Happy Hour Wine Tasting Featuring Washington State Wines

Bring water, bring wine, boy! Bring flowering garlands to me! Yes, bring them, so that I may try a bout with love. ~Anacreon

The first people who planted grapes in Washington were the German and Italian immigrants and that was around 1825.

Chateau Ste. Michelle is Washington state’s Founding Winery, with some of the oldest and most acclaimed vineyards in the Columbia Valley.

Built on the 1912 estate owned by Seattle lumber baron Frederick Stimson, the winery’s roots date back to the Repeal of Prohibition, when the Pommerelle Wine Company and the National Wine Company were formed.  They merged in 1954 to form American Wine Growers. In 1967, American Wine Growers began a new line of premium vinifera wines called “Ste. Michelle Vintners” under the direction of legendary California winemaker Andre Tchelistcheff.

Ste. Michelle Vintners planted its first vines at Cold Creek Vineyard in Eastern Washington in 1972. Cold Creek remains one of the oldest and most renowned vineyards in the state. Ste. Michelle Vintners now own more than 3,500 prime vineyard acres in the Columbia Valley.

Some of the other founding fathers of the Washington state wine industry are- Leonetti Cellars, Woodward Canyon and Quilceda Creek.  These three producers are the first “cult wines” from Washington state and basically the second round of producers to move in.

Leonetti Cellar, which was bonded in 1977 by Founders Gary and Nancy Figgins, started as Gary’s vision to make world-class wines in Walla Walla has turned out to be a true American success story. Today, Leonetti Cellar produces some of the most sought after wines not onlyfrom Washington state but in the world.

Woodward Canyon Winery was one of the first two wineries to help put the Walla Walla Valley on Washington State's wine map.  From its first powerful 1981 cabernet sauvignon to the new releases today they have been among this state's top producers and we have actually have some of these wines in our tasting tonight!

Founded in 1979, Quilceda Creek has had an unbroken string of highly-rated vintages that has led Robert Parker Jr. to name it Washington State’s premier Cabernet Sauvignon producer with five vintages receiving (100 points) from Robert Parker Jr.'s The Wine Advocate, this is the mosxt sought after collectible.  Although we are not showing any Quilceda Creek this evening we do have several vintages available for sale after the notice of this tasting we have a list of all the Washington state wines in the store.

The industry and been expanding rapidly, Washington is the second largest wine producing state with just over 500 wineries in 2007.  Just a few short years later, today there are over 700 with the giant Chateau St. Michelle leading the way in terms of size.

Join us as we take you on a tour of Washington State wines here at the Wine Watch Wine Bar.  We have a great selection of wines to discover and chef Toni will be making some tasty treats to accompany the wines.  The fee for this tasting is $95 + tax, for reservations call 954-523-9463 or e-mail andy@winewatch.com. 

Happy Hour Wine Tasting Featuring the Wines of Washington State
Thursday, August 1st
6pm

2020 J. BOOKWALTER WINERY READERS CHARDONNAY COLUMBIA VALLEY
Price: $15.75                     Your Price: $13.86
Pouring the 2020 Readers Chardonnay in your glass, you are met with hues of fleshy white pear and honeysuckle. The aromatics on this wine are bright and fruity that transports you to thoughts of a tropical summer. Notes of pear, starfruit, pineapple, mango, and white flowers delight your senses as you prepare to take your first sip. On the palate, this wine has tropical fruit, citrus, and crisp Asian pear. The finish on this wine is bright and light, leaving you refreshed and wanting more.
Blend: 77% Chardonnay, 23% Viognier

2018 WOODWARD CANYON CHARDONNAY COLUMBIA VALLEY
Price: $45.                          Your Price: $39.60
Beautifully vibrant flavors of ripe pear, car amel apple, and star fruit marry perfectly with notes of crème brûlée, mineral and hazelnut. Whole cluster pressing gives delineated fruit flavors. Finally, the oak is understated and is in wonderful proportion with the alcohol, fruit and acidity. Physiologically mature fruit shows in the mouth; the finish is complex, generous, and long. This wine will benefit substantially with a year in bottle and should continue to improve for another several years with proper cellaring.

2019 WOODWARD CANYON OLD VINES CABERNET SAUVIGNON, COLUMBIA VALLEY, USA
Price: $115.00                   Your Price: $101.20                Quantity in Stock: 34
(94 Points) Made with 4% each of Malbec and Petit Verdot, the 2019 Cabernet Sauvignon Old Vines is lush and rich and exudes power and finesse without being overdone. Gobs of dark red and black fruit tones sway with delightful complexity, dried herbs and oak essence from the 100% new French oak barrels. Full-bodied, the wine is precise, focused and impeccably balanced with a long textured finish that begs me back for another sip. The wine rested for 22 months in all-new French oak. 6.960 bottles were made. Bravo! Wine Advocate

2019 WOODWARD CANYON ARTIST SERIES #28 CABERNET SAUVIGNON, WASHINGTON, USA
Price: $60.00                     Your Price: $52.80                Quantity in Stock: 41
This enticing and deeply colored red wine shows a complex nose of baking spice, black olive and lead pencil integrated beautifully with aromas of ripe black fruits. In the mouth the wine is rich and elegant, showing subtle notes of herb and bright black berries. Integrated tannins enhance the texture and give proportion; the finish is complex, generous, and long. While this wine can be en- joyed now it will benefit greatly from additional cellaring and, with proper storage, should develop for ten years or more.

J. BOOKWALTER NOTEBOOK 16NV COLUMBIA VALLEY
Price: $16.50                     Your Price: $14.52                Quantity in Stock: 16
This edition of the Notebook is a blend of Cabernet Sauvignon, Syrah, Malbec, Petit Verdot and Mourvedre.  Aromatically rich and delicious to quaff, this dry wine is ready to drink from summer barbeque through to winter meals. There's heaps of youthful red fruits like black cherries, plums, red currants and figs wrapped with cedar, caramel and chocolate. Succulent smooth fruit begins, with flavors of bakers chocolate, black cherry, blackberry, toast, dried herbs, tobacco and cola finish. The combination of long-aged powerful Cabernet Sauvignon and fresh fruity young Syrah from Washington's ripest vintage fill this deliciously affordable wine.

2021 PASSING TIME COLUMBIA VALLEY RED BLEND
Price: $78.00                     Your Price: $68.64                           Quantity in Stock: 19
(93 Points) Open and approachable with notions of dark cherries and spiced plums, the 2021 Columbia Valley Red Wine opens with notions of turned earth and baked clay with subtle notions of brown baking spices. A blend of 76% Cabernet Sauvignon, 14% Merlot and 10% Cabernet Franc, the wine is medium to full-bodied and offers dusty dark red and black fruit flavors with firm tannic grip that makes way for a lifting alcoholic edge on the lingering, spicy and softly herbal finish. The wine rested for 21 months in 60% new French oak. Decanting is recommended. This is set to be released in May 2024. Only 315 cases were produced.  Wine Advocate

2016 J BOOKWALTER WINERY CHAPTER 9 CUVEE, COLUMBIA VALLEY, USA
Price: $125.00                   Your Price: $110.00                        Quantity in Stock: 27
This is our uber reserve red. It’s a unique vineyard trial which we share to challenge your favorite Cabernet Sauvignon assumptions. Designed to out-perform Bordeaux’s ripest vintages, the French consultant Claude Gros designed our unique low-yield growing style for power and grace unlike anything before.  Fragrant Cabernet Sauvignon accented by the subtle minerality of Syrah enhances the brambly aromatics in this sophisticated blend.
Smooth palate texture shows off concentrated fruit and abundant ripe tannin. Dark berries, espresso and filigree tannins round out this terroir filled tour de force.
VINTAGE:  Conner Lee Vineyard block 1988 was planted by Jerry Bookwalter, own rooted at 1,100 feet elevation in sandy loam soils 100 meters deep allowing for ideal irrigation control. This Cabernet block has many excellent vintages, such as 2002, 2007, 2009, 2014, and 2015, and 2016 we consider the finest. Early flowering in late May began another warm year offering early consistent ripeness for Cabernet Sauvignon.
WINEMAKING: Our technique yields two bottles per vine, like the Grand Cru of Bordeaux. The French consultant Claude Gros designed this vine design and harvest selection in our favorite healthy old Cabernet block 1988. The 6–8 cluster yield per vine is like premier Grand Cru Bordeaux vines ripen. We repeat this technique in the Merlot, Cab Franc, Malbec and Syrah vines for blending. The Columbia Valley being warmer than Bordeaux, thinning must take place at 20 brix. We thin to balance natural sugars and acids and allow ripening for six long weeks. Hand harvested, we ferment separately in small lots for 20 days building suave tannins, designed solely for this wine selection. Finished in new Le Grand and Jarnac Bordeaux puncheons, the wines age 20 months sur lees using all techniques to build full body. We choose to blend in 5% Syrah and 5% Merlot for supple texture and dark favors. Using only this field selected cuvée, we select our favorite puncheon expressions of Cabernet Sauvignon and supporting varietals for bottling less than 300 cases.

CASES PRODUCED 490 6-pack cases/750mL
TECHNICAL DATA Bottled: Summer 2018 • Alcohol: 14.9% by volume • pH: 3.85 • RS: 1 g/L

2022 Cymbal Sauvignon Blanc  Columbia Valley
Price: $ 39.75                     Sale $34.98
Blend: 100% Sauvignon Blanc.  Intensely aromatic, with expressive layers of lemongrass, passion fruit and honeysuckle. Bright and balanced, showing lively acidity on the palate, with delicious ripe kiwi, mango and white nectarine flavors stretching across a lasting finish.

2020 LONG SHADOWS POET'S LEAP RIESLING COLUMBIA VALLEY
Price: $25.50     Your Price: $22.44
Inspired by the great wines of Germany and winemaker Armin Diel, proprietor of the renowned Schlossgut Diel. Poet’s Leap is an off-dry Riesling with expressive, spicy aromatics and generous, lively flavors.

2020 Feather Cabernet Sauvignon Columbia Valley
Price: $79.50                     Sale $69.96

(98 points) Instantly impressive, the 2020 Cabernet Sauvignon Feather opens to silky, fresh and fleshy dark red and black fruit tones with picturesque rich and ripe notions that sashay out of the glass with elegance, power and precision. Medium to full-bodied, the Cabernet shows incredible depth and breadth with succulent acidity and fine-grained tannins. This will have no trouble aging past its 20th birthday. World-class and devastatingly beautiful, the wine continues to somersault across the ever-evolving finish, and it will undoubtedly be well received upon its release in the fall later this year. Mark your calendar now, and run, don’t walk to add this to your cellar. (AM) (5/2023)  Wine Advocate

2019 LONG SHADOWS CHESTER KIDDER RED WINE COLUMBIA VALLEY
Price: $ 66.00                     Sale $58.08
Allen Shoup named this wine in honor of his mother, Elizabeth Chester, and his grandmother, Maggie Kidder. He selected Long Shadows' director of winemaking, Gilles Nicault, to craft this New World blend of Cabernet Sauvignon, Syrah and other classic Bordeaux varieties.
A beautifully dark and concentrated wine with wonderful aromatics. The mouthfeel is soft and lush on entry with sweet spice that becomes rich on the wine’s mid-palate. Fresh fig and ripe plum flavors are interwoven with notes of graphite and an alluring earthiness. The 2019 Chester-Kidder is a flavorful and structured wine with a silky, textured mouthfeel and vibrant finish

2020 LONG SHADOWS PEDESTAL MERLOT COLUMBIA VALLEY, WASHINGTON USA
Price: $76.50                     Your Price: $67.32
As has been the case since Pedestal’s debut in 2003, Conner Lee Vineyards Merlot plays a dominant role in crafting a dark, rich wine of uncommon character. Candy Mountain Merlot enhances the wine’s complexity. Red Mountain Cabernet Sauvignon, from Taptiel Vineyards, builds richness and structure. Dionysus Vineyard Petit Verdot and Cabernet Franc give the wine its vibrant character. 2013 Vintage: Growers learned from both 2003 and 2005, hot vintages that pushed the ripeness curve. They let canopies spread a bit more than usual and adjusted crop sizes to achieve the kind of balance they wanted. With that cooling trend starting in mid-September, the red wines should come with ripe flavors, moderate alcohol levels and vivid acidity.

2020 Long Shadows Vintners Saggi Red Blend Columbia Valley
Price: $75.00                     Sale $66.00
One of Italy’s most prestigious Tuscan wine families, Ambrogio & Giovanni Folonari provided their knowledge and expertise while working with Long Shadows’ Director of Winemaking, Gilles Nicault, who produces this unique blend of Sangiovese, Cabernet Sauvignon and Syrah.
Vibrant and darkly hued in the glass, with juicy black currant, red fruit and oak spice aromas. On entry, a textured, lively mouthfeel enhances the wine’s intense fruit character. Flavorful notesof wild strawberry and sour cherry are beautifully balanced with just the right amount of acidity stretching across a persistent finish.

Menu
Avocado Salsa with Parmesan Crisps
King Salmon in Wonton Crisp with Hoisin BBQ
Goat Cheese with Greens Pizza
All American Beef Slider
Baked Truffle Fries
Charcuterie Pizza

The fee for this Happy Hour Wine Tasting is $95 + tax, for reservations call 954-523-9463 or e-mail andy@winewatch.com.