The intensity of this day could hardly be anticipated as we set out to visit 13 wineries and taste more then 75 wines in Walla Walla. Ken Avedisian, CEO and President of Cordon Selection kept warning all of us on Friday that it was simply a warm-up round. Since this was the first time for most of us, I do not believe we knew what we were in for. Our first stop was Long Shadows winery to meet with Gilles (Pronounced “Jills”) Nicault resident wine maker and keeper of this interesting project.
Founded by Allen Shoup who at one time ran the Ste. Michelle operation, Long Shadows concept is to provide a facility for well known wine makers from around the world to produce a
Washington wine in the distinct style they are known for. http://www.longshadows.com. Gilles makes sure their vision and style are accomplished. I have to say that I was impressed with the enthusiasm and hospitality of Gilles. As he tasted us on all their wine, he gave us a nice rundown of how each individual wine maker expresses their style. Here are the wines we tasted…
2010 Poets Leap Riesling (Armin Diel) $19.99
The freshness of this riesling leaps of the nose with bright acidity. Aromas of tangerine, limes and apricots. The wine has beautiful minerals on the palate backed by notes of lime sorbet and mandarin orange that penetrate the palate into a long finish. 94 points
2007 Saggi (Ambrogio & Giovanni Folonari) $44.99
Old world all over the nose on this one with hits of leather, red currants, cedar and perfumed herbs. Again the old world comes through on the palate with notes of black olive, spice, cedar and currants. Smooth fine grained tannins with a long creamy finish with hits of wood that linger. Who says you can’t make an authentic Italian style in Washington State? 92 points
2007 Feather Cabernet Sauvignon (Randy Dunn) $54.99
Wonderful aromas of dark berries, mocha, vanilla and spice. Good structure on the palate with notes of red and dark fruits present, cherry seeming to be dominant. Tannins are there but balanced nicely with the fruit. There is a slight tannic grip on the long finish which features mocha and chocolate notes. 92 points
2007 Piourette (Philippe Melka) $49.99
A Bordeaux style blend consisting of 59% cabernet sauvignon, 23% merlot, 10% cabernet franc, 6% petit verdot and 2% malbec. On the nose I got some interesting smoke and bacon fat notes, very similar to a syrah, blended with notes of boysenberry. A nice sweet fragrance came through. Very smooth and silky (Unctuous as Parker would say) on the palate. Deep dark fruit notes penetrate the palate from start to a long finish. Hits of spice, black olive and oak come through. Excellent balance and structure, this baby, with some age will only improve. 94 points
2007 Pedestal Merlot (Michel Rolland) $54.99
True to his French back round, this is truly a blended wine being 75% merlot, 15% cabernet sauvignon, 7% cabernet franc and 3% petit verdot. Aromas of perfumed red berries, wet leather and cedar. Delicious palate of mocha, chocolate, currants and black olives. Very smooth with elegant tannins and hints of spice. You get the impression that this wine is holding a little back for the future. This is a sleeping giant waiting to roar. Beautiful now but will be even better in about eight to ten years. 96 points
2006 Chester Kidder (Gilles Nicault) $49.99
45% cabernet sauvignon, 36% syrah, 10% petit verdot and 9% cabernet franc this is Allen Shoup’s baby at the hands of wine maker Gilles Nicault. Aromas of red flowers, spiced cherries, leather and red currants. Big blast of dark fruits on the front of the palate along with notes of black olives and blackberries. Long finish with a spiciness that hangs on and on. 94 points
2007 Sequel Syrah (John Duval) $49.99
Beautiful syrah aromas of bacon fat and boysenberries. Excellent structure on the palate with notes of boysenberries, currants and hits of bacon fat. Smooth and silky but a little tight. This gem will improve with some age. 94 points
It was very hard to spit the wine at Long Shadows but I did my best. The facility was top of the line, I was very impressed. It was time to move on to Basel Cellars…
Basel Cellars had an impressive facility also but in a rustic sort of way. Once someones estate, it is now a winery. The tasting room is a remolded garage that was the home of many cars. The winery/barrel room is also a remolded garage. The grounds surrounding the facility are beautiful and well maintained with vineyards in the back, maybe front yard? Anyway, we were treated to a number of their wines and here are my notes.
2008 Basel Cellars Claret … $19.99
This is a classic Bordeaux style blend on the nose with notes of pencil lead and wet cedar. On the palate, notes of cassis backed by notes of cranberries and cherry with a hit of black licorice. The wine became brighter on the mid-palate and trailed off into a medium finish. I would call this an average red. 88 points
2008 Basel Cellars Tempranillo … (?)
Aromas of smokey dark berries and cassis. Thin on the palate with light mint notes and what seemed to me to be notes of venison and hints of cassis. Balanced acids but not much going on with this wine. If it’s $9.99 it would be worth a try, but I am afraid it is much more then that. 84 points
2007 Basel Cellars “Inspired” … $39.99
A blend of 72% merlot and 28% cabernet franc. This wine had interesting aromas of earth with a slight stink along with black olive, blackberry and cassis. Good structure on the palate with notes of blackberries and black currants. Very silky in the mouth with fine grained tannins. Nice spice hit on a long, pleasing finish. Nice balance of fruit and acidity. A little pricey, but I believe it is worth the investment. 92 points
I would love to review the cab and syrah that I tasted because they both scored well. The problem is that I did not write down whether they were the “Pheasant Run” Vineyard versions or not. Sorry, I will try to get my hands on a bottle of each to clarify. I was impressed with the Basel Cellars wines and I would recommend that you seek them out.
Now it was on to Tertullia Cellars, a winery I had not even heard of until recently. A friend of mine had purchased a bottle of their grenache and shared it with a group of us. It was a little “hot” but very tasty. I was excited to give their other wines a try.
2010 Tertulia Cellars Viognier … $17.99
100% stainless steel fermented made this viognier crisp and clean. A fresh bouquet of apples and pitted fruits. In the mouth, creamy notes of peaches, mangoes and papaya. Nice balance with a lighter mouthfeel (Which was nice) and a long pleasing finish. This would be killer with salads, sushi or shellfish. 90 points
2007 Tertulia Cellars “Sobra” … $19.99
61% Merlot, 13% Cabernet Sauvignon, 13% Malbec and 13% Petit Verdot. A bouquet of soft minty cherries. On the palate, this wine is bright and tight with notes of cassis and cherry backed by notes of mint toothpick. The back side and finish of this red is very austere, making a perfect compliment to the barbecue. 88 points
2007 Turtulia Celllars PepperBridge Merlot … $23.99
Aromas of black currants, black olive, oak and hits of cherries. Nice old world leather feel on the palate with a bright edge. Flavors of cherry and cassis that are driven on the palate by a bright acidity into a fresh finish with hits of mint. 89+ points
2007 Tertulia Cellars Syrah … $23.99
Love the aromas of char and dark fruits with whiffs of bacon fat coming through. This is what Washington syrah is all about. Red plums, cherries and char with nice hits of spice flow across the palate with a nice hit of bacon and mocha on a pleasing finish. Good price, great syrah. 91 points
2007 Tertulia Cellars Cabernet Sauvignon Horse Heaven Hills … $25.99
Aromas of vanilla, chocolate and some vegetation, maybe tomato leaf and some green bell pepper. A little challenged on the fruit side. Tomato stem and spice right up front on the palate. Cherries and currants come through on the mid-palate with a hit of mocha on a medium to short finish. Some folks will love this cab but it is not for everyone. 87 points
2008 Tertulia Cellars Phinny Hill Vineyards Carmenere … $34.99
I have not seen a lot of carmenere from Washington State so I was very interested in giving this a try. I loved the nose on this baby as it gave off aromas of marinated green bell peppers and onions. Kind of a South American nose with a little Washington love. In the mouth, the flavors of cooked green peppers came through along with cassis and cherry. Light on the finish. I found this to be a very intriguing red and although the price is a little steep, for those who like something different this may be worth the investment. 90 points
Thanks go to Ryan Raber, wine maker at Tertulia Cellars for taking the time out of his busy day to share his wines with the group. They did not disappoint. There was no time for small talk however, as we were ushered along to get on the bus and head to Va’Piano Vineyards for lunch, to taste their wines and also the wines of Zero One Winery and Chateau Rollat.
Va’Piano sits right next door to the famous PepperBridge Vineyard in Walla Walla. The vineyards are shaped somewhat like a bowl with the winery nestled in the bottom and the vineyards surrounding on all sides. Wine maker/owner Justin Wylie was most gracious, and gave the group a nice tour of his vineyards. He showed us how he buries his canes every year to enable the vineyard to survive any unexpected freeze such as the one that hit the valley hard in late November last year. As a result, he is able to harvest when many others loose a lot of fruit. We had a nice lunch at the winery and tasted through the wines of Va’Piano, Zero One and Chateau Rollat.
2011 Va’Piano Vineyards Bruno’s Blend II Sauvignon Blanc … $17.99
I am always on the look-out for good domestic sauv. blanc since there isn’t a ton of it available, and I have to tell you, I was pleasantly surprised with this effort. Fragrant notes of green apples, melon and sugar cane. Nice acidity with a little creaminess coming through. Notes of peach and melon with lingering papaya and peaches on a lingering finish. I really liked this sauvignon blanc and was happy to discover it. 90 points
2008 Va’Piano Vineyards Syrah … $39.99
Aromas of Boysenberries and plums with a hit of char. Soft and plush on the palate with notes of currants and blackberries. Seems to be a little soft until the finish where the acidity sort of pops giving the wine a little bacon fat and spice edge on a medium to long finish. I really hate to see a forty dollar price tag on this wine. I know we need to make money but c’mon! 89 points
2007 Va’Piano Vineyards Cabernet Sauvignon … $39.99
A little challenged on the nose with hits of green bell peppers and cassis. Soft and sexy on the front of the palate with sweet tannins. Notes of white pepper, spice and plum. A little tannic grip on a medium finish. This wine is a little over-priced for the quality. 87 points
NV Va’Piano Vineyards Bruno’s Blend VII … $19.99
A little tight on the nose with notes of red currants and cassis. Very deep and rich on the palate with notes of black currants, chocolate and vanilla. This red is very sexy with lush dark fruits on the mid-palate that flow into a spicy, medium finish. This is a lot of wine for the dough. 80% cabernet sauvignon, 15% cabernet franc and 5% syrah. 90 points
2008 Zero One Winery “Sauce” Red … $11.99
Very light aromas of cranberries and cherries. Silky notes of black licorice, currants and green bell pepper. Hits of mocha come through on the finish. This is a fairly simple easy to drink red that is balanced with a finish that kind of just disappears. Not a bad price for what you get. 80% merlot, 10% cabernet franc, 6% syrah, 4% cabernet sauvignon. 86 points
2008 Zero One Winery Wild Sky Cabernet Sauvignon … $29.99
Aromas of rose pedal, cherries and anise. Solid and muscular on the palate. A little tobacco leaf on the front backed by notes of cassis and spice. Notes of chocolate come through on a lingering finish. Structured tannins come through on back side . This is a well built cab that is not heavy. Even at thirty bucks, this is a good value. 90+ points
After tasting the Va’Piano and Zero One wines we were invited to go below the winery to Chateau Rollat where Mike Golden wine maker showed us his stuff. Chateau Rollat shares the Va’Piano facility… One big happy family. I wasn’t able to take any notes on the Rollat wines since we were all crammed in the barrel room tasting the wines. I will say that I was very impressed even at the price of the wines. The Edouard goes for sixty-two bucks and the Rollat for thirty-eight. I will be doing something with these wines at the store. Now it was on to Waters/Substance Winery barely three blocks away. Not much time for the palate to rest!
I have been a fan of Waters syrah for some time so I was quite curious to see what they had to offer. I have to say right now, that nothing they presented let me down, although I did not have a chance to try them all.
2010 Waters Winery Rose … $14.99
Aromas of strawberries and grapefruit that were very fresh. Good acidity on the palate with notes of grapefruit and tart rhubarb. This is one of the best rose I have tasted this summer/fall. I could drink this everyday and not tire. It was both refreshing and delicious. 92 points
2010 Waters Winery Prelude … ?
Rich aromas of mangoe and melon. Lush on the palate with notes of peaches, mango and melon. Nice balance with mango all over a finish that lingered for some time. 94 points
2009 Waters Winery “Loess” Syrah … $44.99
Char and bacon fat all over the nose. (Love it!) Creamy notes of blueberry, blackberry and bacon flowed across the palate into a long, long finish with hits of bacon grease and vanilla. I am a real sucker for this kind of syrah. Brings me back to Northern Rhone. 94 points
200i9 Waters Winery “Forgotten Hills” Syrah … $59.99
Now this is a hefty price for a syrah, right up there with Shafer relentless. Would it deliver? The answer is a resounding… Yes! Aromas of black plum, barbecue spices, earth and burnt match. Silky smooth and seductive on the palate. Notes of blueberry, blackberry backed by balanced acids and underlying notes of bacon fat. The finish does not quit featuring some interesting spice notes. If you love syrah as much as I do, this could fast become one of your favorites. 95+ points
2009 Waters Winery “Interlude” … $29.99
Intense nose of black licorice and currants. Sweet tannins with flavors of blackberry and plum. Smooth, silky tannins with good structure and underlying notes of tar and spice. 92 points
2008 Waters Winery Cabernet Sauvignon … $49.99
What is it with these fifty dollar cabs? First Long Shadows, now Waters. Being the guy that I am, I cannot encourage you to go out and buy them considering the economic situation. However, I have to be honest in my evaluation and this is a damn good cab! A little restraint on the nose with notes of cassis and currants. Silky smooth on the palate with notes of black currants, plums and dark ripe cherries. A little char hit comes through on a long finish. This wine drinks well now and will age nicely over the next 5-8 years. 92 points
I have to tell you that by this point in the day, not only was my palate being tested to the limit, I was getting a serious buzz going. I had requested a light beer at this point, to cleanse my palate (This is a trick I learned a long time ago from a wine maker) and to clear my head. The guys at Waters came through with some PBR for us. Admittedly, the PBR did not stop the buzz but it helped to change gears as we moved on. The next stop was the town of Walla Walla and two tasting rooms… Walla Faces and Dama Wines. We all hopped off the bus and went to work. (It felt nice to walk a few blocks)
I had never heard of Walla Faces Winery before so I was quite curious. Here is what I found…
2009 Walla Faces Riesling … $15.99
Very intriguing nose of rubber boot, sugar cane and mandarin oranges. Sweet apricots on the palate with some sugar cane components. 87 points
2008 Walla Faces “Fusion” … $27.99
A blend of cab, merlot and cab franc. Aromas of pencil lead (mint), cherry and blackberry. A little tomato leaf on the palate with some spices along with notes boysenberry. There is spice all over the mid-palate with a little char hit on a long finish. Good balance on this wine. 92 points
2006 Walla Faces Cabernet Sauvignon … $32.99
Alcohol comes through on the nose with notes of ripe currants and mint. Plush on the palate with notes of black currants. This cab is quite soft but not wimpy with good acidity on the finish. 89 points
2009 DaMa Wines Viognier … $16.99
Aromas of apricot, housecleaner and sugar cane. Soft on the palate and a little flabby with notes of mango and peach. 80 points
2010 DaMa Wines Chardonnay … $21.99
Nose is quite closed with a slight hit of nuttiness. A little flabby but not terrible. Notes of melon, peach and apple with a tiny hit of alcohol on the finish. 84 points
2007 DaMa Wines Sangiovese … ?
Aromas of cough syrup. peppermint patty and cherry with hits of basil. on the palate, notes of strawberry, alfalfa, spice and anise. Hits of spice and chocolate linger on the finish. 88 points
2008 DaMa Wines Merlot … $24.99
Aromas of spice, vanilla and red currants. Currants are dominant on the palate with a hit of vanilla on the mid-palate. There is a slight tannic grip on a medium finish. 85 points
200i9 DaMa Wines Syrah … $24.99
Bouquet of sweet dark plums and bacon fat. Plush and full on the palate with notes of char, bacon, boysenberry and black currants on a silky, rich finish. 89 points
After walking through the town of Walla Walla a bit, my head had cleared and I was on for the challenge of visiting the wineries of Mackey Vineyards and Rasa Winery. I did not get a chance to taste all of the wines, but here are the ones that I took notes on.
2008 Mackey Vineyards Syrah … $31.99
Aromas of bright red currants and bacon. Bright acidity on the palate with notes of cranberry, red plums and char notes on a medium finish. 84 points
2008 Mackey Vineyards Cabernet Sauvignon … $31.99
Aromas of green bell peppers, tomato stem and cherry. Tobacco leaf and green bell pepper come through backed by a bright acidity. Very austere and young Bordeaux like with a New World nudge. 86 points
2009 Mackey Vineyards Concordia … $37.99
A blend of 77% syrah, 13% grenache and 10% mouvedre this wine exhibits aromas of sweet dark fruits and red plums. An interesting iron element on the palate (minerals) backed by notes of currants, boysenberry and spice. This red had a nice “Old World” feel to it in the mouth with a little leather action on the mid and finish. Old World with a little New World sunshine. 90 points
2009 Rasa Vineyards Cabernet Franc … ?
Very Chinon like on the nose and palate. Perfumed aromas of green bell peppers and cassis. Round fruit on the palate with notes of black currants, black olives and a little tannic grip. Excellent structure and good balance, this red screams for beef marinated in barbecue sauce or lamb. 90 points
( A little footnote to this… I looked on their website and could not find the cab franc. I am hoping this was something new and not a Mackey Vineyard product since they were right next to each other. In either case, it was a very good wine.)
2009 Rasa Vineyards PB Syrah Red Mountain … $24.99
Aromas of vanilla, cherries and blackberries. Red currants come through in the mouth with a bright backbone to the wine. A little hit of wet cedar comes through on the backside with a slight tannic grip on a medium to long finish. 88 points
2009 Rasa Vineyards QED … $48.99
Aromas of bacon fat and plump dark fruits. Concentrated notes of blackberry and char flow across the palate with good balance of fruit and acidity. The finish is intense and very long, leaving you wanting more of this excellent juice. 91 points
Whew! Wine after wine after wine, and now it was time to head to Corvus Cellars to have dinner and taste their wines along with Dusted Valley Winery. I was done taking notes by this time and like Fidelitas, I owe them some time on my blog to review a few of their wines. One wine did stand out to me at their facility and much to my chagrin there was none available to purchase. It was the Dusted Valley cinsault, and it was out of this world good. If you happen to run across it in your travels, I suggest you give it a try.
It was a great meal with good company and excellent hospitality. We got back to the hotel and I was exhausted, needing some sleep to recover. I was really looking forward to Sunday when we were scheduled to pick up Charlie Hoppes and do some vineyard touring. Stay tuned for my report on our Sunday with Charlie. Cheers! Stan The wine Man
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