Spokane Winery Association's Spring Barrel Tasting and Release Weekend May 9-11

Hey Everybody!

Just a quick note - this weekend, Friday through Sunday, May 9-11, is the Spokane Winery Association's Spring Barrel Tasting and Release Weekend!! There are 12 participating wineries, including Arbor Crest, Barrister (I will be pouring the new award winning Cab Franc on Friday - stop by and say hi!), Caterina, Grande Ronde Cellars, Knipprath Cellars, Latah Creek, Lone Canary, Mountain Dome (sparkling wine house - rarely open to the public), Nodland Cellars (new winery that is doing great with their custom house blends), Robert Karl Cellars, Townshend Cellars, and Vintage Hill Cellars (another new winery - I think they mainly have whites ready to go - not sure about any reds yet).

Not everyone is charging tasting fees, and most have nibbles to accompany the wine. If you have never checked out what is happening here, please come!

Cheers,
Tim

revisit Spokane

Tim again hit some very good wines and wineries! The two comments I would add are; Arbor Crest 04 Waluke Cab and Petit Sirah. The Petit Syrah rivals any, CA.-S Africa, Aus. wherever. The other is Latah Creek makes some of the best light roses and sweet wines (Muscats) around, very over looked. And my wife will tell ya that they easily have the best wine shop assortment (huge) and great folks.

Latah Creek

Hey WineO!

I have heard that Latah Creek makes some great sweet wines. I am not a big fan of sweet whites, although I do enjoy a monstrous port once in awhile..... They do have a great facility, even with the funky freeway location, and I appreciate their price structure. I would LOVE to check out the Arbor Crest Petit Syrah!! We have some great ones from the Napa and Sonoma areas (Quivira makes a great one, and Robert Biale's is also killer). I haven't had their Wahluke Cab, although it sounds like I should! (moment of truth.... I am drinking an Arbor Crest 2003 syrah right now....) I love Fielding Hills, and all of their fruit is estate grown from the Wahluke Slope. Barrister's cab franc is made with quite a bit of Sagemoor's Weinbau Vineyard fruit, which is on the Wahluke Slope. Thanks for the head's up on those wines!

Tim

Arbor Crest Petite Sirah

I've tasted the Arbor Crest Petite Sirah in recent months, and it was delicious. Of the half-dozen or so Northwest Petite Sirahs I've come across, it ranks up there with the Thurston Wolfe Petite Sirah from the Horse Heaven Hills.

I have a deep passion for Petite Sirah (my wife might call it an obsession), and the Northwest Petite Sirahs don't necessarily have the sturdiness of their California counterparts, but I think that has a lot to do with vine age. The Thurston Wolfe PS's have good structure but also have a certain jamminess to them that make them approachable in their youth.

That said, I made a sorbet from a Thurston Wolfe PS, and that was the most tannic sorbet I've ever had! A group of friends put on a Petite Sirah dinner, in which I supplied six PS's from six different California appellations (Napa, Mendocino, Lodi, Sierra Foothills, Alexander Valley and Stag's Leap), with the sorbet as a palate cleanser before the main course.

As you may know, Oregon wineries can now legally call their Petite Sirahs by that name, rather than the less-desirable Durif. The first to come out with a wine labeled "Petite Sirah" is Spangler Vineyards in the Umpqua Valley.

I could go on all day about Petite Sirah. ...

Spokane

I was going to say something about Spokane wine tasting awhile back, but better late than never. We have participated at 5 of Spokanes' events and had a wonderfull time at each. Very friendly people, lower key than Yak or WW, and as good of wine as any tasted anywhere. A very relaxing two days, and can easily be done in 1 1/2. Of particular note with us are Arbor Crest (go up on the cliff), Barrister, Grande Ronde, and Lone Canary. We unfortunately can't attend this year but will be wishing we could.

Spokane wineries

Amen WineO!

I have been to all of the Spokane area wineries. If you want any recommendations, in my humble opinion, the best "wines" will be found at Barrister, Robert Karl Cellars, Grande Ronde, Nodland Cellars, Townshend Cellars, Lone Canary, and Arbor Crest. Of course, those are in no particular order..... Barrister is famous for their Cab Franc, but the new Pepper Bridge Cab Sav is outstanding and all of their syrahs are great. Be sure to check out the Morrison Lane syrah, co-fermented with viognier. It is absolutely stunning. They also just released their popular Rough Justice blend, which is much more fruit forward than in years past. Robert Karl wines are built for the long haul. Their cab sav blows away most wines in the country at the $28 price point. The Inspiration Reserve (around $42) is one you can lay down for 5 to 10 years. It is simply amazing. Their syrah, if available, has multiple layers once it opens up. And if they have it ready to go, don't miss their Rose' of Cab Franc! Grande Ronde' is, for some reason, very overlooked. They also have a Pepper Bridge cab sav that has beautiful notes of black olive as well as plum/cassis fruit and extended barrel time. The 2005 release of Cellar Red is really tasty, after what I consider a "mediocre" 2004 release. Nodland Cellars, a new winery, does just two wines. A red blend, the Private Reserve, is a total Bordeaux blend that shows a very deft hand at the mixing table. The white, a riesling-based wine called BeBop, is equally good. Lone Canary does some very nice reserve wines, but for me, their daily drinkers ($13-$18) are worth the trip alone. Townshend Cellars makes about 20 (!) different wines, several of which are very good. You can also buy the T3, their famous restaurant blend, at the winery, and their new "Red Table Wine" is a very tasty wine at a killer $11 (often $8.99 in grocery stores.) Arbor Crest is the most stunning facility in the area, and they also make some pretty good wines. Their merlot is always good, and I really like their Cab Franc. The only challenge I have is that their wines are pretty expensive at their gorgeous facility. For example, their Cab Franc was $27 last time I was their, and I buy it for $14.68 (not on sale) at Yokes. For that price, I love it. For $27, I have plenty of other options..... Of course, their are a few other wineries in the area that are worth checking out, but hopefully this will whet your appetite for some fine "Spokane" wines!

Tim

Lone Canary

I meant for my other post tonight to go here..sorry.
The Lone Canary wines are fabulous.

Comment viewing options

Select your preferred way to display the comments and click "Save settings" to activate your changes.