Soos Creek and Quilceda Creek wineries have “creek” in common in their names, but a huge “gulf” separates them. And it’s not so much in the quality of their wines as in their approach to customer service.

I’ve purchased and enjoyed several of Soos Creek’s wines, so I was excited to receive an invitation to attend their annual Open House last Saturday and taste through all of their new releases. Unfortunately, that’s where the fun ended. After driving almost an hour in the rain and in the dark through heavy traffic from an afternoon of tasting in Woodinville, we ended up on a dark country road near Kent next to their new winery building. I only deduced it was their building because of all the cars around it. There was no signage, no outside lighting to help you find your way, and no winery personnel to greet you, to explain the parking situation, or to direct you to the entry. Thank goodness it had temporarily stopped raining when we arrived.

After stumbling around in the dark looking for an open door, which was on the opposite side of the building from the driveway, we found light. There was a huge crowd already inside and a line of people holding glasses snaking out the door, but no one at the door from the winery to explain the system for tasting the wines. Finally I just asked another guest at the end of the line how this works. He answered that it was very disorganized, and that he had already apologized to his guests for inviting them. I had already apologized to my family when I saw this logistical mess. There were five of us in two separate cars who had driven an hour each and met at Soos Creek for the open house.

It turns out that you had to fight the crowd to get inside to get a wine glass, then get in a long “figure eight” line that crossed over itself to eventually get your first tasting sample from the single tasting station, and then get back at the end of the line outside and do it all again, six times if you wanted to taste all of the wines. If it had been raining during the time we were there, it would have been an impossible nightmare. I quickly concluded that there are too many other good Washington wines to put up with this mess on a Saturday night. I just forgot about tasting any wine, fought my way through the mass of people to get a cookie for the road, and left. By the way, the cookies were $1.00 each, but they were delicious.

Contrast this experience with a visit to the Quilceda Creek open house and wine pick-up party. When you attend a Quilceda Creek function, you understand why they are “the best”. Not only are their wines superb but they know how to run a business and put on a customer friendly event. First of all they have their open house in the afternoon, rather than in the evening, when there is plenty of light and you can see where you are going if you’ve not been out to their facility before. Second, you are greeted outside near the street by friendly winery personnel who check you in, explain the system, and call ahead so that your wines are ready for pickup when you get inside. Third, when you get inside, you are again personally greeted by one of the family members and directed to the wine tasting station which is located away from the entrance and has two people pouring.

I don’t enjoy “calling out” a winery like I’m doing with Soos Creek in this post, and I wouldn’t even bother to do it if he made plonk wine. But Dave Larsen is a real nice guy and an excellent winemaker. I had the pleasure of meeting him at a Taste Washington seminar earlier this year. And I’ve liked his wines that I’ve tasted. But Dave needs to know how upset many of the people attending his event were last Saturday and the negative light it shines on his business. In these tough enough economic times, it’s not enough to make good wine, you have to develop and maintain good customer relations. Wine lovers have too many other choices if you don’t.

I didn’t put up this post until today, because I thought that by now those of us who had been invited to the open house would have received an apologetic email or snail mail letter offering a re-take of the open house, special discount, or something to acknowledge how he inconvenienced us last Saturday. So far, nothing. C’mon Dave, you can do better than that!

Woodinville has definitely become a must-visit destination in Washington wine country. Home of the state’s oldest, largest, and most well-known wineries, Chateau Ste. Michelle and Columbia Winery, the Woodinville area is also home to over 40 wineries and tasting rooms, with new ones opening all the time. Woodinville now boasts the second largest concentration of Washington wineries after Walla Walla and is located just 17 miles northeast of Seattle. I am not aware of another place in the U.S. where there are this many fine wineries so close to a major city.

Last Saturday, we spent the afternoon visiting ten wineries or tasting rooms in Woodinville that we had not previously visited. In many cases, we had not tasted any or many of their wines either. Our ten stops included AlmaTerra, Guardian Cellars, XSV, Des Voigne, William Church, Cuillin Hills, Barrage, Covington, Hollywood Hills, and Isenhower. In the process, we made several exciting new discoveries.

Hollywood Hill Vineyards, located a couple of miles from downtown Woodinville on Hollywood Hill, was founded in 2004 by Steve and Becky Snyder. Hollywood Hill Vineyards is the only winery in Woodinville that also has their own vineyards, where they grow both Pinot Noir and Chardonnay. Their primary focus is on producing Rhone-inspired wines from Eastern Washington fruit, but they produce a small amount of estate grown wines as well. We had the pleasure to meet Becky and taste their wines in their tasting room located down the hill from their winery in the Apple Farm Village. We tasted four of their wines, three different Syrahs as well as a Mourvedre/Syrah blend, and thought they were all excellent, rating all four of them as 4 stars (out of 5).

AlmaTerra is a unique project dedicated to making wines from diverse Washington AVA’s (American Viticultural Areas) with the goal of expressing terroir. AlmaTerra is the brainchild of geologist/viticulturist Dr. Alan Busacca and winemaker Robert Smasne. Their first releases featured 2006 Syrahs. In the winery, Robert made each wine in exactly the same way, the only difference being where the grapes were sourced. They produce three single-vineyard Syrahs, one each from Minick Vineyard in the Yakima Valley, Coyote Canyon Vineyard in the Horse Heaven Hills, and Ciel du Cheval Vineyard on Red Mountain. We enjoyed all of their wines but thought their best wine was the 2006 Coéo Syrah which is a blend of their three single-vineyard wines. Alan happened to be in the tasting room on Saturday so we had the opportunity to learn about these wines from the viticulturist himself.

William Church Winery was founded in 2005 by Leslie and Rod Balsley. The winery is named after both of their fathers. We were welcomed at the winery by volunteer extraordinaires, Bob and Diane Schumacher. The Balsleys are fortunate to have such friendly, helpful folks “working” in their tasting room. Our favorites of the wines we tasted were the 2007 Malbec and the 2007 Syrah.

Here’s a breakdown of the wines that we tasted in Woodinville. Under each Quality heading, the wine name and region in Washington State will be listed along with price and QPR rating. Wines in bold type received a QPR rating of 5 bangs for your buck (out of 5).

Quality: 4.5 stars (out of 5)
2006 AlmaTerra Coéo Syrah, Columbia Valley, $48, QPR: 5

Quality: 4 stars (out of 5)
2007 William Church Syrah, Yakima Valley, $25, QPR: 5
2007 Covington Cellars Cabernet Sauvignon, Columbia Valley, $35, QPR: 5
2005 Hollywood Hill Vineyards Yakima Valley Syrah, Yakima Valley, $28, QPR: 4
2006 Hollywood Hill Vineyards Red Mountain Syrah, Red Mountain, $30, QPR: 4
2007 Hollywood Hill Vineyards Rattlesnake Hills Syrah, Rattlesnake Hills, $32, QPR:  4
2007 Hollywood Hill Vineyards DIst 83 Mourvedre/Syrah, Red Mountain, $32, QPR: 4
2007 Cuillin Hills Shackled Red Wine Stillwater Creek Vineyard, Columbia Valley, $35, QPR: 4
2007 William Church Malbec, Wahluke Slope, $30, QPR: 3
2007 Barrage Cellars Secret Weapon Boushey Vineyard Syrah, Columbia Valley, $40, QPR: 3
2006 AlmaTerra Syrah Ciel du Cheval, Red Mountain, $56.25, QPR: 2

Quality: 3.5 stars (out of 5)
2007 Cuillin Hills Riff-Raff Red Wine, Columbia Valley, $17, QPR: 4
2007 Isenhower Wild Alfalfa Syrah, Columbia Valley, $25, QPR: 4
2007 Isenhower Batchelor’s Button Cabernet Sauvignon, Columbia Valley, $29, QPR: 4
2007 Covington Cellars Sangiovese, Columbia Valley, $30, QPR: 4
2007 Isenhower Road Less Traveled Cabernet Franc, Wahluke Slope, $25, QPR: 3
2007 Isenhower Red Paintbrush Bordeaux-style blend, Columbia Valley, $25, QPR: 3
2007 Guardian Cellars Chalk Line, Columbia Valley, $25, QPR: 3
2007 Des Voigne The Duke Red Wine Zinfandel Blend, Columbia Valley, $28, QPR: 3
2007 Cuillin Hills The Dungeon Syrah, Columbia Valley, $29, QPR: 3
2007 William Church “2 Spires”, Columbia Valley, $29, QPR: 3
2006 Covington Cellars Starr Syrah Seven Hills Vineyard, Walla Walla Valley, $29, QPR: 3
2007 Des Voigne Solea Red Wine, Red Mountain, $30, QPR: 3
2007 Barrage Cellars Outcast Boushey Vineyard Cabernet Franc, Columbia Valley, $35, QPR: 2
2007 AlmaTerra Coéo Viognier, Columbia Valley, $26, QPR: 1
2006 Smasne Malbec Phinny Hill Vineyard, Horse Heaven Hills, $35, QPR: 1
2006 AlmaTerra Syrah Minick Vineyard, Yakima Valley, $50, QPR: 1
2006 AlmaTerra Syrah Coyote Canyon Vineyard, Horse Heaven Hills, $53.75, QPR: 1

Quality: 3 stars (out of 5)
2007 William Church Bishop’s Blend, Columbia Valley, $19, QPR: 4
2007 Des Voigne San Remo Ciel du Cheval Sangiovese, Red Mountain, $26, QPR: 3
2003 XSV Cabernet Sauvignon, Wahluke Slope, $38, QPR: 3
2008 Cuillin Hills Derby Girl Rosé, Columbia Valley, $17, QPR: 2
2006 Covington Cellars Rough House Red, Walla Walla Valley, $29, QPR: 2
2008 William Church Viognier, Columbia Valley, $20, QPR: 1
2006 Guardian Cellars Gun Metal, Columbia Valley, $35, QPR: 1
2004 XSV Syrah, Horse Heaven Hills, $36, QPR: 1

Quality: 2.5 stars (out of 5)
2008 Isenhower Snapdragon White Wine, Red Mountain, $17, QPR: NR
2004 XSV Chardonnay, Wahluke Slope, $18, QPR: NR
2008 Des Voigne Menina Flor Viognier/Roussanne, Columbia Valley, $20, QPR: NR
2008 Covington Cellars Dress White Semillon/Sauvignon Blanc Klipsun Vineyard, Red Mountain, $20, QPR: NR
2006 Des Voigne The Emcee Merlot, Walla Walla Valley, $28, QPR: NR
2007 Des Voigne Montreux Syrah, Columbia Valley, $30, QPR: NR
2004 XSV Cabernet Sauvignon, Horse Heaven Hills, $35, QPR: NR

Otis Kenyon is a small, family-owned and operated winery in Walla Walla, Washington. Founded in 2004 by Stephen Otis Kenyon and his wife Deborah Dunbar, Otis Kenyon currently produces 2,500 cases per year.

We were first introduced to Otis Kenyon wines at a tasting at Pete’s Wine Shop in Bellevue last year. Since discovering that Dave Stephenson is their winemaker, we have been paying close attention to them. Regular readers know that we have been very impressed with Dave’s work at his own Stephenson Cellars.

Otis Kenyon sources the majority of their fruit from their own Stellar Vineyard, a 10-acre mature vineyard planted to Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot, and Syrah in the Walla Walla Valley AVA near Milton-Freewater, Oregon. They also own another 29-acre site in the same area which will soon be planted to Bordeaux and Rhone varietals.

Otis Kenyon has one of the most intriguing stories in the Washington wine industry. It’s about family, fire, estrangement, and redemption. Back in the early 1900’s, James Otis Kenyon was a struggling dentist in Milton-Freewater, Oregon. When a new dentist moved the town, James decided to take matters into his own hands and burned his competitor’s office to the ground. His wife divorced him and took their two sons, who presumed their father had died, and moved to Walla Walla. About 50 years later, Stephen Otis Kenyon discovered his grandfather living on the Oregon Coast. James was reunited with his family and lived to the age of 101. As a tribute to four generations of Otis Kenyons and the family’s strong ties to the Walla Walla Valley, owners Stephen and Deborah decided to return to the area to make wine. In honor of James Otis Kenyon, the singed label on Otis Kenyon wines depicts his silhouette and the copy from the newspaper article announcing the scandal from nearly 100 years ago.

The Otis Kenyon tasting room in downtown Walla Walla opened in May 2008. If you are in the area, I encourage you to stop by to taste their wines and be sure to ask them about James Otis Kenyon.

We recently had the opportunity to taste their recently released 2007 Matchless Red Wine. It’s a wine that goes well with your mid-week dinner but also gives you a great story to tell when you take it to a party.

2007 Otis Kenyon Matchless Red Wine (Walla Walla Valley, Washington): 70% Merlot, 30% Cabernet Sauvignon. Deep garnet and very aromatic. Blackberry, black cherry, and vanilla come through on the nose; more black fruits and spice on the palate. Medium to full-bodied with lively acidity and medium tannins. Well-balanced and smooth with a long finish.
Quality: 3.5 stars (out of 5)
QPR: 4 bangs for your buck (out of 5)
Where to buy: Received as sample; Winery, $23

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

Official definition from Jancis Robinson’s The Oxford Companion to Wine:
Bottles are by far the most common containers for finished wine. Being made of glass, bottles are inconveniently fragile and relatively heavy, but, importantly for long-term aging, they are inert. A standard bottle contains 75 cl/27 fl oz.

Layman’s terms from Kori:
Bottles are the most common containers for finished wine. A standard bottle contains 750 ml or ¾ Liter. A standard 750 ml bottle of wine serves approximately five glasses.

Last Friday, I shared with you my analysis of our Wine Peeps coverage of Washington State wines as compared to the three major print publications. To recap: According to statistics cited by Sean Sullivan on his Washington Wine Report and a tally of our reviews on this blog, we at Wine Peeps review more Washington wines than any of the three leading subscription publications. And it appears that our scoring is a little tougher, maybe more realistic would be a better choice of words, than any of those three publications. As of last Friday, we had reviewed 789 Washington wines this year, and 226 of those 789 wines we reviewed garnered 4 stars or better (28.4%) out of 5 stars. More importantly, at least to us, 155 of the 789 Washington wines [19.7%] we reviewed have a Quality Rating >=4 stars (out of 5) and a QPR >=4 bangs for your buck (out of 5).

As promised, below is a list of the 70 Washington wineries, out of a total of 227 different wineries, that produced those 155 wines we have reviewed so far this year that met the criteria of having a Quality Rating >=4 stars (out of 5) and a QPR >=4 bangs for your buck (out of 5). If the winery had multiple high Quality and high QPR wines, they are listed in bold.

These are our “go-to” Washington wineries for 2009:

Adams Bench
àMaurice
Barnard Griffin
Barrister
Basel
Benson
Bergevin Lane
Betz
Boudreaux
Cedergreen
Chandler Reach
Chateau Rollat
Chateau Ste. Michelle
Chatter Creek
Columbia
Columbia Crest
Côte Bonneville
Couvillion
Darby
Doyenne (DeLille)
Dunham
Dusted Valley
Elegante
Fall Line
Feather (Long Shadows)
Fielding Hills
Five Star Cellars
Forgeron
Four Lakes
Gilbert
Gorman
Grand Rêve
Grande Ronde
Hard Row to Hoe
Januik
Jones of Washington
Kalamar
Kana
Kontos
K Vintners
Lone Canary
Mark Ryan
Mercer Estates
Mountain Dome
Nefarious
O*S Wines
Parejas
Pomum
Quilceda Creek
Rio Vista
Rock Meadow
Rotie
Sandhill
Saviah
Sequel (Long Shadows)
Sleight of Hand
Stephenson
Stevens
Syncline
Tasawik
Townshend
Tsillan
Va Piano
Walla Walla Vintners
Watermill*
Whitestone
William Church
Willow Crest
Windy Point
Woodward Canyon

*technically an Oregon winery but located in the Walla Walla Valley

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 2008 Chateau Ste. Michelle Pinot Gris from Washington State’s Columbia Valley.

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

Last month, we featured Washington State Pinot Gris in our wine tasting dinner. The wines paired wonderfully with Mom’s dinner of tomato basil soup, mixed green salad, chicken tapenade, orzo pasta with parmesan and basil, roasted Italian vegetables, and tiramisu for dessert. This 2008 Chateau Ste. Michelle Pinot Gris was one of the top three wines in the tasting that clearly stood above the rest.

I’m one who focuses on the wine first and the food second, but this pairing was outstanding and truly grabbed my attention. However, as well as the 2008 Chateau Ste. Michelle Pinot Gris paired with the food in the tasting dinner, I think that it would be an excellent, economical choice to pair with your Thanksgiving turkey and dressing next week. So why not go and pick up a couple of bottles, one for tonight and one to take to your Thanksgiving feast next week.

“Falling somewhere between the lighter Italian Pinot Grigio style and the richer, rounder Pinot Gris style from Alsace, our Columbia Valley Pinot Gris offers fresh aromas and flavors of pear, fig, and a hint of spice. A touch of Viognier contributes texture and an attractive floral character….” –Bob Bertheau, Head Winemaker, Chateau Ste. Michelle

2008 Chateau Ste. Michelle Pinot Gris (Columbia Valley, Washington): Pale, straw yellow. Tinny and metallic on the nose; citrus and floral notes come through on the palate. Light-bodied and crisp with a long, smooth finish.
Quality: 4 stars (out of 5)
QPR: 5 bangs for your buck (out of 5)
Where to buy: Fred Meyer (Seattle, WA), $9; Widely available elsewhere, $9 to $15

Our host for the November edition of Wine Blogging Wednesday, the blogosphere’s monthly virtual wine tasting event, is Rob Bralow of Wine Post. He selected Find Your Muse as this month’s theme. While giving us lots of room to maneuver in “finding our muse,” he did lay down a few guidelines which included choosing a wine we’ve either enjoyed many times but never written about or a wine we’ve been meaning to try…and no samples. Oh, and he asked us to time how long we enjoyed the wine and then take twice that amount of time to write the post.

In typical Wine Peeps fashion, we decided to blind taste two wines for this Wine Blogging Wednesday. We chose the 2007 Kerloo Cellars Les Collines Syrah and the 2007 Syncline Syrah, both Washington State wines. The 2007 Les Collines Syrah is one of Kerloo Cellars’ inaugural releases. We always enjoy trying new Washington producers so we were anxious to give Kerloo a try when we saw this limited production wine offered by Full Pull Wines. We decided to taste it against another 2007 Syrah from Washington State, one that was from a producer, Syncline, whose wines we have enjoyed in the past.

Both wines paired well with Mom’s dinner of chili-chipotle roast with potatoes and carrots, seasoned French cut beans, and southern-style biscuits. All four of us Wine Peeps liked them both but we all preferred the Kerloo over the Syncline. It was more complex and better balanced.

Since we tasted these wines with dinner, we enjoyed them for just under an hour, 56 minutes to be exact. Given Rob’s formula, that meant that I was supposed to take 112 minutes, almost two hours, to write this post. Given the fact that I did some reading about both wineries as well as was interrupted (as I usually am during my writing) by the buzz of the clothes dryer, phone calls, and the whimpers of a 2 ½ year old who did not want to nap, I easily exceeded two hours from start to finish.

Kerloo Cellars, located in Walla Walla, Washington, is owned by Ryan and Renee Crane. Ryan and Renee relocated from Seattle to Walla Walla to pursue their winemaking dream. Ryan is also the assistant winemaker at Va Piano Vineyards. His experience and contacts in the industry have helped him secure some prized vineyard sources and to hit the ground running with his inaugural vintage from his own winery. Kerloo Cellars is definitely a winery to watch.

Syncline Wine Cellars, founded by James and Poppie Mantone in 1999, is located in southern Washington in the Columbia Gorge AVA. After trying a number of varietals, the Mantones have decided to focus their efforts on Rhone varietals. Syncline’s annual production is just under 3,000 cases. We have found Syncline to be a consistent producer of high quality and excellent QPR wines. And, on a side note, their wines are sealed with a glass closure instead of the traditional cork, the only Washington winery that we are aware of that has switched exclusively to glass closures.

2007 Kerloo Cellars Les Collines Syrah (Walla Walla Valley, Washington): Deep, dark purple and very aromatic. Blackberry, black cherry, plum, and spice come through on the nose; more blackberry, plum, as well as leather on the palate. Medium to full-bodied with medium to high tannins and good acidity. Well-balanced and smooth with a long finish.
Quality: 4 stars (out of 5)
QPR: 4 bangs for your buck (out of 5)
Where to Buy: Full Pull Wines (Seattle, WA), $28.79

2007 Syncline Syrah (Columbia Valley, Washington): Dense, inky purple. Earth and chalk dust aromas lead to earth, medicinal, and dark fruit flavors. Medium to full-bodied with harsh tannins and a long finish. Not as well balanced as the Kerloo but improves with food and the longer it is open.
Quality: 3.5 stars (out of 5)
QPR: 4 bangs for your buck (out of 5)
Where to Buy: Fred Meyer (Seattle, WA), $22; MadWine (Seattle, WA), $23.99

It is so much fun to find recipes, plan menus, and then determine the wines to pair with them. As I’ve mentioned before and regular Wine Peeps readers have probably concluded, we really enjoy spicy, flavorful foods.

As I started planning the menu for this challenge, I decided to focus on Mexican/Southwestern foods. The main course was Salsa Verde Chicken Enchiladas, an entrée made with verde (green) sauce, sour cream, cheese, and, of course, spices. To round out the meal, I served a side dish which was a combination of a Mexican rice recipe and a Southwestern rice recipe. (My family never knows what I’m going to put together!) The final side dish was mixed vegetables broiled with Mexican seasonings. Yummy!

Once the menu was determined, it was time for me to select the wines. For a Mexican/Southwestern meal, the first beverages that come to mind are generally margaritas or beer; however, there is no reason not to enjoy wine with this meal. Determining which wines would be appropriate was the challenge.

Again, I referred to my favorite book, What to Drink with What You Eat by Andrew Dornenburg and Karen Page. As a result, the two wines that I selected to pair with the Salsa Verde Chicken Enchiladas were an Unoaked Chardonnay and a Pinot Grigio. I decided to try the 2008 Gilbert Cellars Unoaked Chardonnay from Washington State and the 2008 Nobilo Pinot Grigio from New Zealand. Both of these wines were absolutely fantastic! We vacillated back and forth as to which we preferred with the meal because both proved to be great pairings. Ultimately, the consensus was the 2008 Nobilo Pinot Grigio. In my opinion, these two wines not only are great with food but would also be great sippers. On top of being good wines, both also received a QPR rating of 5 bangs for your buck (out of 5).

I encourage you to try these challenging wine pairings yourself. All you have to do is select one of your favorite meals that would not necessarily be thought of as a meal to be paired with wine and then choose a couple of different wines to try with it, and you just may discover a wonderful new pairing. If you do, we’d love for you to share it with us and our readers. Also, feel free to suggest meals for us to try in our future challenging wine pairing dinners.

Bon appétit!

2008 Nobilo Pinot Grigio (East Coast, New Zealand): Medium yellow-gold in color. Honeysuckle aromas give way to flavors of lemon-lime, melon, and pear. Medium-bodied and smooth. Well-balanced with a long finish.
Quality: 4 stars (out of 5)
QPR: 5 bangs for your buck (out of 5)
Where to buy: Fred Meyer (Seattle, WA), $11.49; Available elsewhere, $10 to $15

2008 Gilbert Cellars Unoaked Chardonnay (Columbia Valley, Washington): Very light straw yellow, almost watery-looking. Apricot and floral notes on the nose lead to apples on the palate with a hint of orange peel on the back end. Light-bodied with good acidity. Well-balanced with a medium-long finish.
Quality: 3.5 stars (out of 5)
QPR: 5 bangs for your buck (out of 5)
Where to buy: Fred Meyer (Seattle, WA), $16.99; Available elsewhere, $17 to $18

Are you between the ages of 21 and 30? Do you enjoy wine and yet feel a bit intimidated by it? Do you live in the Seattle area or have plans to be in the area this weekend? If you answered “yes” to all three questions, then 20something—the new vintage could be just the event for you. This Saturday, November 21, at Fremont Studios in Seattle, 20something attendees will have the opportunity to mix and mingle with more than 75 Washington winemakers who will be pouring their favorite $30-and-under wines.

Recently, I attended the 20something TweetUp hosted by the Washington Wine Commission that featured 15 wines which were a preview of what will be poured at the 20something event on Saturday (see my notes below). If those wines were any indication, it should be a wonderful event. In addition to fabulous wines, 20something will also be featuring culinary treats from some of Seattle’s hottest chefs. And what I think will be the best feature at this year’s event for those of you eager to learn more about wine, in general…the education stations. 20something attendees will: learn how to spot a flawed wine; understand more about the textures, flavors, and aromas of wine; and participate in interactive activities throughout the evening.

And if you aren’t exactly 20-something anymore, don’t be deterred. Those over 30 and “young at heart” are more than welcome. For more information or to purchase tickets, visit the 20something—the new vintage website. And, if you purchase 20something tickets by today, November 16, you will be entered to win two tickets to “White Christmas,” playing at The 5th Avenue Theatre from November 28th through December 30th.

Here are the wines I tasted during the 20something TweetUp, listed in my personal order of preference, with my Twitter-style notes as well as Quality and QPR ratings:

2005 Côte Bonneville Carriage House DuBrul Vineyard (Yakima Valley, Washington): Bordeaux-style blend. Best of the bunch. Blackberry, black cherry, smooth, well-balanced. Yum!
Quality: 4.5 stars (out of 5)
QPR: 5 bangs for your buck (out of 5)
Suggested Retail Price: $50

2008 Syncline Subduction Red (Columbia Valley, Washington): Southern Rhone-style blend. Red fruits and floral notes. Smooth, well-balanced.
Quality: 4 stars (out of 5)
QPR: 5 bangs for your buck (out of 5)
Suggested Retail Price: $18

2006 Five Star Cellars Merlot (Walla Walla Valley, Washington): A big, bold, Cab-like Merlot. I like it.
Quality: 4 stars (out of 5)
QPR: 5 bangs for your buck (out of 5)
Suggested Retail Price: $32

2008 Barnard Griffin Syrah (Columbia Valley, Washington): Dark fruits, pepper, and a little earth. A little Australian Shiraz-esque.
Quality: 3.5 stars (out of 5)
QPR: 5 bangs for your buck (out of 5)
Suggested Retail Price: $17

2008 O*S Winery Riesling Champoux Vineyards (Horse Heaven Hills, Washington): Slightly corked. Good acidity. Peach on nose and palate.
Quality: 3.5 stars (out of 5)
QPR: 4 bangs for your buck (out of 5)
Suggested Retail Price: $20

2008 COR Cellars Alba Cor (Columbia Gorge, Washington): Pinot Gris/Gewurztraminer. Fresh, lemon zest, crisp acidity, long finish.
Quality: 3.5 stars (out of 5)
QPR: 3 bangs for your buck (out of 5)
Suggested Retail Price: $18

2005 Northstar Merlot (Columbia Valley, Washington): Another big, bold Merlot. Some earth and barnyard on this one.
Quality: 3.5 stars (out of 5)
QPR: 3 bangs for your buck (out of 5)
Suggested Retail Price: $40

2008 Doyenne Roussanne Ciel du Cheval Vineyard (Red Mountain, Washington): Produced by DeLille Cellars. Floral, crisp, fresh. A nice surprise.
Quality: 3.5 stars (out of 5)
QPR: 1 bang for your buck (out of 5)
Suggested Retail Price: $30

2006 Robert Karl Cellars Claret (Horse Heaven Hills, Washington): Bordeaux-style blend. Black fruits, a little pepper and spice, and some heat on the finish.
Quality: 3 stars (out of 5)
QPR: 4 bangs for your buck (out of 5)
Suggested Retail Price: $20

2008 Sparkman Cellars Lumiere Chardonnay (Columbia Valley, Washington): Classic Chardonnay. Oak, vanilla, butter.
Quality: 3 stars (out of 5)
QPR: 2 bangs for your buck (out of 5)
Suggested Retail Price: $25

2008 Bergevin Lane Calico White (Columbia Valley, Washington): Viognier, Roussanne, and Chardonnay. Dried apricots and floral notes on the nose. Crisp but slightly bitter finish.
Quality: 3 stars (out of 5)
QPR: 2 bangs for your buck (out of 5)
Suggested Retail Price: $16

2007 Boomtown Pinot Gris (Columbia Valley, Washington): Produced by Dusted Valley Vintners. Hay aromas but a bit plain up front. Opens up on mid-palate, medium finish.
Quality: 2.5 stars (out of 5)
QPR: NR (not recommended)
Suggested Retail Price: $13

2008 L’Ecole No. 41 Semillon (Columbia Valley, Washington): Love the L’Ecole label, schoolhouse drawn by a third grader. Tight nose, very dry.
Quality: 2.5 stars (out of 5)
QPR: NR (not recommended)
Suggested Retail Price: $16

2006 Seven Hills Winery Malbec (Walla Walla Valley, Washington): Usually love Malbec but not feeling this one tonight. Too jammy.
Quality: 2.5 stars (out of 5)
QPR: NR (not recommended)
Suggested Retail Price: $28

2006 Baer Ursa (Columbia Valley, Washington): Bordeaux-style blend. Lots of red fruits up front. Finish trails off though.
Quality: 2.5 stars (out of 5)
QPR: NR (not recommended)
Suggested Retail Price: $35

To try these wines for yourself, make plans to attend the 20something—the new vintage event this Saturday at Fremont Studios.

Cheers!

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

Official definition from Jancis Robinson’s The Oxford Companion to Wine:
Blush wine is a very pale pink popular American specialty made, rather like France’s vin gris, by using black-skinned grapes as if to make white wine. A marketing triumph emanating from California in the late 1980s (the name was originally coined by Mill Creek winery but the style was promulgated by Bob Trinchero of Sutter Home), it differs from rosé mainly in ethos rather than substance, having become fashionable just when and where rosé was losing its market appeal (although a blush wine is likely to be perceptibly paler than a rosé). …. Most are sweet, vaguely aromatic, and faintly fizzy.

Layman’s terms from Kori:
Blush wine is made from red grapes in a white wine style. Most often found in North America, blush wines are generally semi-sweet. While made in a similar style to rosé wines, blush wines are typically lighter in color and sweeter. The most well-known blush wine is White Zinfandel.