Regular readers know that it’s not often that I give high praise to a Pinot. However, we recently had the opportunity to taste the 2007 Bouchaine Estate Vineyard Pinot Noir in a samples tasting, and it was excellent. Bouchaine Vineyards is the oldest continuously operated winery in the Carneros District of the Napa Valley in […]

Last fall, I shared with you my “bucket list” of wines. As I said then, some of the wines on the list I already have, some are wines I’m hoping someone might give me as a gift, and some I’m hoping to be able to purchase if the slump in high-end wine prices continues. But […]

Washington State produces many excellent wines from many different grape varieties. There is much debate as to which red wine Washington does best. Some say Syrah, others Merlot, and others red Bordeaux-style blends. Recently, we had what turned out to be a Washington red blends showdown in one of our private tasting dinners pitting the […]

One family tradition that has emerged in recent years is to make Bananas Foster, which just happens to be my favorite dessert, after our Christmas Eve dinner. Mom (LaGayle) decided to shake things up a bit this year, and we enjoyed a different Christmas Eve meal than we normally do. However, not wanting to forego […]

One of our resolutions for the New Year is to explore more wines from around the world. Since we live in Washington State and often drink wines from Washington State, we want to make sure that we continue to hone our knowledge of the entire world of wine and maintain well-rounded palates in order to […]

Washington State, in general, makes outstanding Merlot. Washington Merlot is bigger, more complex, and has higher acidity that most Merlot produced elsewhere. Recently, we had what turned out to be a Washington Merlot showdown in one of our double blind private tasting dinners featuring two wines from the 2006 vintage, the 2006 Fielding Hills Merlot […]

In 2005, we took the trip of a lifetime to Australia. We fell in love with the country, the people, and the wine. We especially enjoyed the time we spent in Sydney and in the Barossa Valley. While we were there, we visited Penfolds and really liked their entire lineup of wines. However, we did […]

Recently, we had what turned out to be a California Pinot Noir showdown in one of our private tasting dinners pitting the 2007 Lionheart Wines Pinot Noir against the 2006 Cambria Julia’s Vineyard Pinot Noir. We liked both of these wines, but all four of us preferred the Lionheart. In fact, we thought it was […]

When you are winding down and relaxing after dinner on a cold, winter evening, there’s nothing better than a small glass of port wine. Add in a piece of chocolate with your port around the holidays and you have a treat that’s hard to beat. Port is a fortified wine, meaning that grape spirit (almost […]

The majority of Washington State wineries are small, “Mom and Pop” operations, many operating out of garages, office parks, or other small facilities. Basel Cellars, located on the Old Milton Highway just south of downtown Walla Walla, Washington, is not one of those operations. In fact, Basel Cellars is one of the first wineries that […]