Sunday, November 11, 2012

Wines of Washington

I found myself up in Seattle again this past week for a conference.  The conference kind of sucked, but that was fabulous because I was able to blow it off without remorse and head outside to do other things.  Among them, wandering around down by Pike Place Market, was a tasting room.  I stumbled by a modern-looking tasting room on a quiet Friday afternoon and decided to stop in.  I didn't have any of my industry cards on me, but decided to just check it out anyhow.
I'm glad I did.
Lost River Winery is my favorite kind of place:  family run, local (all Washington) grapes, teeny production, high quality wines and they don't distribute.  And even better- I think they're under-charging for the wines they have.


I came in, looking a little nuts with blue dress pants, sneakers (my feet were killing me) an awkward shirt and a big coat.  I sat down at the bar and the man behind the counter got me a glass.  He was playing Leonard Cohen overhead, apparently he was playing in Seattle that very night!  So, good music and a nice vibe going on.  Something about ghosts was the discussion with a woman named Karen who was  chatting with the man behind the bar.  Karen managed to latch on to me and chat away for the hour I ended up spending in Lost River's Tasting Room that afternoon...  I would have rather talked wine with the tasting room man, but Karen was very...  persistent.

We started with the Pinot Gris.  Teeny production, and $15 a bottle.  If you like a pinot gris, you'd like this- it had nice, balanced acid and was light and crisp.  Of course we all have friends who drink whites on summer afternoons and this would be an easy drinker with friends on the deck.
Next, we went to their "Rainshadow": a Semillon/Sauvignon Blanc blend that was surprising and lovely.  It had a lot of acid, but in a very good way.  It bit you back just a little bit, had oak overtones and lingered a bit on the finish.  I could smell Mount Rainier in there somewhere- our tasting room man said "Semillion grows perfectly in Washington."  It apparently does, because you can taste Washington in the bottle...

Next up, they make a Nebbiolo- it wasn't on the tasting menu, but our host poured it for me as he had it open.  I was glad, I really wanted to try it.  Very Italian, traditional tasting!  A translucent, red but dirty red color, it had some barnyard on the nose.  The mouth was all nebbiolo, though- fruit forward and velvety tasting.  Finish was not long, but faded nicely in the mouth.  Much more like a traditional Nebbiolo than a CA nebbiolo- CA wines have that Uber-Jammy fruit that you can cut with a knife- but this is not at all that style.  Much more traditional, and I liked it.  A lot.  $26

Next I got to try the Walla Walla Syrah: yes, made from grapes from Walla Walla and it was what you expected from a Syrah.  The color is intense, deep, opaque purple and the nose is rich, jammy and fruity.  On the mouth, it doesn't disappoint either:  a big Syrah.

Western Red was only $17 a bottle and was one of my favorites on the menu.  You want this wine on a weeknight.  You want to nurture a glass of it in front of a fire with Monday Night Football on TV and your dog snoring at your feet.  It's easy to drink- almost too easy to drink.  It's a medium bodied blend of Cab, Cab Franc, Merlot and Malbec.  Oh, yeah.  Best value on the menu.


The Cabernet was mostly all Cab with just a splash of Merlot and Cab Franc (10 & 5%).  It was what you want from a Western Cab:  big, fruity, jammy, luscious.  And it delivered.  I sipped it slowly and carefully, it's a mouthful with a long finish.  $25- crazy.

There were a few others on the menu but I didn't press, as it was already getting long in the afternoon and I wanted to be gone about 20 minutes ago- but one last wine for dessert...

2010 Semillon late harvest:  oh, worth the wait.  $17 a bottle it's a steal.  It's not at all what you expect from a late harvest in a refreshing way.  It's devoid of the cloyingly sweet over the top honeydrop you expect, but it's a little acidic, and less sweet than you're expecting.  But still a desert wine that feels like you're eating that sip.  I enjoyed it.  A desert wine for people who don't love desert wines.  or just an unexpected twist.

What more would there be to love??  A family-run and owned winery that makes finely crafted, teeny production wines that you can only get at the tasting room?  Love.  Of course.  it had to be love.

Flock there.  And savor.  You will.

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