Archive for July, 2008

 

Wine Word of the Week: Legs

Thursday, July 31st, 2008

This week’s Wine Word of the Week is legs (sometimes referred to as tears). Official definition from Jancis Robinson’s The Oxford Companion to Wine: Tears is a tasting term used to describe the behavior of the surface liquid layer that is observable in a glass of relatively strong wine. The wine wets the inside of […]

Filed under: Wine Word of the Week |

 

Red Willow Vineyard: Wines We Tasted

Wednesday, July 30th, 2008

At the conclusion of our recent visit to Red Willow Vineyard, our hosts Mike and Jonathan Sauer treated us to a sample tasting of four Syrahs made with grapes from Red Willow Vineyard: a 1991 Columbia Winery Red Willow Vineyard Syrah, a 2003 Columbia Winery Red Willow Vineyard Syrah, a 2005 Columbia Winery Red Willow […]

Filed under: American Wine, Shiraz/Syrah, Vineyards, Washington State Wine |

 

Weekend in Walla Walla Valley

Monday, July 28th, 2008

Even though Mom (LaGayle) and Dad (John) were recently in Walla Walla as a part of their two month cross-country road trip (see Dad’s previous Walla Walla posts: Day 1 and Day 2), all of us Wine Peeps recently spent a weekend in the Walla Walla Valley visiting some wineries that Mom and Dad missed […]

Filed under: American Wine, Cabernet Franc, Cabernet Sauvignon, Chardonnay, Five-Bangs For Your Buck Wines, Grenache, Lesser Known Varietals, Malbec, Merlot, Oregon Wine, Petit Verdot, Pinot Grigio/Pinot Gris, Red Wine, Riesling, Rose Wine, Sauvignon Blanc, Semillon, Shiraz/Syrah, Tempranillo, Viognier, Washington State Wine, White Wine, Wine Travel, Wines NOT To Buy (1 & 2 Star), Wines Over $25, Wines Under $15, Wines Under $20, Wines Under $25 |

 

Road Trip: Chelan

Friday, July 25th, 2008

The wine industry around Chelan, Washington, is relatively new, with a mixture of what I call “foo-foo” wineries and serious winemakers. The tourist industry in the area will probably keep the former in business, while I’m interested to see how the serious winemakers progress as their vineyards mature and they see what works and doesn’t […]

Filed under: American Wine, Cabernet Franc, Cabernet Sauvignon, Five-Bangs For Your Buck Wines, Merlot, Pinot Grigio/Pinot Gris, Pinot Noir, Red Wine, Riesling, Shiraz/Syrah, Viognier, Washington State Wine, White Wine, Wine Travel, Wines NOT To Buy (1 & 2 Star), Wines Over $25, Wines Under $20, Wines Under $25 |

 

Wine Word of the Week: Finish

Thursday, July 24th, 2008

This week’s Wine Word of the Week is finish. Official definition from Jancis Robinson’s The Oxford Companion to Wine: Since this is an oft used wine tasting term, I was surprised to find that there was no entry for “finish” in The Oxford Companion to Wine. However, I did locate entries for “long” and “short” […]

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Book Review: Gary V’s 101 Wines

Wednesday, July 23rd, 2008

First off I should tell you that Gary Vaynerchuk is a great guy and a very genuine person despite his somewhat outrageous persona on Wine Library TV. I’ve had the opportunity to meet Gary on several occasions, the most recent at his book signing here in Seattle. Unlike authors at many book signings, Gary was […]

Filed under: Wine Books |

 

Red Willow Vineyard: The Mother of Washington Syrah

Monday, July 21st, 2008

“In farming there is no substitute for the soil, water, and hard work. Inherently, the nature of farming brings a spiritual dimension to our efforts. There is a connection of past, present, and future generations. For us wine brings the soil, the site, the season, and the efforts of many people together into a single […]

Filed under: American Wine, Shiraz/Syrah, Vineyards, Washington State Wine |

 

Road Trip: Spokane

Friday, July 18th, 2008

As our road trip took us to Spokane, Washington, we tried to visit a representative sampling of wineries in the Spokane area. Our first stop was at Latah Creek Winery. Latah Creek, owned by Mike Conway and his wife, has been in business 26 years and produces about 15,000 cases per year. Our friendly hostess, […]

Filed under: American Wine, Barbera, Cabernet Sauvignon, Dessert Wine, Five-Bangs For Your Buck Wines, Merlot, Petit Verdot, Red Wine, Sangiovese, Sauvignon Blanc, Semillon, Shiraz/Syrah, Viognier, Washington State Wine, White Wine, Wine Travel, Wines NOT To Buy (1 & 2 Star), Wines Over $25, Wines Under $15, Wines Under $20, Wines Under $25 |

 

Wine Word of the Week: Balance

Thursday, July 17th, 2008

This week’s Wine Word of the Week is balance. Official definition from Jancis Robinson’s The Oxford Companion to Wine: Wine tasters say that a wine has balance, or is well balanced, if its alcoholic strength, acidity, residual sugar, tannins, and fruit, complement each other so that no single one of them is obtrusive on the […]

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Wine Tasting Dinner: Summer Whites

Wednesday, July 16th, 2008

Last Friday was a beautiful, sunny day in Seattle, the perfect day to enjoy some crisp, cool white wines for summer. Our wine tasting dinner this month was a slight departure from our normal tasting format. This tasting featured six different white varietals instead of six different wines within the same varietal. Since the Wine […]

Filed under: American Wine, Chardonnay, Chenin Blanc, Five-Bangs For Your Buck Wines, Italian Wine, New Zealand Wine, Pinot Grigio/Pinot Gris, Riesling, Sauvignon Blanc, Viognier, Washington State Wine, White Wine, Wine Tasting Dinners, Wines Under $10, Wines Under $15, Wines Under $20, Wines Under $25 |