Passing Time Washington State's Finest Wine Tasting with Special Guest Owners Damon Huard and ....

"I love waking up in the morning not knowing what I'm gonna do or who I'm gonna meet. Just yesterday I was sleeping under a bridge, and today I'm on the grandest liner in the world drinking champagne with you fine people. I'll have some more please."

Jack Dawson in Titanic (1997)

That is the beautiful thing about life the twists and turns that happen along the way.  If you told me 30 years ago that I would be drinking wine for a living I would have only hoped that could have been a possibility. 

And if you told Dan Marino and Damon Huard that they would own a winery 30 years ago they probably would have also looked at you like you were nuts.  These two were playing football and drinking wine but it is amazing how things evolve and change over your lifetime.  I have watched the Passing Time project come to life from the very beginning and have to say that we’re glad to have been big fans from day one as we have one of the biggest collections of their wines in the state of Florida!!

Now we can showcase every vintage of the Horse Heaven Hills Cabernet Sauvignon with our hosts the owners of Passing Time winery Dan Marino and Damon Huard and these wines are all coming from the Wine Watch collection along with a few special new releases coming from the winery and as always, a few surprises- you always get extra at Wine Watch!!

Over the last few years, I have discovered a number of incredible wines from Washington State by traveling to Washington’s wine country to see what is going on firsthand at the events surrounding the Auction of Washington State Wines in mid-August.  

One of the main events is the Picnic and Barrel auction at Chateau Ste. Michelle Winery.  After seeing Damon Huard there the first two years that I attended this event I knew that he was serious about wine.  Most great new producers start out as consumers and that is what it takes to make great wines, you must know what great wines taste like.  Operating a winery is another level and this requires a passion for the wine business and Damon seems to have both.

The third year at the auction our stop before the Washington Wine Auction Picnic was with Chris Peterson Winemaker/owner of Avenna Winery and Damon Huard the next celebrity winery owner in Washington State along with fellow NFL quarterback Dan Marino.  They have a new project called Passing Time. Which has a dual meaning and although there is an element that refers to their carrier in football, it is not overdone, and this wine is by no means marketed as a celebrity sports star wine.  There is no mention of either of their names on the label just a decorative lace that appears to look like that of a football under the Passing Time name.

Damon and Dan became good friends while playing in Miami and Dan brought Damon along not only on the football field but also regarding fine wine.  Dan is a big wine collector and was at one time Wine Watch's largest customer!!  According to Damon, Dan was first to show the potential of his home states wines like; Quilceda Creek, Woodward Canyon and Leonetti Cellars.  Although he grew up in Washington State Damon did not realize that this was also home to some of this country’s greatest vineyard sites. 

When Damon went back home to visit, he made it a point to visit some of these top producers and to learn more about Washington's great vineyards.  Damon found out that it was the quality of the grapes that determines the quality of the wine.  He now has become an authority on Washington State’s top vineyard sites and after making friends with a few of these growers he has managed to secure some great fruit sources.  The next piece in the puzzle was finding a top-level winemaker like Chris Peterson and after 15 years in the making this 2022 vintage is the 11th release of Passing Time Cabernet Sauvignon!! 

Join us as we experience every vintage of their iconic Horse Heaven Hills Cabernet Sauvignon along with a special five course tasting menu prepared by chef Toni Lampasone.  The fee for this tasting is $275 + tax, for reservations call 954-523-9463 or e-mail andy@winewatch.com

Passing Time Wine Tasting at Wine Watch

With Special Guest Dan Marino and Damon Huard

Friday January 31st

7:30 PM

2012 Passing Time Horse Heaven Hills Cabernet Sauvignon Washington

2013 Passing Time Horse Heaven Hills Cabernet Sauvignon Washington

2014 Passing Time Horse Heaven Hills Cabernet Sauvignon Washington

2015 Passing Time Horse Heaven Hills Cabernet Sauvignon Washington

2016 Passing Time Horse Heaven Hills Cabernet Sauvignon Washington

2017 Passing Time Horse Heaven Hills Cabernet Sauvignon Washington

2018 Passing Time Horse Heaven Hills Cabernet Sauvignon Washington

2019 Passing Time Horse Heaven Hills Cabernet Sauvignon Washington

2020 Passing Time Horse Heaven Hills Cabernet Sauvignon Washington

2021 Passing Time Horse Heaven Hills Cabernet Sauvignon Washington

2022 Passing Time Horse Heaven Hills Cabernet Sauvignon Washington

Menu

Selection of Cheese and Charcuterie

King Salmon with Ancho Chile BBQ Glaze over Forbidden Rice

Seared Hudson Valley Foie Gras served with Sauteed Wild Mushrooms

Caramelized onion, Huckleberry, Apple and Rainier Cherry BBQ A5 Japanese Waygu Filet Mignon served with Chocolate dusted mashed potatoes and Cabernet Natural Sauce accompanied by Avocado fries with Soy mayo and roasted pepper aioli.

Chocolate Fudge Cake with Huckleberry Sauce

The fee for this tasting which includes dinner is $275 + tax, for reservations call 954-523-9463 or e-mail andy@winewatch.com.  Please let us know when you make your reservations if you have dietary restrictions or if you just don’t like beef and chef Toni will be happy to make you chicken or something.