sandy mineral notes and a heat worthy of a day on the beach building sandcastles. On the palate, though, it proves to be silky, sexy and confident—trading flip-flops and a pail for high heels and a rhinestone encrusted clutch. With dark fruits and spice, and a mysterious intensity, this PYT (pretty young thing) is sure to be turning heads for a long time to come.

James Leigh Cellars
Spofford Station 2004 Merlot
Walla Walla Valley
$40

On the nose, the Spofford Station Merlot by JLC Cellars recalls a well-worn overstuffed chair in a mahogany lined library. That funk that comes from a lived-in room, worn carpets, dust on picture frames and stories imbedded in the walls. On the palate, it offers a rich juiciness up front, followed by stemmy notes like bitters in cocktails. Pull a book off the shelf, put on your smoking jacket, settle in to that faithful chair, and imbibe.

Round Table: Walla Walla, Pt. 1

For this session of the Round Table, we traveled to Walla Walla like crusaders and hauled back about three cases of spoils from that land of milk and honey. By far the largest Round Table we’ve done to date, we had to enlist the help of a few more fellow winos.

Yashar Shayan, Erik Seigelbaum and David Bender from the NeoSommes of Seattle joined us to taste through the wines, along with Darin Williams and Seth Furman of Small Lot Co-Op, Dave Egan from Vino Verité, and Jameson Fink of QFC. Peter Moore offered up the mezzanine of Poco Wine Room along with his stemware, palate cleansers and spit buckets, and his amazing staff made the daunting task at hand easy-peasy—Peter, of course, joined us in the tasting, too. While we were all busy sipping, spitting, and speculating, the incomparable Lisa Basher took studios notes—no easy task among a large table of yammering winos. To all that participated, a huge thank-you.

The following is the first installment of the Walla Walla Round Table. Stay tuned, as more will follow.

Tamarack Cellars
2007 Chardonnay
Columbia Valley
$18

A veritable study in the American Chardonnay, this wine offers everything consumers have come to expect in a Chard, and then some. Showing oak with almond and vanilla, this Chard goes beyond with aromas you might find in the funky little teahouses that are growing in popularity: earthy, woodsy tea steeped an hour ago, finishing with a touch of citris. While a little hot, it’ll still have you longing for the three o’clock break, complete will miniature sandwiches.

Five Star Cellars
2008 “Kynzie” Rosé of Sangiovese
Walla Walla Valley
$20

With 14.8% alcohol and acidity to match, this big boy needs a cold shower. Surprisingly well integrated, this rosé doesn’t register as super hot, but instead greets you with dry grasses and mild strawberries, with a tiny bit of that mushroomy funkiness so typical of Sangio. Guys, pour yourself a glass of this rosé at your next backyard barbecue, and then laugh at the pansies drinking Bud Lite.

Round Table: June ’09

We are committed to not rating wines. That is totally up to you. However, we do want to tell you what wines taste like. Everyone has a unique set of taste buds, so how can we be objective? Group wisdom, my friends, group wisdom. The WINO Round Table is a wine symposium of sorts. We invite a diverse group of winos over to taste various wines, take studious notes, talk a lot, and then relax and finish off the rest of the wine. What we’re left with is an average of each taster’s flavor profile, and a variety of things you may pick up on when you try these wines. Have a look, and then go have a taste.

AlmaTerra
Set of four: $220, Single bottle of Coéo: $48

2006 Syrah
Minick Vineyard, Yakima Valley

This Syrah delivers you to your grandmother’s kitchen with a complex nose belying homemade raspberry jam, smoke, leather, cherry menthol, tobacco, white pepper and clove. On the palate, very balanced with fruit, oak, and tannin. This is an elegant, Northern Rhone style syrah. The nuances are subtle, earthiness and spices are unique, and the balance very much plays to an old world palate. It has the mineral nature that is so common in Yakima Valley wines, and demonstrates a quiet wisdom that will get you to quit your bickering with a single look.

Round Table – April ’09

We are committed to not rating wines. That is totally up to you. However, we do want to tell you what wines taste like. Everyone has a unique set of taste buds, so how can we be objective? Group wisdom, my friends, group wisdom. The WINO Round Table is a wine symposium of sorts. This month, we invited a diverse group of winos over to taste various wines, take studious notes, draw pretty graphs, and then relax and finish off the rest of the wine. What we’re left with is an average of each taster’s flavor profile, and a variety of things you may pick up on when you try these wines. Have a look, and then go have a taste. This month: Jameson Fink, Erin Thomas, Josh LaRosee and Doug Haugen.

San Juan Vineyards

2007 Madeleine Angevine- $17.00

Crisp, grapefruit citrus on the nose, powerfully tart on the palate. Oyster shooters with a spritz of lemon juice and dab of sauce could very well be the Yin to this wine’s Yang. On the flip side, a hearty chowder wouldn’t stand a chance against this juice, but pitting the two against each other again and again would certainly be fun. Definitely a summer sipper, but only for those who prefer Granny Smiths over Fuji’s.

Round Table – February ’09

We are committed to not rating wines. That is totally up to you. However, we do want to tell you what wines taste like. Everyone has a unique set of taste buds, so how can we be objective? Group wisdom, my friends, group wisdom. The WINO Round Table is a wine symposium of sorts. This month, we invited a diverse group of winos over to taste various wines, take studious notes, draw pretty graphs, and then relax and finish off the rest of the wine. What we’re left with is an average of each taster’s flavor profile, and a variety of things you may pick up on when you try these wines. Have a look, and then go have a taste. This month: Jameson Fink, Josh LaRosee and Doug Haugen.

Laurelhurst Cellars
2005 Red Mountain Syrah – $38.00

Nose: New leather drenched in cherry cola, earthy, eucalyptus.

Palate: Brilliant structure from start to finish. Deep red fruit stands out as prominent, sided by chocolate, coffee, hints of menthol and some burly tannins that, even while playing nice with food, will allow this wine to sit for years. After sitting for five days, this wine was still firing on all cylinders. A great effort.

Washington vs. The World: Cabernet Franc

This month, we turn to Cabernet Franc as we compare wines from Washington with those from around the globe. A parent of Cabernet Sauvignon, Cab Franc is mostly grown in Bordeaux for blending, but also stands alone as a single varietal in the Loire, where it is known as Breton. In the United States, it is still primarily grown for use in Meritage (Bordeaux-style blend). Here in Washington, Cab Franc offers further proof that we can grow just about anything. How does Washington’s Cab Franc compare to one from France?

Washington vs. The World: Dolcetto

Dolcetto is a varietal that’s not on very many people’s radar, especially in Washington. It’s a black wine grape primarily grown in the Piedmont region of Italy. Even though it’s typically a dry wine, the name means “little sweet one,” and they tend to be tannic, fruit-driven wines.

For the first round of Washington vs. The World, two Dolcettos face off. In this corner wearing a white label with a red tree on it, weighing in at 14.0% alcohol: 2006 Cantina del Pino Dolcetto d’Alba from the Piedmont region of Italy. And in this corner, the challenger wearing a white label with a river and bridge, weighing in at 14.2% alcohol: 2007 Kyra Dolcetto from Wahluke Slope.

Cheapskate – November ’08

By Charles Armstrong

With the small of ozone and wet grass descending on our city, it’s difficult to bring myself to drink those “bright” wines I typically associate with warmer months. When the clouds roll in it’s time to take your wine like your weather, dour and complex. Well, perhaps not dour, but you understand the metaphor. No one wants to sip a chilled Sauvignon Blanc when it’s 46 degrees and dark at 4:00pm.

In an effort to alienate all my readers over the age of thirty-six, this month I’ve mapped each wine to a secondary character from The Simpsons. But don’t worry readers over the age of thirty-six, next month we’ll do the A-Team.

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