The Wine Knows

Jason LaBarge grew up in Kennewick, Wash., attended the Western...

Sat, 11 Feb 2012 11:39:09 -0800

Jason LaBarge grew up in Kennewick, Wash., attended the Western Culinary Institute in Portland, Ore., and returned to the Tri-Cities as a chef. His passion for creating spice blends and rubs as executive chef for Meadow Springs Country Club in Richland, Wash., has developed into the launch of LaBarge Gourmet Spices. His wine-friendly product line is available at Badger Mountain/Powers Winery, Barnard Griffin Winery, Yoke’s Fresh Market in Kennewick, The Northwest Regional Food Hub in Richland, Wash., ShopTheNorthwest.com and through Facebook at LaBarge Gourmet Spices.

Top Northwest wine stories of 2011

Tue, 03 Jan 2012 15:37:00 -0800

It was a busy and exciting year for Northwest wineries as they battled Mother Nature as well as political and economic winds. The industry lost some giants to death, and the heads of Washington’s and Oregon’s industries left their positions.

Here are the top wine stories of 2011.

1. Washington voters pass Initiative 1183. In November, voters did away with Washington’s state liquor stores by passing the Costco-backed Initiative 1183. Many wineries, wine shops and groceries are still trying to sort out the full effect of the new law, but the bottom line is that Washington’s largest wine retailer — liquor stores — are going away.

2. Dean of Northwest wine writers dies. Bob Woehler began covering the industry in 1976, and he never stopped. He was the Tri-City Herald’s wine columnist from 1978 to 2010 and was Wine Press Northwest’s tasting editor from 1998 until his death in August, just a few days after he turned 78. While he focused his efforts on Washington, where he lived, he also covered the Oregon wine industry in its early days and greatly enjoyed writing about British Columbia and Idaho.

3. Vintage 2011. Following 2009 and 2010, which provided plenty of challenges, 2011 was even more difficult for most of the Northwest. A bad winter in Washington shortened the grape crop by 20 percent, and a late start to spring left growers and winemakers scrambling all summer and well into November. Western Oregon growers had an even more harrowing time getting their grapes ripe. Tonnage was up a bit in British Columbia, where weather conditions weren’t quite as dire as elsewhere. In Idaho, tonnage was down, but wineries weren’t quite as stressed out as their Washington and Oregon counterparts.

4. Winery deaths. In 2011, the wine industry lost a few of own. On Sept. 11, longtime Northwest wine executive Glenn Coogan died of heart failure. He oversaw Northwest operations for Ascentia Wine Estates, which put him in charge at Columbia and Covey Run wineries in Washington and Ste. Chapelle in Idaho. On Sept. 26, maverick winemaker Mike Moore, owner of Blackwood Canyon Vintners on Washington’s Red Mountain, died after a brief illness. Cathy Stoller, co-owner of Stoller Vineyards in Oregon’s Dundee Hills, died Nov. 30 after a fall She also was a co-owner of Chehalem Wines. And Forrest Klaffke, longtime winemaker for Willamette Valley Vineyards in Turner, Ore., died Dec. 26 after a battle with cancer.

5. Changes at top for Washington, Oregon. In June, Jeanette Morgan stepped down as executive director of the Oregon Wine Board after just a few months on the job. She was replaced in December by Tom Danowski, a former executive for Ste. Michelle Wine Estates and Seattle’s Best Coffee. In October, Robin Pollard, executive director of the Washington Wine Commission, announced she would leave at the end of the year. She had been in the job for six years.

6. WSU Wine Science Center gets industry funding. In June, the Washington wine industry pledged $7.4 million to help build the Wine Science Center at Washington State University’s Richland campus. This was the biggest contribution yet to the $23.25 million center, which would provide education to prospective winemakers and research for the industry. Land for the project is being donated by the Port of Benton. The university hopes to begin construction in spring 2013.

7. AVA news. In December, the federal government approved Naches Heights near Yakima as Washington’s 12th American Viticultural Area, or AVA. In terms of vineyards planted, it is the smallest in the state at fewer than 40 acres. Also in 2011, the Idaho wine industry applied for its second AVA, the Clearwater Valley, which would be in the Lewiston area.

8. Winery closures. In the midst of a difficult economy, a small handful of wineries closed in 2011. Olsen Estates in the Yakima Valley closed its doors early in the year, and the Olsen family returned to growing wine grapes only. Also in January, the assets for Whitman Cellars in Walla Walla were seized by Community Bank, and the winery shut its doors.

9. Winery sales. A few Northwest wineries changed hands in 2011. In January, Banfi Vintners of New York purchased Pacific Rim Winemakers in West Richland, Wash. In February, longtime Idaho winery Camas Prairie was sold to Jeremy and Heidi Ritter. Also in February, Precept Wines in Seattle purchased two longtime wineries, Canoe Ridge in Walla Walla and Sagelands in the Yakima Valley. And in April, Betz Family Winery in Woodinville was sold to a South African couple.

10. L’Ecole No. 41 changes iconic label. Rarely does a label change make headlines, but it did in March when L’Ecole No. 41 in Lowden, Wash., went through a makeover, changing its iconic label. The children’s drawing of the schoolhouse/winery had served the winery well since the mid-1980s, but owner/winemaker Marty Clubb said a more serious label was needed as L’Ecole expands into new markets.

Don’t try this at home (or with my iPad). Tip o’ the...

Thu, 29 Dec 2011 21:02:53 -0800

Don’t try this at home (or with my iPad).

Tip o’ the glass to Dr. Vino.

Oregon winemaker remains dedicated through cancer battle

Mon, 26 Dec 2011 17:51:24 -0800

Note: Willamette Valley Vineyards winemaker Forrest Klaffke passed away this morning after a difficult battle with cancer. Here is a column we wrote a few weeks ago about him and some of his marvelous new Pinot Noirs

Winemakers throughout the Pacific Northwest struggled with weather during this fall’s trying harvest, but the winemaker for Willamette Valley Vineyards had a much bigger battle: cancer.

Forrest Klaffke has been with the Turner, Ore., winery for 18 years and has led the winemaking efforts for the past decade.

“He’s an amazing guy,” said Jim Bernau, CEO and founder of Willamette Valley Vineyards. “He’s a remarkable team member who has incredible dedication. He’s the first one here in the morning and the last one to leave.”

That didn’t change this year during harvest, even though Klaffke has a huge fight on his hands. The aggressive form of cancer he successfully defeated a few years ago came back with a vengeance in September. It started in his throat and has now spread to four areas of his body, including his brain. He’s been through surgeries, radiation treatments and chemotherapy to try to keep it at bay.

Winemakers are famous for dedication to their craft, but Klaffke took that to an entirely different level this fall. When he knew grapes were going to come in, he would actually cancel his chemo treatments so he could give the finicky Pinot Noir grapes all the attention they demand.

“He’s just has an incredible, passionate dedication to this vineyard and to his work,” Bernau said with endearment and awe.

And Klaffke, who grew up in Sacramento and worked in the California wine industry before coming north to Oregon in the 1990s, is making some of the finest wines of his career. We recently tasted through his most recent Pinot Noirs, and they are uniformly superb.

Willamette Valley Vineyards’ wines are broadly available, though the single-vineyard Pinot Noirs are made in limited quantities. Check with your favorite wine merchant or call the winery directly at 800-344-9463. And let’s all raise a glass to salute Klaffke and his dedication to the grape.

Willamette Valley Vineyards 2009 Elton Pinot Noir, Willamette Valley, $45. This superior Pinot Noir opens with aromas of raspberries, Rainier cherries, pineapples, violets and strawberries. On the palate, this is a gentle and elegant wine with flavors of white strawberries, raspberries and cherries. It’s tempting to drink this wine now, but as delicious as it is, it’s likely to develop into something even greater.

Willamette Valley Vineyards 2009 Pinot Noir, Willamette Valley, $28. This opens with classic aromas of raspberries, strawberries, pie cherries and mushrooms, with just a hint of orange blossoms. On the palate, this is an elegant wine from first sip, with flavors of vanilla, Rainier cherries, cranberries, Marionberries and chocolate. With 18,000 cases produced, this should be easy to find.

Excellent. Willamette Valley Vineyards 2010 Whole Cluster Fermented Pinot Noir, Willamette Valley, $20. In the Pacific Northwest, this is about as close as we come to a Beaujolais Nouveau style of wine. Every year, this Oregon giant produces a youthful Pinot Noir — the first it releases from each vintage — that is made using a method called carbonic maceration. This means the juice is fermented primarily while it is still inside the grape, before the fruit is crushed. The resulting wine is lower in tannin and higher in fruit. That’s certainly the case with this delicious wine, which shows off aromas of strawberry candy, cinnamon, apricots and black currants. On the palate, this reveals invigorating flavors of strawberries, cherries, cranberries and red raspberries. It’s a great introduction to Pinot Noir — because of the flavors and the price.

Willamette Valley Vineyards 2009 Estate Pinot Noir, Willamette Valley, $40. Of Willamette Valley Vineyards’ seven new Pinot Noirs we tasted, this was the biggest and boldest entry. It opens with rich aromas of cedar, strawberries, red currants, cola and baked apples with cinnamon. On the palate, it starts with an easy approach of raspberries, cranberries and chocolate, then is large and in charge on the finish with robust tannins.

The king of Northwest bubbly

Sun, 25 Dec 2011 13:18:28 -0800

When it comes to celebrating, few wines in the Northwest are more affordable, available and worthy than the sparklers from Domaine Ste. Michelle.

This summer, Rick Casqueiro observed his 15th anniversary as winemaker of Ste. Michelle’s sparkling wine house in Paterson, Wash.

Remarkably, perhaps the turning point for Domaine Ste. Michelle came during Casqueiro’s third vintage with Ste. Michelle, just before the 1998 harvest. Each summer, then-CEO Allen Shoup and then-marketing executive Ted Baseler would gather their winemakers in Yakima for a weekend of golf, dining, relaxation and meetings.

“At that time we were using Riesling as the primary component in the cuvée,” Casqueiro said. “I remember we were in this small restaurant, and Allen sitting across the table from me and Ted was next to me. They asked me what I wanted to do, and I told them I wanted to change the base blends - I wanted to make a traditional cuvée with Pinot Noir and Chardonnay, and leave the Riesling out. If they wanted to do Riesling by itself, that’s fine, but if we were going to compete with the folks in California, I said we needed to working with the traditional Champagne grapes.

“A week later, Pete Bachman, who was my boss at the time, said, ‘OK, you got your way.’”

The transition - and the timing - brought immediate results, and Casqueiro’s wines have earned gold medals and lofty scores from competitions and publications ever since.

Most of the Domaine Ste. Michelle wines can be found for $12 or less. At that price, they are wines to be enjoyed virtually every day of the week. But they also are among the most versatile and food-friendly wines on the market.

As you plan for the holidays, here are some of Domaine Ste. Michelle’s latest releases. They are broadly distributed and should be easy to find.

Domaine Ste. Michelle NV Blanc de Blancs, Columbia Valley, $12. This bubbly is crafted from 100% Chardonnay and is a pretty dry wine. It opens with aromas of buttered toast, yellow grapefruits, sandalwood, quince, tangerines and white pepper. The palate shows off refined bubbles backing up a plethora of flavors, including luscious citrus. This will pair beautifully with shellfish, chicken, pasta with a cream sauce or a plate of soft cheeses.

Domaine Ste. Michelle NV Brut Rosé, Columbia Valley, $12. Rick Casqueiro’s pink sparkler opens with classic Champagne notes of toast, yeast, pecan pie, apricots and white strawberries. On the palate, it is bright and dry with flavors of Granny Smith apples, yellow grapefruits, lychee and peach pie. We love this wine with oysters, as well as spicy Indian and Thai dishes.

Domaine Ste. Michelle NV Brut, Columbia Valley, $12. For this wine, Casqueiro blended Chardonnay (88%) with Pinot Noir to craft a bubbly that is remarkable in quality and value. It opens with exotic aromas of sandalwood, bay rum, lychee, fresh ginger, Gala apples and spun sugar. On the palate, the mild (1.19%) residual sugar melds with flavors of watermelons, minerals and rangpur limes. We like this wine on its own as a celebratory sparkler, but we could also see pairing it with mussels, clams, calamari or oysters.

Domaine Ste. Michelle NV Extra Dry, Columbia Valley, $12. This is DSM’s sweetest bubbly and a favorite for weddings because it is pleasing to a broad range of palates (translation: Your grandma will love it). Like the Brut, it is a blend of 88% Chardonnay and 12% Pinot Noir, though the residual sweetness is a bit higher at 2.3%. It opens with aromas of minerals, dusty apples, a hint of toasted marshmallows and premium vanilla ice cream. On the palate, it explodes with flavors of Jonagold apples, ginger, oranges, limes and pears. We love this wine with a wide variety of dishes, from sushi to barbecued pork to Kung Pao chicken.

I think you might want to add another AVA to Napa... i.e. Coombsville just got added, officially Dec 14th :)

Mon, 19 Dec 2011 17:39:09 -0800

Excellent update. Thanks!

How many AVAs are too many? Take the Napa test

Thu, 15 Dec 2011 21:43:45 -0800

Today, I was chatting with someone about Naches Heights, Washington’s newest American Viticultural Area.

“When does Washington have enough appellations?” my friend asked. “Twelve seems like a lot.”

While 12 might seem like quite a few for just one state, consider this: Napa Valley - an area that is about three miles wide and 27 miles long - has 16 AVAs. That’s right. An area much more compact than the Yakima Valley has more appellations than the entire state of Washington.

They are:

Los Carneros
Howell Mountain
Wild Horse Valley
Stags Leap District
Mt. Veeder
Atlas Peak
Spring Mountain District
Oakville
Rutherford
St. Helena
Chiles Valley
Yountville
Diamond Mountain District
Oak Knoll District
Calistoga
Napa Valley

Other comparisons between tiny Napa Valley and the entire state of Washingto

Napa Valley has 43,000 acres of wine grapes, while Washington has a bit more than 40,000 acres.
Napa Valley has about 300 wineries, while Washington has more than 750.

Washington's list of AVAs

Thu, 15 Dec 2011 08:21:33 -0800

After Tuesday’s announcement on the approval of the Naches Heights American Viticultural Area, here is an updated list of Washington’s appellations in order of when they were approved.

Yakima Valley (1983)
Columbia Valley (1984)
Walla Walla Valley (1984)
Puget Sound (1995)
Red Mountain (2001)
Columbia Gorge (2004)
Horse Heaven Hills (2005)
Wahluke Slope (2006)
Rattlesnake Hills (2006)
Snipes Mountain (2009)
Lake Chelan (2009)
Naches Heights (2011)

Naches Heights is Washington's newest AVA

Thu, 15 Dec 2011 08:16:02 -0800

As Washington’s wine industry grows in size and stature, grape growers and winemakers continue to define the best places to plant vines. The newest federally recognized viticultural area is near Yakima.

On Wednesday, the U.S. government announced it has approved the Naches Heights American Viticultural Area, a region near the city of Yakima that encompasses 13,254 acres.

Just 37.3 acres of wine grapes are planted in the new AVA, making it the smallest planted wine region in Washington.

Phil Cline, owner of Naches Heights Vineyard, said another 80 acres of plantings are planned but have been on hold because of the recession.

Cline has the oldest vines in Naches Heights, having planted Pinot Gris and Syrah there in 2002. He said the grape-growing history goes back more than 40 years, however. A home winemaker in the early ’70s planted a quarter-acre of Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot and Cabernet Franc. Those grapes were damaged in the late ’70s during a particularly harsh winter and were not replanted.

Naches Heights is in the Columbia Valley AVA, though its soils and conditions differ significantly from other areas of Washington wine country.

Paul Beveridge, owner of Wilridge Winery in Seattle, said the Naches Heights was unaffected by the ice age floods 15,000 years ago because of its location and elevation. That means its wind-blown soils are much older. He described the Naches Heights as one of the few grape-growing spots in the state that actually gain soil each year.

“It just keeps blowing in,” he said.

The region also tends to be higher in elevation than many areas of Washington wine country, ranging from 1,200 feet at its lowest point to 2,100 feet. It also receives plenty of heat and little rainfall.

Beveridge, who started his winery in 1988, began planting grapes in Naches Heights five years ago and appreciates the shorter commute as well as the quality of grapes.

“It’s 2 1/2 hours door to door,” he said.

It takes twice as long to get to Walla Walla, where he went to college and has bought grapes for many years.

Beveridge runs the only tasting room in the new AVA, though wines from three producers — Wilridge, Naches Heights and Harlequin Wine Cellars — are featured. Cline plans to open his own tasting room by April. The tasting room is a 10-minute drive from Interstate 82.

Cline said about 10,000 acres in the AVA are suitable for wine grapes, though apple and cherry orchards take up much of the land. He said the region has no issues with water availability from the Yakima River.

Beveridge, a lawyer by trade, wrote the petition for the AVA, though he and Cline worked closely together on it, and they were assisted by two students at Yakima Valley Community College. They began the process four years ago.

The Naches Heights AVA will become official Jan. 13 and will be Washington’s 12th AVA. Washington is the second-largest wine-producing state in the country, second to California, making about 12 million cases annually from 40,000 acres of vines.

Col Solare in the mist

Wed, 14 Dec 2011 10:23:29 -0800

From my visit last Friday to Red Mountain, this was one of the first photos I took. This is Col Solare, co-owned by Ste. Michelle Wine Estates and Marchesi Antinori.

It was so foggy on this day that I came upon Col Solare unexpectedly, even though I’ve driven up Antinori Road a hundred times.

Hedges Cellars

Mon, 12 Dec 2011 10:02:22 -0800

Hedges was the first grand winery on Red Mountain. It paved the way, if you will, for the likes of Terra Blanca, Col Solare and Kiona to build beautiful wineries on Washington’s smallest appellation. Took this photo Friday morning amid frosty, foggy conditions.

Red Heaven on Red Mountain

Sun, 11 Dec 2011 21:36:00 -0800

This was one of my favorite photos from Friday’s trip up Red Mountain. This is Red Heaven Vineyard, which is up on the mountain, well above Sunset Road (near Hedges). It’s a young vineyard that winemakers really like.

On a normal day, you would be able to see Mount Adams far in the distance from here. On this day, I could barely see to the end of the row.

Frosty grapes on Red Mountain

Sat, 10 Dec 2011 20:45:21 -0800

Sub-freezing temperatures, frost and fog Friday on Washington’s Red Mountain made for beautiful conditions. We found this leftover cluster of wine grapes.

Gift idea: Wine barrel furniture

Thu, 08 Dec 2011 20:11:28 -0800

Northwest craftsmen are converting used wine barrels into all kinds of furniture, including bar stools, benches, coat racks, tables and Adirondack chairs. Don Redman of Mannina Cellars (509-200-2366) in Walla Walla makes Adirondacks, and Vinoture in Montana (vinoture.net) makes a wide range of items.

Gift idea: Helicopter wine tour

Mon, 05 Dec 2011 09:34:00 -0800

Flying M Air offers helicopter winery tours around Wenatchee, Quincy and George, visiting such wineries as Martin-Scott, Beaumont, Malaga Springs and Cave B.

Flying M can take up to three passengers at a time, with a two-person minimum. Cost starts at $95 per person.

Call 928-231-0196.

Gift idea: Personalized wine

Fri, 02 Dec 2011 20:20:20 -0800

Northwest Cellars in Kirkland, Wash., will make a customized wine label for you and put it on its award-winning wines.

If you want Northwest Cellars to design the label, there is a one-time $85 setup fee, plus the cost of the wine ($14 to $33 per bottle, depending on the wine). Or you can design your own label and avoid the extra fee.

There is no minimum order. Turnaround time is about a week.

Call 866-421-9463.

Gift idea: Wine in bottle shaped like Japanese glass float

Wed, 30 Nov 2011 20:57:03 -0800

Northwest wine Christmas gift idea No. 1:

Float. Westport Winery in Aberdeen, Wash., has come out with one of the most unusual bottles of wine we’ve seen. It’s called “Float,” and it’s a fortified dessert wine in a bottle shaped like a Japanese glass float. Cost is $50. Hurry if you want this because the winery is hand-bottling these as fast as it can to keep up with the flood of orders. Call 360-648-2224.

Gold, gold everywhere

Sun, 27 Nov 2011 21:13:00 -0800

I’ve been working on the results of our 12th annual Platinum Judging, in which we invite Northwest wineries to submit wines that have won gold medals in any of about 35 competitions we track.

It’s a fun judging, and it really does help sort out the best wines in the Pacific Northwest - at least among those wineries that use competitions as quality benchmarks.

There are a ton of story lines from our 12th annual best-of-the-best judging, and I’ll get to some of them in the coming days and weeks. Let’s start with this one:

We have a database of all the gold medals won by Northwest wines this year (in high-quality competitions, not the chamber of commerce types of tastings). And by our count, Northwest wineries won in excess of 1,200 gold medals.

I’m not sure if that is a record because I haven’t really ever tracked things that way. And this isn’t 1,200 different wines, by any stretch. In fact, a few wines won four or more gold medals in competitions, an amazing feat by itself.

There are arguments out there about how important competition medals are. I see their importance, partly because I see how competitions work. I also think they fit into one part of a winery’s marketing efforts. Certainly, a high score from Spectator and Advocate can help move wine, but 90-plus scores have become so ubiquitous, even that is difficult anymore.

I’ll leave you with one example of why competitions are an important part of a multi-pronged approach:

Craig Leuthold has built Maryhill Winery into a powerhouse in less than 10 years. It’s not only a fun place to visit, but it also produces some great wines, as evidenced by the fact that Maryhill wines already have won more than 1,000 medals in regional, national and global competitions.

Part of the ability to win medals is the willingness to enter, no doubt, but you have to have product to back up the wins.

Here’s what Leuthold has to say about it:

“We are giving consumers a reason to purchase our wine,” he said. “We are giving them affirmation that we are a brand they should seek out.”

He doesn’t expect medals to be the sole reason to buy Maryhill wines. But they are part of the building blocks. Good reviews from critics, medals in competitions, write-ups in newspapers, advertising, marketing, creating a great on-site experience, wine clubs, concerts, shelf talkers, good distribution, winemaker dinners. They all add up to success for those willing to put in the work.

Photo

Wed, 23 Nov 2011 21:31:57 -0800

Snowy vineyard on Red Mountain

Wed, 23 Nov 2011 21:31:17 -0800

Looking down through a vineyard Saturday on Red Mountain after the first snowfall of the season.