The late Charles Lill and his son Greg, along with former wine broker Jay Soloff and winemaker Chris Upchurch, founded DeLille Cellars, located in Woodinville, Washington, in 1992. It all started with three friends sitting around talking wine and then writing up a business plan for a winery on a napkin. Their discussion was about how to produce the very best handcrafted, old-world style red and white wines made in the state of Washington. Since the three friends needed financial backing for their winery venture, Greg Lill met with his father, Charles, by then retired, to ask him to invest in the new business. Charles liked the idea, and the family agreed to give it a try. As they say, the rest is history.

DeLille Cellars sources their grapes from some of Washington’s finest vineyards including Boushey, Ciel du Cheval, Klipsun, and Red Willow. They renovated an 800 square-foot farmhouse on land owned by the Lill family in the mid-1990s, and opened their state-of-the-art 7,000 square-foot chateau for business in 1998. As the winery expanded, the partners added their own 20-acre vineyard on Red Mountain called Grand Ciel.

Doyenne is DeLille Cellars’ Rhone and Provence-style line of wines. We recently had the opportunity to taste the 2007 Doyenne Syrah and the 2009 Doyenne Roussanne in a blind samples tasting. We especially enjoyed the Doyenne Syrah. It is always a treat to get a little taste of Rhone right here in our own backyard.

DeLille is an icon of Washington wine, and I encourage you to visit their Carriage House tasting room the next time you are in Woodinville.

2007 Doyenne Syrah (Yakima Valley, Washington): 98% Syrah and 2% Viognier. Deep, dark purplish red in color. Nice nose with gorgeous black fruits and licorice aromas that lead to blackberry, black cherry, licorice, spice, and black pepper flavors. Full-bodied and lively with high, drying tannins. Well-balanced with a long finish.
Quality: 4 stars (out of 5)
QPR: 3 bangs for your buck (out of 5)
Where to Buy: Received as sample, suggested retail $39; Available elsewhere, $38 to $42

2009 Doyenne Roussanne (Ciel du Cheval Vineyard, Red Mountain, Washington): Pale, greenish straw yellow. Aromatic with petrol and floral notes on the nose. White peach, petrol, lemon, lime, and a hint of honey come through on the palate. Dry and medium-bodied with crisp acidity and a long finish.
Quality: 3 stars (out of 5)
QPR: 1 bang for your buck (out of 5)
Where to Buy: Received as sample, suggested retail $32; Available elsewhere, $32

Would you like a quick suggestion for a good wine to drink tonight (or this weekend) that won’t break your budget and is widely available? Many of our readers have said this is something they would like, so here is this week’s selection, the 2009 O*S Winery Riesling from the Horse Heaven Hills of Washington State.

Our selection criteria include:

• A very good Quality rating of >=3.5 stars (out of 5)
• A price tag of <=$15
• Must be widely available

Bill Owen and Rob Sullivan founded O*S Winery, located in South Seattle, in 1997. We have been impressed with their wines since our first visit to their tasting room in 2008. In fact, their 2006 Dineen Vineyard Syrah was our Best Washington Wine of 2009. The fruit for this Riesling was sourced from the famed Champoux Vineyard in the Horse Heaven Hills. Their annual production is about 3,000 cases.

“This wine epitomizes the ideal of off-dry Riesling: 30 yr old vines (happy 3rd decade!), low alcohol and bracing acidity. Fragrant aromas of Granny Smith apple, slate and gardenia. Brilliant acidity gives the mid-palate flavors of Crenshaw melon, anis, lemon and lime an etched-in-stone quality.” –O*S Winery

2009 O*S Winery Riesling (Champoux Vineyard, Horse Heaven Hills, Washington): Pale, greenish straw yellow and very aromatic. White peach, honeysuckle, and pear aromas lead to lemon zest, apricot, mango, and a hint of honey on the palate. Off-dry and medium-bodied with crisp acidity. Well-balanced and very refreshing with a long finish. Residual Sugar: 2%
Quality: 4 stars (out of 5)
QPR: 5 bangs for your buck (out of 5)
Where to buy: Full Pull Wines (Seattle, Washington), $13.49; Available elsewhere, $13 to $15

Are you planning to go to Walla Walla, Washington, anytime soon, such as for Spring Release Weekend on May 6-8? If so, and you are an iPhone or iPad user, then you need to download this app. WineTrails of Walla Walla is available on iTunes and in the App Store. For only $2.99, you’ll have virtually all of the information from Steve Roberts’ latest book right at your fingertips, and he is promising regular updates to the app as well.

The app is sortable by wine trails in the Walla Walla area, by specific winery names, by appointment-only wineries, by pet-friendly wineries, by wineries with picnicking areas, and by handicap accessible wineries. When you select a winery, the app provides tasting room hours, tasting fees (if any), contact information, a map with the address, mileage from your home and directions, and photos.

There is also a “Beyond the Tasting Rooms” filter where you can find information on other things to see and do in the Walla Walla area. And if this isn’t enough, there are filters for restaurants, lodging, gift shops, and even wedding venues. I’m sure that I haven’t yet discovered everything that this app will do, so go to Steve’s Journal on the WineTrailsNW website to find out more.

Be sure to come back and let me know how much better your next trip to Walla Walla is with this handy-dandy app.

Happy WineTrails!

Full Disclosure: We received a promo code to demo this app.

This week’s Wine Word of the Week is Loire.

Official definition from Jancis Robinson’s The Oxford Companion to Wine:
Loire is France’s most famous river and name of one of its most varied wine regions whose wines are greatly appreciated locally and in Paris, but—with the famous exceptions of Sancerre and Pouilly-Fume—are still widely underrated outside France. ….

At the mouth of the Loire, Melon de Bourgogne and Folle Blanche predominate. The upper Loire is, in the early 21st century anyway, the terrain of Sauvignon Blanc for white wines and Pinot Noir for reds and rosés. The majority of the most successful sites in the middle Loire have proved themselves suitable for either Cabernet Franc or Chenin Blanc, but in the thousands of hectares of vineyard planted around them, there is a greater diversity of vine varieties than anywhere else in France, including a mix of Cabernet Sauvignon, Malbec, Gamay, Meunier, Pinot Gris, Chardonnay, and of course seas of Sauvignon and Pinot Noir. ….

Of all French wine regions, the Loire produces the greatest diversity of wine styles: from still through all types of sparkling wine….

Layman’s terms from Kori:
The Loire Valley is France’s third largest wine region. It is a long, narrow region that runs predominately east/west along the Loire River. The region spans about 600 miles. The Loire Valley includes 65 appellations and produces wines from over a dozen grape varieties. There is great diversity in Loire Valley wines due to its wide range of microclimates. Loire Valley wines are very food-friendly and are the most popular wines ordered in restaurants in France. Cabernet Franc was the Loire’s first red grape variety, and it thrives there, particularly in Chinon and Bourgueil.

Today’s post is part of a series featuring the Women of Washington Wine. In an industry once dominated by men, more and more women are joining the ranks as winery owners, vineyard owners, and winemakers. Being a woman myself, I am fascinated by these women and what they have done and continue to do. Through this series, I hope to introduce you to some of the brightest female faces in the Washington wine industry.

Ali Boyle is the namesake for Alexandria Nicole Cellars. Ali and her husband Jarrod founded the winery in 2004. Alexandria Nicole Cellars is located on their 243-acre estate vineyard, Destiny Ridge, in the Horse Heaven Hills of Washington State overlooking the Columbia River. They also have tasting rooms in Prosser and Woodinville. Jarrod began his career in the industry as assistant viticulturist to Dr. Wade Wolfe when they both worked for Hogue Cellars. During his time there, he discovered the property that is now home to Destiny Ridge Vineyard, and vines were planted in 1998. Jarrod serves as winemaker, and Ali is in charge of sales and marketing for Alexandria Nicole Cellars.

Recently, Ali was kind enough to take time out of her busy schedule to answer some questions for me and our Wine Peeps readers.

Highlights from Q&A with Ali Boyle:

How did you first get involved in the wine business?
My husband. He was working for Hogue Cellars in the early 90’s, and we started making wine in the garage. The rest is history.

What were the steps that led to where you are now?
Oh, my!  Step 1: Vision. Step 2: Action. Seriously, though, it’s been such a long journey. We started the vineyard, Destiny Ridge, in 1998. From there, we continued making wine at home for ourselves, and then in 2001 we decided to start a small family winery for us and our friends. We took on four partners and made a couple hundred cases. From there, the evolution has been intense. We built the winery in 2004 and have continued to grow Alexandria Nicole Cellars ever since.

Has being a woman been an advantage or a disadvantage in your wine journey?
Well, hmm? Since that’s all I know, I’ll say it’s an advantage! Being a woman, married to a great man who supports and encourages me, makes all the difference. I do believe that embracing the female side of the experience opens the door for other females because they feel a sense of comfort. Hopefully, if it’s done right it takes away some of the intimidation that they might otherwise feel.

What advice do you have for a woman wanting to get involved in the wine business today?
Don’t be intimidated. You can do it. Ask for advice from others who have gone before you.

What are your thoughts about the Washington wine industry, in general?
I love it, and I’m proud to be a small part of it.

How do you and your husband, Jarrod, divide the duties at the winery?
Great question. He leads; I follow. He makes the wine, and I help facilitate sales. He is an amazing visionary with such a warm and genuine personality, and we are blessed to be surrounded by hard working people who have joined the ANC team to make it so amazing.

Alexandria Nicole Cellars seems to have a very active wine club as well as an active presence on Twitter and Facebook. What impact have your wine club and social networking had on the winery?
We heart our wine club members. Many of them have become our extended family, and their support and encouragement has bolstered us up and kept us going. I wish I knew all of the members because I do appreciate their belief in the ANC dream. I guess that’s where the social media piece (Facebook/Twitter) ties in because it helps us stay connected and get to know them better. It’s fun to share stories, pictures, upcoming events and then look back to see who’s commented. We may not have seen them for a while, but then they leave a comment and we’re able to reconnect.

What is your vision for the future of Alexandria Nicole Cellars?
My vision is to continue to grow the wine club. We are currently at almost 2,000 members, and they are the heart of ANC. We talk about other locations, but, for now, I like where we are.

Feel free to share any other thoughts that you believe would be of interest to our readers.
Jarrod and I live out at Destiny Ridge and have for a little over seven years. We’ve been together for 20 years, and we have three kids and lots of critters. Our kids are the light of our life, bookend boys and a girly girl in the middle. Seph, our oldest, is in college; Matti is in high school; and Kol is in middle school.

—

Many thanks to Ali for sharing her story and thoughts with us. I wish her and Jarrod all the best and will continue following their work and Alexandria Nicole Cellars with great interest, and I hope that you will too.

Would you like a quick suggestion for a good wine to drink tonight (or this weekend) that won’t break your budget and is widely available? Many of our readers have said this is something they would like, so here is this week’s selection, the 2009 Kim Crawford Sauvignon Blanc from the famed Marlborough region of New Zealand.

Our selection criteria include:

• A very good Quality rating of >=3.5 stars (out of 5)
• A price tag of <=$15
• Must be widely available

Kim Crawford Wines, located in New Zealand, was founded in 1996 by owner/winemaker Kim Crawford and his wife Erica. In the beginning, Kim Crawford Wines was one of New Zealand’s first “virtual wineries.” They sourced their grapes from growers across New Zealand, made the wine at other wineries, and managed their sales and marketing from their home in Auckland. In 1998, they began exporting some of their wine to the United States, Canada, and Australia. The Crawfords opened a cellar door (tasting room) facility in Te Awanga in Hawke’s Bay in 1999. Then they opened a state of the art winery and purchased vineyard land in Marlborough in early 2000. Kim Crawford Wines is now part of Constellation Brands.

Regular readers know that we are big fans of New Zealand Sauvignon Blanc, the country’s flagship wine. And Kim Crawford Wines makes one of our favorite New Zealand Sauvignon Blancs. In fact, Kim Crawford Sauvignon Blanc has been Mom’s (LaGayle) favorite wine, period, since we visited New Zealand in 2005. The most amazing thing about Kim Crawford Sauvignon Blanc is its amazing consistency from vintage to vintage. It’s crisp acidity and refreshing grapefruit flavors are especially pleasing to our palates.

“A bouquet of citrus and tropical fruits backed by characteristic herbaceous notes that Marlborough Sauvignon Blanc is famous for. An exuberant wine brimming with flavours of pineapple and stonefruit with a hint of herbaceousness. The finish is fresh and zesty.” –Winemaker Anthony Walkenhorst

2009 Kim Crawford Sauvignon Blanc (Marlborough, New Zealand): Pale, greenish straw yellow. Extremely aromatic with grapefruit and grassy notes on the nose. More grapefruit, lime, and other citrus fruits come through on the palate. Medium-bodied with very tart acidity. Well-balanced with a long finish. Very crisp and refreshing.
Quality: 4 stars (out of 5)
QPR: 5 bangs for your buck (out of 5)
Where to buy: Sam’s Club (Seattle, Washington), $13.58; Available elsewhere, $12 to $20

Washington State Cabernet Sauvignons are among the best in the world, and they are much better values (higher QPR) than most Cabs in other wine regions of the world. Last Friday evening, we tasted six Cabernet Sauvignons from the 2007 vintage from Washington State in our monthly wine tasting dinner. It was another fabulous evening of great wines, the company of wonderful friends, and LaGayle’s (Mom’s) excellent food. Unfortunately, one of the wines was corked so I have not included it in this post. The other five wines paired extremely well with our dinner of tomato basil soup, Boston and red leaf lettuce salad with Gorgonzola cheese, crispy bacon, pine nuts, and white balsamic vinaigrette dressing, grilled beef tenderloin steaks, garlic mashed sweet potatoes, sautéed green beans, and German chocolate dessert with whipped topping garnished with dark chocolate. Since these wines were young, we opened them three hours before serving, used a Vinturi aerator, and double decanted them back into their bottles.

The consensus favorite was the 2007 Fielding Hills Cabernet Sauvignon. What can I say other than Fielding Hills has done it again? I continue to be amazed at the quality that winemaker Mike Wade is able to produce from vintage to vintage. If you have not yet tried any Fielding Hills wines, you definitely need to seek them out. A close second was the 2007 Grand Rêve Reserve Cabernet Sauvignon.

Not only did all five wines receive a Quality rating of 4 stars or higher (out of 5), but the top three also received a QPR rating of 5 bangs for your buck (out of 5). Even though these wines are not inexpensive, they are well worth the money. I would encourage you to try any of these wines, especially with a meal, to decide for yourself how Washington State Cabernet Sauvignon compares to other world-renowned Cabs.

From 1st to last in the group consensus rankings:

2007 Fielding Hills Cabernet Sauvignon (Riverbend Vineyard, Wahluke Slope, Washington): Deep, dark inky purplish red. Gorgeous nose with black fruits, licorice, and spice rack aromas. Blackcurrant, black cherry, licorice, and a hint of tobacco come through on the palate. Full-bodied and lively with medium to high tannins. Well-balanced and extremely smooth with a long, lingering finish.
Quality: 4.5 stars (out of 5)
QPR: 5 bangs for your buck (out of 5)
Where to buy: Winery, $38; Available elsewhere, $40

2007 Grand Rêve Reserve Cabernet Sauvignon (Ciel du Cheval Vineyard, Red Mountain, Washington): Deep red. Very aromatic with beautiful black cherry, black plum, and spice aromas. Black cherry, pencil lead, and a hint of black tea come through on the palate. Full-bodied and lively with medium to high, drying tannins. Well-balanced with a long finish.
Quality: 4.5 stars (out of 5)
QPR: 5 bangs for your buck (out of 5)
Where to buy: Winery, $75; Available elsewhere, $250 to $255

2007 Abeja Cabernet Sauvignon (Columbia Valley, Washington): Deep, dark ruby red in color. Nice nose with very fruity and creamy aromas that lead to black cherry, pencil lead, and oak flavors on the palate. Medium to full-bodied and fruit-forward with lively acidity, medium tannins, and a long finish.
Quality: 4 stars (out of 5)
QPR: 5 bangs for your buck (out of 5)
Where to buy: Full Pull Wines (Seattle, Washington), $39; Available elsewhere, $40 to $45

2007 Quilceda Creek Galitzine Vineyard Cabernet Sauvignon (Galitzine Vineyard, Red Mountain, Washington): Deep, dark purplish red. Aromatic with toast, pencil shavings, and black currant on the nose. Black cherry, black currant, and spice come through on the palate. Medium to full-bodied and lively with very dry tannins and a long finish.
Quality: 4 stars (out of 5)
QPR: 3 bangs for your buck (out of 5)
Where to buy: Winery, $98; Available elsewhere, $129 to $175

2007 Leonetti Cellar Cabernet Sauvignon (Walla Walla Valley, Washington): Dark red in color. Aromatic with butter, smoke, black fruits, and spice on both the nose and palate. Medium to full-bodied with crisp acidity, medium to high, drying tannins, and a long finish.
Quality: 4 stars (out of 5)
QPR: 3 bangs for your buck (out of 5)
Where to buy: Full Pull Wines (Seattle, Washington), $90; Available elsewhere, $88 to $200

This week’s Wine Word of the Week is Rhone.

Official definition from Jancis Robinson’s The Oxford Companion to Wine:
Rhone is one of the most important wine rivers, linking a range of vineyards as dissimilar as those of Chateauneuf-du-Pape in southern France, sparkling Seyssel, and Fendant du Valais in Switzerland. In wine circles, however, the term Rhone usually means the fashionable wines made in the Rhone valley in south east France which themselves vary so much, north and south of an almost vine-free 50-km/30-mile stretch between approximately Valence and Montelimar, that they are divided into two very distinct zones….

… the southern Rhone (Rhone meridionale in French) is by far the most important [wine district in the Rhone valley] in terms of quantity. ….

The most important Rhone district in terms of the prestige of its wines is the northern Rhone (Rhone septentrionale in French), which includes the appellations of Hermitage and Cote Rotie, representing serious rivals to the great names of Bordeaux and Burgundy in the quality and, especially, longevity of their best wines. The northern Rhone is quite different from the southern Rhone in terms of climate, soils, topography, and even vine varieties. ….

Most [northern Rhone] appellations are based on the right bank of the river, but the left bank vineyards of Crozes-Hermitage, and especially Hermitage, are particularly well exposed to afternoon sunshine. This is the prime territory of the Syrah grape, which is the only red grape permitted in northern Rhone red wines. Fashionable Viognier is the defining grape variety of the white wines Condrieu and Chateau Grillet, while other northern Rhone wines are made from the robust Marsanne given nerve by the more delicate Roussanne grape. ….

The southern Rhone has only the river in common with the northern Rhone. …. Most wines are blends rather than made from a single vine variety. Although Syrah is increasingly widely planted to endow red wines with longevity, four times as much Grenache is grown in the southern Rhone. It can in theory be supplemented or seasoned by a wide range of other local varieties, but in practice only Carignan, Cinsault, Mourvedre, and Syrah are planted to any extent. ….

Layman’s terms from Kori:
The Rhone Valley, located in southeast France, is divided into two parts, appropriately referred to as the northern Rhone and the southern Rhone. While the northern Rhone produces mostly single varietal wines, the southern Rhone is known for producing blends. Cote Rotie, Crozes-Hermitage, and Hermitage in the northern Rhone are regions well-known for producing world-class Syrah. White grape varieties in the northern Rhone include Viognier, Marsanne, and Roussanne. The most famous AOC in the southern Rhone is Chateauneuf-du-Pape, which is well-known for its Grenache-based blends, many of which are GSM’s (Grenache-Syrah-Mourvedre blends). The dominant white grape variety in the southern Rhone is Grenache Blanc.

For those of you who are not familiar with a vertical tasting, it is a tasting in which you taste different vintages of the same wine from the same winery. We were first “wow”-ed by Fielding Hills in the summer of 2008. Since then, we have visited the winery, tasted all of their new releases, and even helped them with bottling. Previously, we have had the pleasure to enjoy vertical tastings of their Syrah and Cabernet Sauvignon that have demonstrated the remarkable consistency that Fielding Hills has been able to produce since their very first vintage. We were thrilled when we were able to get our hands on all nine vintages of Merlot that they have produced, from their inaugural 2000 vintage to their current 2008 vintage, for another vertical tasting.

Fielding Hills Winery, a small, family-owned winery in Wenatchee, is one of the top wineries in Washington State. Owner/winemaker Mike Wade and his wife Karen are longtime apple and cherry growers who have turned a middle portion of their orchard near Mattawa into a vineyard. The grapes for all nine of these wines were sourced from the Wade’s Riverbend Vineyard, planted in 1998, in the Wahluke Slope AVA. However, the 2000, 2001, 2002, and 2003 vintages are labeled as Columbia Valley because Wahluke Slope was not established as an official AVA until 2006. Strictly red wine producers, Fielding Hills’ current production is about 850 cases per year but will be increasing to about 1400 cases with the 2009 vintage.

Recently, the four Wine Peeps and our good friends, Mark and Jill, sat down to dinner to enjoy this vertical tasting. While most of our tastings are blind, we decided not to taste these blind. We simply wanted to enjoy the wines and taste them in a logical order. We started with the oldest and worked our way to the youngest before we ate any food to try to get a good baseline for evaluation. This tasting was fabulous! Once again, we were amazed at the consistency of quality in these wines. All nine wines paired extremely well with Mom’s dinner of tomato basil soup, arugula peach salad, pan-seared flat iron steak, creamy potato and parsnip au gratin, sautéed haricot verts (French green beans), and chocolate cream pie for dessert.

You can’t go wrong with any of these wines. In fact, all nine wines were very good and received a Quality Rating of at least 3.5 stars (out of 5). We thought that five out of the nine were excellent and rated them as 4 stars (out of 5) or higher. We were very impressed with the quality of their first vintage, the 2000. It is really holding up well for an 11 year old wine. Winemaker Mike Wade really seems to be hitting his stride with the last four vintages though, and I believe that the 2008 is his best Merlot yet. Selling for $36, it also delivers serious bang for your buck.

If you are ever in the Wenatchee area, Fielding Hills is a stop you do not want to miss. I encourage you to give Mike and Karen a call to make an appointment to visit the winery. Or, if you are in the Seattle area, be sure to check out their tasting counter at URBAN enoteca. And regardless of whether you are able to visit or not, try to get your hands on a bottle or two of Fielding Hills wine and enjoy.