Chateau Smith

1887.  2008 Chateau Smith Cabernet Sauvignon (Columbia Valley - Washington State)

Considering Washington state is a short hop across the 49th Parallel, I really don't know much about Washington wines. If Canadian wine duties and travel restrictions (two bottles of wine after 48 hours away) weren't so draconian, my consumption rate would likely be a whole lot more extensive. But they are and, therefore, I'm not. So, I'm limited to the bottles that we might run across occasionally on our travels - some of which I actually know and have tasted and others - like the bottle at hand - that somehow end up in our possession.

I think I know more about Charles Smith as a wild haired iconoclast than I do about him as a winemaker. However, I see that that a prime Mr. Google search claims that Charles Smith "first started K Vintners (in 1999), then the Magnificent Wine Company and now he has the eponymous Charles Smith label, which is dedicated to making wines that pack a punch now, rather than wines that need cellaring to be enjoyed." He's been named Winemaker of the Year by various magazines and Wine & Spirits magazine named K Vintners one of the Best New Wineries of the Last Ten Years and even Winery of the Year in 2008.

I only see a few of his wines up here in Vancouver but I don't think I've seen this Cab. I'm more familiar with his Kung Fu Girl Riesling - most likely because I think the name endears the wine to more than a few of our Asian-influenced restaurants.

The Cab was more to Boo's liking. I found big fruit up front on the initial pour but that the wine rather died out for me as it opened up. For me, it was nicer with dinner than sipping on its own but I don't know that I'd fight to find more of it North of the border.

Another High School Musical

First it was Zombie Prom. Then Urinetown. Now, it's time for In The Heights.

Yes, it's time for another high school musical. This time around, Melmo, the youngest niece, has a featured role in the Broadway hit. Unlike the others, I've actually heard of this show. Don't know anything about the songs or the story but I did know it was a hot ticket on the Great White Way the last time Boo and I were in the Big Apple.

It's a little tough taking an obvious glass of wine to the high school gym; so, we had a quick pre-show dinner at my sister's place before heading off to the school.

1867.  2007 Saviah Cellars - The Jack Red (Columbia Valley - Washington)

I'm pretty sure that this is the first time that I've tried a wine from Saviah Cellars. I don't recognize the winery and I don't tend buy many US wines up here, north of the 49th Parallel, because of the additional taxes and currency exchange. So, I think I probably grabbed this during a Costco run during a naughty weekend in Seattle.

A little visit with Mr. Google shows that Saviah Cellars was established in 2000 as a very small boutique winery of only 300 cases. It has since grown to the point where it produces around 18,000 cases annually and was named "One of the Rising Stars in Washington" by Wine Spectator in 2010.

The Jack brand of wines is Saviah's entry label and it has also enjoyed success, having been named one of the Top Value Brands of the Year in 2013 by Wine & Spirits Magazine. The 2007 vintage of The Jack Red was primarily Merlot (89 percent) that is fleshed out with small additions of Cab Sauv, Cab Franc, Syrah and Petit Verdot.

Although the wine was big-bodied, it was still fruit forward and approachable enough to fill our travel coffee mugs to take with us to the show. We hadn't finished the bottle during dinner and you never know the kind of "support" you might need to get through a high school production.

1868.  2012 Fort Berens Riesling (British Columbia VQA)

When looking for a white to take to Vixen's, I was glad to see that I had a bottle of the 2012 Riesling in the cellar because I hadn't realized that I'd picked up a bottle before it won one of the twelve Lieutenant Governor's Awards given out in 2014. Once a wine is given one of the prestigious awards, it can be next to impossible to find a bottle.

What was quite exciting about the award was that this was the first vintage where the Riesling was made 100% from fruit that was estate grown at the winery's Lillooet vineyard. Being the first winery to set up shop in the Lillooet region, the winery is justifiably proud of the fact that they were able to execute such an award-winning wine so early in the winery's venture. It should certainly turn some heads in the direction of BC's newest wine-producing region.

Even with this vintage's bright lime and minerality, Fort Beren's story should only get more exciting since the home estate vines are still very young and the enterprise has, within the last year, opened a new winery with facilities large enough to make all its wines, cellar them and open a tasting room to help draw wine-loving folks away from the Okanagan for a spell.

There was no Riesling left for the theatre however.

As exciting as the wine was, we were told that Melmo was to have a big solo number in the show. Now, that would be exciting! Terrifying perhaps, but exciting all the same. We were also told, however, that Melmo's character dies six minutes into the show. Naturally, we asked if we could leave after she dies. Turned out that she didn't die until the second act; so, we stuck it out until the end in order to give our little diva her bouquet of roses. After all, she managed to pull off her performance without any cringe-worthy notes.

Guess we'll have one more production to look forward to as Melmo definitely has the stage bug and she doesn't graduate until next year. Given the variety of shows the school drama department comes up with, I'll be intrigued to see what that performance is going to be. Think a high school could get Spamalot? Whatever the show is, I'm sure we'll be there - wine in hand.

Super Bowl Merlot

So, it was Super Bowl Sunday and, with our being from Vancouver and just north of Seattle, we were hoping for a repeat by the Seahawks. I figured we could even open a treat of a Washington wine to help celebrate the day.

Luckily, the wine fared better in the glass than the Seahawks did on the field.

1852.  2008 Long Shadows Pedestal Merlot (Columbia Valley - Washington State)

I like the story behind Long Shadows. Boo and I first heard their tale at a wine dinner a couple of years ago at the Vancouver International Wine Festival. Long Shadow's resident winemaker, Gilles Nicault, regaled those fortunate enough to attend the dinner with the short history of the "winery" and the long history of those behind it. I wrote a post about the dinner and the winery's story; so, maybe I won't rehash all of that again this time around.

Suffice it to say that, after having spent 20 years with Ste. Michelle winery in Washington state, Long Shadows' proprietor, Allen Shoup, decided to work on his own vision of joining up with "a dream team of celebrated vintners" from around the world where each of those vintners would partner with Long Shadows to create a showcase wine that matches Washington fruit with worldwide experience.

Pedestal is the collaboration between Long Shadows and Michel Rolland, one of the most influential winemakers and consultants in the world. Hailing from Pomerol, Bordeaux and France's primary home for Merlot, Rolland, Shoup and Nicault have crafted a predominantly Merlot wine (the 2008 vintage also featured 12% Cab Sauv, 4% Cab Franc and 3% Petit Verdot) that wowed the big names - 93 points from both Robert Parker and Stephen Tanzer and 92 from Wine Spectator.

I don't (and won't) pretend to espouse learned bons mots and tasting notes on the wine itself but I think Wine Spectator may have summed it up when they wrote, "one sip demands another."

Good thing I didn't have that much invested in the game (not like the Canucks' Stanley Cup run in 2011), because long after Katy Perry and her dancing sharks had left the stage, it became evident that the now infamous two-yard passing play would turn this into more of a consolatory sip than a celebratory one. Instead of the Seahawks being placed on a pedestal as repeat champions, the podium belonged to Tom Brady.

At least the Merlot and this Pedestal was still our's.

Annual BCWAS Bus Tour - The Lead Up

The 2013 Annual BCWAS Bus Tour has arrived and, once again, Boo was working for the weekend and wasn't able to make it. Far be it from me to actually think that I could enjoy a weekend - drinking copious amounts of wine, eating gourmet meal after gourmet meal and laughing ourselves silly - without him, but you know I had to bite the bullet and try.

After all, this is prime blogging material and you never know how many bottles I might be able to slip by Boo and his "No Buy Leash" when he's not there to restrain me.

Luckily, I managed to sneak away from work a little early because I dearly wanted to join up with some of the gang for a pre-Tour outing. Mr. Technicolour had arranged a Legacy Tasting Tour at Mission Hill with none other than the winery's Director of Sales, Ingo Grady. The timing was always going to be tight but a 20-minute delay on Highway 1 didn't help matters. Arriving just in the nick of time, this was a tour to remember.

Ingo regaled us with some history of perhaps BC's best known winery while we took in the majesty of the location and the stunning architecture. There's little doubt that $60 million can buy a fair bit of splendour and make some tasty wine. An initial visit to the Chagall Room tapestry was followed by a tour of the show cellar where the Legacy series wines are aged and a collection of antique wine vessels is displayed.

No self-respecting winery tour concludes without featuring some wine tasting as well and this one didn't disappoint. We were treated to the limited edition Martin's Lane Riesling, Viognier and Pinot Noir, followed by Mission Hill's Quatrain red blend and a Late Harvest Vidal (that was only "late harvest" because the temperature at picking and crushing missed the -9°C required for Ice Wine designation by 0.5°C).

Mr. T Jumping for Joy

Ingo was particularly pleased to advise us of two major awards being given to the winery. WineAlign's 2013 National Wine Awards had recently named Mission Hill Canadian Winery of the Year and - perhaps on even a grander scale - the Decanter World Wine Awards had just named the 2011 Martin's Lane as the World's Best Pinot Noir in the under £15 category.

Many writers feel that the Decanter award may just put Canada and the Okanagan on the world map for Pinot Noir - just as Mission Hill had shocked the global winerati in 1994 when the winery's Chardonnay was named "Best Chardonnay in the World." Back then, such a triumph was so unfathomable that the judging panel re-tasted the entire flight - only to arrive at the same conclusion. Although just as many heads might have been turned by this Pinot Noir, we weren't advised of a required re-tasting by the judges.

Needless to say, the "No Buy Leash" needed a little tightening as we concluded our visit with a stop at the wine shop.

Once we'd settled into our digs for the weekend at the Summerland Waterfront Resort, it was time for a cocktail or two. Although the Bus Tour had arranged a gathering that evening, our little gang was fairly knackered and we passed on the party - choosing instead to let Chef Boy KC loose in the kitchen to do his magic while we got popped a couple of corks.

1418.  2011 Le Vieux Pin - Vaila Rosé (Okanagan Valley)

Okanagan Rosé wines are making a bit of name for themselves and this one is definitely garnering its share of attention. $30 can be seen as a bit dear for Rosé but this one is made with the same attention and reduced tonnage that Le Vieux Pin utilizes with all their other wines.  The wine is made completely from Pinot Noir grapes and the label notes that the grapes are grown at about three tons per acre. The fruit is harvested from vineyards in West Kelowna (where Mission Hill is by the way), on the Black Sage Bench (Le Vieux Pin's home turf), from Okanagan Falls and from the Golden Mile.

Le Vieux Pin wasn't on the Bus Tour program this year but this was a fine way to toast the start to the weekend - that is, if you like big acidity and bright fruit.

1419.  2010 Chateau Ste Michelle Syrah (Columbia Valley - Washington State)

Next up was a Washington Syrah. Just like Rosé wines, Syrah is garnering a big following in BC wine circles. It may, however, be raising even more hoopla in the vineyards of our neighbour to the South. I'm far from an expert on Washington wines but I keep seeing articles about Syrah making headlines South of the border.

From what I know, Chateau Ste Michelle is to Washington State much what Mission Hill is to the Okanagan. It's a big producer that has a number of higher end tiers as well. I know of the winery mostly because Ste Michelle's Eroica is my favourite Washington Riesling (not that I know a great number of them). A fairly big Syrah; this bottle just seemed a little shy on the fruit for my palate.

It was fun to see a Washington wine on the table because it let us give Shelback a hard time about her straying from the path of the Great Canadian Wine Challenge so early in its mandate. What is it, a week or two into the game or so? That girl has taken a good look at the "rules" though and she's hanging her hat on the decree that "you can drink a non-Canadian wine if it is served at a dinner party and you don't have a choice." Considering the dinner party was her's and there were still unopened BC wines on the table, I think she plays pretty hard and loose with the Challenge's rules.

A "hard and loose" Shelback. That's not the first phrase thrown out usually when describing our dear girl.

1420.  Frank Cornelissen - Sususaru 3 Rosato (Sicily - Italy)

The final wine of the night - for me anyhow - was a rarity that Chef Boy KC brought along to try and stump everyone with. A Sicilian Rosé - made from Nerello Mascalese grapes.

We were certainly stumped as this was a wine like no other. After the fact, I saw that this is a "natural" wine. I'm no expert on natural wines either but they certainly seem to cause their share of controversy in the wine press. The Sususaru 3 label reads "ATTENTION This wine has not been modified, neither chemically, nor mechanically and does not contain preservatives or stabilizers. It will develop natural sedimentation as our wines are not filtered or altered." I didn't notice any sedimentation but we all noticed a nose that was as different as different can be - as was the actual taste - but Chef Boy KC was quite convinced that the bottle wasn't "off." If that wasn't enough of a hint, I think I can safely say that this wasn't my favourite wine. I dearly wanted to like it but, in reality, I thought I did well by finishing the wine in my glass.

I took a further look for information on the wine and the winery website takes the label description further and states "Our farming philosophy is based on our acceptance of the fact that man will never be able to understand nature's full complexity and interactions. We therefore choose to concentrate on observing and learning the movements of mother Earth in her various energetic and cosmic passages and prefer to follow her indications as to what to do, instead of deciding and imposing ourselves. Consequently, this has taken us to avoiding all possible interventions on the land we cultivate, including any treatments, whether chemical, organic, or biodynamic, as these are all a mere reflection of the inability of man to accept nature as she is and will be."

Interesting? Yes. Laudable? Perhaps. Suffice it to say, however, that there was still a good part of the bottle left when we put head to pillow - and that's saying something with this crowd. I think the hope was that the wine might mellow out by the morning.

I'm happy to say that Chef Boy KC's culinary talents far outshone his choice in that particular wine though.

A grand start to the weekend I'd say. The hope would now be that the Bus Tour component would be just as formidable.

Wine Blogging Wednesday 80 - Rebounding With Rosé

I think it's safe to say that the wine world is as prone to trends as any other topic or product with a high public profile. Whether it be skinny jeans or Viognier, molecular cuisine or indigenous Italian grapes, nouveau alternative folk or restrained Aussie Shiraz, you pretty well know that there's going to be something new and exciting right just around the corner.

From all the internet and traditional print buzz about Rosé wines, you could easily conclude that Rosé is the new "it" in the wine world. Maybe that's the reasoning behind this most recent resurrection of Wine Blogging Wednesday. Is there a more topical taste in the wine world than Rosé right now? Maybe we'll find out by the participation levels in WBW80.

A year on the internet can seem like an eternity - and this is the first Wine Blogging Wednesday to be attempted since this time last year - so, maybe a bit of a re-introduction is apropos. WBW was conceived over nine years ago by New York blogger, Lenn Tompson, as a monthly, virtual event. I was rather late to join to game. My first participation was with WBW65, but the concept is simple enough. It's been described as "people interested in wine, the world over, would coalesce each month around a single theme." Anyone intrigued by the month's topic submits their post or e-mail comments to the coordinator - or nowadays, their Twitter, Tumblr or Google+ witticisms (not that I know what the last two are) - which are then coordinated and shared. This round is the the 80th such outing.

This month's host, Tim Elliot from Winecast announced WBW80 with: "Good dry rosé is one of the most versatile wines in summer matching with light to heavy fare. But like some other wines, Rosé (here in America anyway) doesn't get the respect it deserves. So I'd like to see everyone explore beyond their regular summer Rosés and try something new. it might be an obscure varietal or a region you haven't tried before. Or maybe just kicking it old-school and picking up a Rosé from Bandol, Tavel or Provence from a new producer."

It's a topic that I can heartily support - and NOT just because of the whole "gay" affiliation with the colour pink (as I raise I my eyebrows in mild exasperation). We tend to drink a healthy share of Rosé wines at our household as, on the whole, we tend to like reds over whites but find that a Rosé can give you some extra body and profile than a white while still matching up nicely with the summer's lighter fare and warmer temperatures. In fact, I've taken to drinking Rosé throughout the year. Why limit it to summer?

For WBW80, we invited the beautiful and talented Elzee over for a dinner of moules frites - thinking that a little quasi Provençal fare would be a grand accompaniment to a trio of wines. The Rosés I had in the cellar are all Okanagan wines and I wanted to mix things up a bit. Elzee was going to bring a surprise bottle; so, I thought I'd hit a couple of bottle shops (government and private) to see what they had. The thought was to serve a BC, a French and one other region.

Talk about being disappointed. Despite all of the media hype on Rosé, each of the shops had a small assortment of BC wines and precious little else. The government shop had a few commercial, mass market bottles from a couple of regions and one Spanish Rosado (which I'd already added to The List). At least the private shop (Liberty) had a choice of four French wines. I grabbed one of those to go with my bottle of BC at home.

Turned out that Elzee ran into the same problem. Of all things, she managed to choose the same French wine that I did. Rather than just drink two BC wines along with our French bottle, we made a quick run to another small shop not too far away. They had a total of three Rosés in stock. We grabbed the one Washington state bottle they had as it would offer us a bit of a contrast.

Our lack of choice begs the old chicken and egg question: do these stores not carry Rosé because no one really buys that wine style or does no one tend to buy Rosé because there's so little of it to choose from?

In any event, we had our three bottles and they were very different from each other - and it's interesting in that Boo's, Elzee's and my takes on the wines all changed over the course of the evening.

1391.  2012 Clean Slate - Gamay Rosé (Okanagan Valley)

As a simple sipper, this new entry on the BC wine scene impressed all three of us. Clean Slate has only been around for a couple of vintages and it is a partnership between Ross Hackworth of Nichol Vineyard, Matthew Sherlock from Nichol and previously of Vancouver's wine and restaurant scene and Gitta Pederson of Poplar Grove Cheese fame. She's provided the vineyards and the shared tasting/sales room, while the men look after the wine production.

Clean Slate's total production is only 650 cases and that includes a white and a couple of reds on top of the Rosé. Needless to say, there isn't a whole lot of this Rosé around. I managed to grab a bottle when I stopped in, during the recent Wine Bloggers' Conference, to pick up some of our fave Tiger Blue cheese. The bottle of Clean Slate was a side benefit.

The lightest of the three wines in colour, there was a vibrant acidity that just made you forget the heat of the day. Rosé wines can be made from pretty much any grape the winemaker wants and there are a couple of Gamay-based versions coming out of the Okanagan. The Clean Slate didn't pair quite as memorably with the strong flavours and heat of the mussels but I was still very glad to get a chance to try one of their wines for the first time.

1392.  2011 Château Calissanne (AOC Coteaux d'Aix-en-Provence - France)

Rosé is the primary wine of note in Provence and the Château Calissanne is about as classic as Provençal Rosés get. It's a blend of the traditional Grenache, Cinsault and Mourvèdre grapes, with just a touch of Syrah added to round out the wine. We found that it was subtler in its flavour profile than the two North American wines - with most of its soft fruit not appearing until the mid-palate and finish, but the body and acidity was certainly well balanced.

All three of thought that we enjoyed this wine more and more as the evening continued - and all three of us reached for it first when it came to refilling our glass while munching on mussels.

If mussels and Rosé are staples of Provence, I need to get me there!

1393.  2012 Charles & Charles Rosé (Columbia Valley - Washington State)

I had neither seen nor heard of our third wine of the night before but I saw, after the fact, that it was recently picked as a Best Value by Wine Spectator. This Rosé is a collaboration that started in 2008 between Charles Smith of K Vintners and Charles Bieler who started producing Rosé at family-owned Château Routas in Provence until they sold the estate in 2005. The Bieler family then invested in Bieler Père et Fils, a winery also in Couteaux d'Aix-en-Provence. Finally, Charles B. approached Charles S. to consider taking a stab at producing a quality Rosé in the US as the former saw a definite opportunity to fill a perceived void in the American market.

They started with a batch of Syrah grapes that Smith didn't think were ripe enough or big enough for his trademark K Syrah and they now produce 20,000 cases.

Interestingly enough, the Washington Rosé uses the same classic grapes used in Provençal wines - and as in the Calissanne - but the percentages are turned on their head. Instead of playing a small part - as it did in the French wine - here the Syrah takes a dominant position at 81%. The balance of the blend is Mourvèdre (16%), Cinsault (2%) and Grenache (1%). It seemed that, of the three, this was the wine with the most noticeable fruit. It wasn't, however, necessarily overwhelming, or even alluring, with its fruitiness on an initial taste. The C&C grew on us once it was paired with food though. Indeed, it particularly seemed to come alive after it had warmed up a bit and was paired with the tomato and bocconcini salad we started out with.

In the end, all three wines had their moments - which, I suppose, is just how you'd like an evening's selection to go. Despite all three being quite different from the others in their takes on Rosé, I think it's a joy to see that North American wineries are beginning to pay as much attention to making Rosé as the French and Provençal wineries have for a very long time.

I'm also quite enthralled with the return of Wine Blogging Wednesday. Tim and the WBW powers that be deserve kudos for taking another stab. Hopefully, the concept will strike a chord with plenty of other wine loving bloggers out there and we can make a more regular go of the event. Here's to having WBW81 next month as opposed to next year. See you then.

Terracotta and Kung Fu

Boo and I are heading off on our West Coast road trip in the morning and neither one of us felt like cooking or cleaning - especially when we still had to pack our bags. The obvious solution was to head out for a bite to eat. We decided to hit Terracotta, the new "Modern Chinese" restaurant that's opened up in Gastown.

Terracotta is on the small side and, not too surprisingly, they have a limited wine list - maybe four whites and four reds. We were hoping for a bit of spice with our crispy squid and ginger beef. So, we went full bore and hoped to pair everything with the Riesling.

1296. 2011 Charles Smith Wines - Kung Fu Girl Riesling (Columbia Valley - Washington)

The Kung Fu Girl seemed appropriate seeing as how we were hoping to hit the Washington border in less than 12 hours. Charles Smith is one of those bigger than life Washington winemakers that I see in all sorts of articles and news stories. I don't know his wines however and, having made a quick search of the blog, I think this is the first to be added to The List.

Charles Smith Wines is a second brand, started in 2006 and was "themed as 'The Modernist Project'" as it focused on immediate drinkability - since that's how most modern drinkers consume the wine they buy. Immediacy doesn't mean that craftsmanship needs to be tossed out with the grape skins though. Kung Fu Girl might be an entry level bottle but it is still a single vineyard production that isn't afraid of letting the minerality and acidity of the grape shine through. Indeed, this 2011 vintage was named a Best Value Wine by Wine Spectator for the third year in a row.

No doubt, Smith gets asked "What's the story behind the name" in every interview he gives. His stock answer is that "both Riesling and Girls kick ass."

This might be the easiest of Smith's wines to find. He produces a good number of wines (perhaps up to thirty) but he often doesn't make more than a hundred or two cases of many of those wines. Kung Fu Girl sees a bigger production though and it's become a bit of a signature wine for him.

I don't know that the Kung Fu knocked me out - considering all the wonderful Rieslings we see in our market - but it was certainly good enough that we'd finished off the bottle long before we ran out of food. That's got to be a good sign.

With the wine gone, however, it was time to head home and get down to packing. I might've preferred sticking around to order a second bottle though.

A Wine-Filled Long Shadows Dinner

Definitely one of my favourite times of the year, the annual Vancouver International Wine Festival got under way yesterday. The showpiece Festival Tasting Room doesn't open its door until later in the week, but the myriad of tastings, seminars and winemaker dinners are now ripe for the picking. Boo tends to find the big tasting room a bit overwhelming; so, we opted to whet his whistle with one of the winemaker dinners that sounded very interesting.

The dinner was being held at Coast and was to feature the wines of Long Shadows. Despite it's being an acclaimed Vancouver restaurant, I'd never eaten at Coast but I had always hoped to get to there eventually. Being paired up with a Washington state winery was a great selling point for me since we don't see much opportunity to taste Washington wines here above the 49th Parallel. I wasn't even aware of the breadth of the winery's lure when I booked the tickets but, boy, talk about falling into a lucky circumstance.

Long Shadows Vintners is a truly intriguing, joint venture operation. Founded by Washington State wine pioneer Allen Shoup (who, surprising everyone, turned up at the dinner as a plus-one for one of the guests), their website describes Long Shadows as "a collection of ultra-premium wines created by internationally acclaimed winemakers from the major wine regions of the world. Each winemaker is part owner in this unique winery dedicated to producing individual wines that showcase the viticultural excellence of Washington State's Columbia Valley."

Seven wineries currently make up Long Shadows and each of the collaborations sees the renowned partner work individually with Shoup and resident winemaker, Gilles Nicault, to produce a "best of type" wine under its own label. Nicault tends to the home base and consults with each of the winemaker partners - who visit at least twice a year - to craft the wines to everyone's distinct styles and directions. We were regaled with each of those seven wines and to some incredible food. I know that I tweeted that it was too hard to pick a favourite pairing.

The wines, however, consisted of:

Poet's Leap Riesling, made by Armin Diel of Germany's Schlossgut Diel.

Chester Kidder red blend - the home team project of Nicault's and Shoup's.

Tuscan father and son team, Ambrogio and Giovanni Folonari's "Super Tuscan" - Saggi, a Sangiovese/Cab Sauv blend.

Pomerol winemaker and consultant to the world, Michel Rolland's Pedestal Merlot.

Sequel Syrah - made with John Duval, the man, who for 15 years, made one of Australia's most acclaimed wines, Penfold's Grange.

Feather Cabernet Sauvignon from Napa Valley's Randy Dunn.

I could only wish to add all of these wines to The List (maybe over time I'll be able to) but I'm actually going to add the seventh of the Long Shadows wines to The List - if only because it would be a shame not to add one of these wines as a testament to this dinner. I figure it's a legitimate add though since we experienced incredibly healthy pours of wine all evening. I often find that the wine at winemaker's dinners can be limited to pours designed to make a bottle go a long ways amongst the various diners. There was no shortage of re-pours here however. Indeed, Boo enjoyed the next wine so much that the waiter just left a generous portion of a bottle at our table for us to polish off at our leisure. This might be a tad hard to believe but I was even turning down second pours of some wines because it was a school night and I figured we'd done more than enough damage to the offering of wines.

1265. 2009 Long Shadows Pirouette (Columbia Valley - Washington)

In addition to being a fancy ballet move, Piourette is now a premium, small lot wine that falls under the influence of Philippe Melka, who hails from Napa via Bordeaux and many prestigious wine stops in between, and Agustin Huneeus, Sr. who contributes his four decades of winemaking skills - largely styled in the Bordeaux tradition. Long Shadow's website proudly mentions that Huneeus' own wines include the 1999 vintage Quintessa that garnered 100 points.

Not surprisingly, given the winemakers' heritage, this is a Bordeaux or Meritage blend of  59% Cab Sauv, 27% Merlot, 13% Cab Franc and 3% Malbec. There may be French sensibilities directing this wine but its nose and palate were generous with concentrated, ripe Washington fruit. It was a given that Boo needed to tip our waiters generously for having left the bottle behind.

It never ceases to amaze me why there's such a dearth of Washington and Oregon wineries that participate in the VIWF - especially given how close they are to Vancouver and given the prominence of the Festival - but this was a wonderful way to learn about a unique operation and some incredible wines. It was a great start to my Festival and, without a doubt, the evening was one of the best wine dinners I've ever attended. Bravo to both Coast and to Long Shadows.

Lamb Bonne Femme

Considering we live less than an hour from the Washington State border, you might think that I'd be more familiar with Washington State wines.  I truly wish that I were, but such is not the case.  Most of the wines that make it across the border seem to be large brand productions and I have this deep-seated aversion to paying up to twice as much for a wine just because it crosses an international border.

Accordingly, my adventures in Washington wines tend to be limited to our visits State-side - which are few and far between - and the odd bottle that I've managed to bring back with me from those rare trips.

Unless, of course, a friend gifts us with a bottle as is the case with our current pour.

1324.  2008 Zero One Vintners - The Wild Sky Cabernet Sauvignon (Columbia Valley - Washington State)

Of course, my having to start with a limited knowledge of Washington wineries isn't ideal but, then, things don't get much better when the almighty "Google" doesn't deliver a wad of sites or information about the wine or winery.  I did garner that Zero One is a virtual winery and that it is relatively new to the Washington wine scene.  Indeed, this 2008 Cab is only the third vintage of Cab.

Thomas and Kristin Vogele are the powers that make up Zero One and they source their grapes from various growers in the state.  The wines are then made at a custom crush facility with a consulting winemaker, Gordy Hill.  This vintage of the wine is 95% Cab Sauv; however, there are small amounts of Merlot, Malbec and Petit Verdot (3%, 1% and 1% respectively) added to round out the blend.

I grabbed the bottle from the wine rack thinking that it might go nicely with the lamb stew we were having for dinner - particularly since a good whack of the bottle was going into the stewpot - one of our best stews ever according to Boo.  I'm not sure how much of the credit goes to the wine but I'm kinda wishing I'd kept more of the bottle to sip on while eating the stew.  Boo too.  That boy does like his Cabs.

In addition to its stew-enhancing capabilities, what's not to like about the fact that a portion of all sales from the wine are donated to Leave No Trace, "an educational, apolitical, non-profit organization dedicated to the responsible enjoyment and active stewardship of the outdoors by all people worldwide."  Zero One Vintner's partnership with the organization assists that part of the Wild Sky Wilderness area found in the Western Cascade Range in the state.

I often wonder why we don't see more Washington State wines on our side of the border but I think a big part of the answer is that, just like at home in BC, a good number of the wineries are boutique operations and they just don't have the product to export it.  A case in point is that only 709 cases of the '08 The Wild Sky were even made.  It's hard to market wine that just isn't there to market.

Too bad, that.  Guess I'll just have to take my opportunities to try Washington wines whenever they arise.  And, you know I will.

Via Tevere

I got the call from my Dad that my Aunt Belle and Uncle Lyle had arrived in town for a short visit prior to their heading South of the border for Black Friday.  We had the one night that we could get together for dinner; so, I talked them into coming to our neck of the woods and a trip to Via Tevere.  Naturally, our timing wasn't the best and our group of six had to wait a good 45 minutes before we got seated.  Good thing they liked the pizza - and, just as importantly, the wine.

I knew that Via Tevere participates in the "new-ish" Bring Your Own Wine program that's been introduced in BC.  This is only the second time that Boo and I have taken advantage of the opportunity - and the first occasion was here as well.  After an initial flurry of press, I haven't heard much about BYOW at all and I don't know of many restaurants that are participating - not that we get out all that much.  It's a nice option though and I hope to be able to participate a lot down the road.

1290.  2004 Avignonesi - Vino Nobile di Montepulciano (D.O.C.G. Vino Nobile di Montepulciano - Tuscany - Italy)

I can't say that I know much about Avignonesi; however, I clearly remember that I was advised to keep an eye out for their wines while Boo and I were in Italy a couple of years back.  If memory serves, we were particularly tipped off about one of the winery's Super Tuscans: 50 & 50.  We never found that wine, nor did we even get to try an Avignonesi wine before time constraints forced us to leave Italy and return home.  Although the Vino Nobile is a traditional Tuscan wine (as opposed to a new fangled Super Tuscan),I was glad to run across this bottle in a local bottle shop.

The winery is named after the Avignonese family - founders of the original estate.  It was purchased in 2009, however, by a retired Belgian lawyer.  While the new owner's intent was to build on the winery's reputation, one of her first steps was to look to switch vineyards over to organic viticultural practices.  Being a 2004, our vintage had, obviously, been bottled long before the change in ownership but I can only hope that quality levels stay the same - if not improve - because I quite enjoyed it and I'm hardly a big fan of Chianti - the region's prime wine.

The Vino Nobile di Montepulciano is more localized than Chianti; however, the wine is still primarily based on the Sangiovese grape, although producers generally use a local clone known as Prugnolo Gentile.  That varietal provides the majority of the wine's fruit - but there's an added bonus for me in that small quantities of Canaiolo Nero and Mammolino are used as well.  Neither of those varietals have been added to my Wine Century Club tally.

Got to love that fact that I get to add to new varietals - while dining with the relatives and enjoying a wine to boot.

1291.  2011 ViVi - Falanghina (IGT Campania - Italy)

It was clear from the outset that we were going to need more than one bottle.  I didn't know whether we could bring two of our own bottles; so, we bought the Falanghina off the wine list.  I'd say that we were more of a red crowd - except for Aunt Belle - but there was no worry about leaving any of the white in the bottle.

The ViVi website doesn't actually provide a whole lot of information about the winery but I'm guessing that Vivi is more of a bulk, brand producer than Avignonesi.  That may well be the only way that a Falanghina varietal vine could be marketed in Vancouver though.  Falanghina is hardly going to be a grape that most people could go into a liquor store and rattle off as being the wine they want to pick up.  Marketed as a well-priced white wine might be a whole lot more sensible from a winery standpoint.

Italian whites aren't usually high on my list of faves - and this one didn't reach favourite status either - but it was well made with a nicer acidity to it than I often find with Italian whites.  The fruit was lacking (when compared to the local Okanagan wines) but the bottle was picked primarily for Aunt Belle's palate and she quite liked the wine.  So, the bottle definitely lived up to its task.

We called it quits after our wine and pizza because Boo had put one of the leftover Halloween pumpkins to use and made us a pie that wasn't pizza pie.  Homemade pie a tempting thought - especially when I remembered there was another bottle waiting at home.

1292.  2007 Pacific Rim - Vin de Glacière Riesling (Columbia Valley - Washington State)

Pumpkin pie and a Washington dessert wine seemed like an appropriate way to cap off our early start to American Thanksgiving.  I don't think Belle and Lyle were going to take in Costco for Black Friday, but I'm pretty sure I picked up the Vin de Glacière awhile back during a States-side visit to Costco ourselves.  I gather that the wine is a take on Canadian icewines.  

The big difference between this wine and a true icewine is that these grapes are harvested when they've reached high enough sugar levels and, then, they are frozen.  While the grapes are, indeed, pressed while frozen, the winery doesn't have to take the risks involved with waiting until the grapes have frozen outside in the vineyard before they can be picked and pressed.

The end result is still tasty though.  There was still plenty of honey and ripe tree fruit on the palate but I think it could have used a bit more acidity to balance out the sweet.  The cost was nowhere near as precious as an icewine would cost and that's hardly a bad thing.

All in all, I'd say things went well.  Everyone was still chatting away in our dining room when I called it quits.  Being the only one of the crowd that had to get up first thing in the morning, it was time to hit the sack.  And that had nothing to do with the fact that we'd finished off the evening's wines.  Truly.

Four More Years

As a Canadian, I certainly play no role - legitimate or otherwise - in the American presidential election.  As a Canadian, I do feel, however, that my day-to-day life gets affected by the directions that American politics veer - and that's not only because I'm married to an US citizen.  (Or, should I say that I'm considered married in Canada and at least a handful of American states.)

That lack of direct input aside, I'm still fascinated - and perhaps a little scared - by the theatre that is American politics.  And so, it was with rapt attention that I sat glued to the television as results streamed in from across the country.  I was rather hopeful that the final result would have been declared somewhat earlier in the evening, but at least I'm on the West Coast and didn't have to stay up too late after my bedtime.

Such an important night for the US seemed to call out, obviously, for an American wine.  So I pulled out a bottle that we'd picked up in Seattle.  Canadian duty limitations are so strict that we're only legally allowed two bottles of wine per person after a 48-hour stay State-side.  (Tell me I wouldn't be among the first to vote against that law!)  That doesn't allow a whole lot of room for experimentation with my wine buys.  Accordingly, as a rule, I go into one of the top wine shops in town, tell them my dilemma and ask what wines they'd buy if faced with the same limitations.  This was one of the bottles that came highly recommended.

1281.  2006 Bunnell Family Cellar Syrah (Horse Heaven Hills AVA - Washington)

I'd have to have been pointed in the direction of this wine as I knew nothing - and still know little - about the winery.  The winery's website advises that owner/winemaker, Ron Bunnell, is hoping to build a family legacy after years of making wine at such well known operations as Chateau Ste. Michelle, Beringer Vineyards and Kendall-Jackson (and, even as a Canuck without much knowledge in American wines, I know all three of these).

Bunnell left Chateau Ste. Michelle, where he was helping to spearhead the ambitious Col Solare project, in 2004, to start making wines under the family name.  They now specialize in small lot batches of Rhône varietal wines.  Indeed, only 370 cases of this Horse Heaven Hills wine was made.  Although the winery now produces wines from estate grown grapes as well, the fruit for this wine was sourced from growers in Horse Heaven Hills - the neatly named sub-appellation of the Columbia Valley that is home to some of the most highly regarded grapes in the state.

BC's own Okanagan Valley is becoming well regarded for its Syrah/Shiraz wines; so, it should be no surprise that neighbouring Washington state is producing some winners as well.  Like many BC wines, I found this to straddle the profiles of the French Rhônes and bigger Aussie Shiraz.  The dark fruit was there but it was far from jammy.

I think I would have enjoyed the wine regardless of what I see as a favourable outcome in the election, but I'm glad I didn't have to test that theory.

I do know that there's not much chance of running across a wine like this on our side of the border.  I shall have to be thankful that, despite some political differences, we Canadians can still cross the 49th Parallel as easily as we can to grab some more tasty American wines.

Until that next visit of mine, here's a toast to four more years with President Obama - and to an even greater hope that politicians of all stripes - and the American people - can find some bridges across the Democrat/Republican chasm that seems to be - at least this Canadian - an ever widening gap.

Wash CAb

1201.  2005 Sagelands Cabernet Sauvignon (Columbia Valley - Washington State)

A Really Big Housewarming

I recently wrote that Skipper had hosted a Grenache/Garnacha edition of Wine Boyz. For the night, he'd invited the other boyz from our curling team last year. It was their first sip at Wine Boyz and it kind of revealed to them our gang's enthusiasm for the grape.

The next day or so, Brady e-mailed me to see if I'd be interested in a 3-Litre bottle of Washington Merlot that he'd been lugging around with him for the last decade or more. He'd received the Jereboam at a charitable fundraiser for Seattle's Chicken Soup Brigade all those years ago and he figured it was time to think about opening it. At first, Brady wondered if anyone might want to buy it from him - not that he knew what it'd be worth.

He didn't get off the hook that easily.

1174. 1997 Hogue Cellars - Hogue Springs Eternal Barrel Select Merlot (Columbia Valley - Washington)

Although this was an irreplaceable bottle that none of us would likely ever come across before, Brady's enquiry started with "1. Any idea if this is any good? 2. Any idea if this is still any good?" and we were left with a big question mark. I told him that the big bottle format would likely help slow down any negative effects of ageing but that the big factor was going to be how he'd been storing it.

His answer wasn't very inspiring. He basically admitted that he had no cellar of any sort and that, since he'd liked the design of the carved glass bottle and label, he'd had it standing upright in his living room through all his moves over the last decade. Summer, winter, no matter, the cork hadn't seen a lot of contact with the wine for many a year. I told him I wouldn't hold my breath for too long if he was expecting a vibrant sip o'wine.

That just piqued his interest and he decided to bring it along to a small gathering for Kaz's housewarming on the weekend. Kaz, the newest member of our team last year, had just moved into his new apartment and had invited everyone over for a look see. If the wine was still drinkable, that three litres would go a fair way in whetting our whistles.

Things didn't look all that optimistic when the cork broke as we tried to open the bottle but, lo and behold, the wine was totally drinkable. The first sips were tentative to say the least, but we were still greeted with a good shock of dark fruit. I'm sure that the tannins and acidity would have been a lot more prominent when the wine was bottled, but it really did have a nice balance. There was certainly no problem in finishing off that first glass and refilling it a number of times.

Hogue had a reserve line back in the 1997; so, this might have been one of their premium wines at the time - allowing for a little more leeway for lasting those 15 years - but it was still a surprise given Brady's shady storage facilities.

To tell the truth, we'd actually finished off the bottle long before the evening was done. It was a good thing that a many of the guests were drinking beer or cocktails; otherwise, those refills would have been mighty limited.

I don't think there were any limitations on Brady's refills though - after all it was his bottle - but I'm happy to say that the accompanying pic was staged and that he didn't really pass out after finishing that monster. I believe the picture made a few rounds on Facebook where the story of Brady's overindulgence was promoted however.

The night called for a big shout out - like in 3-Litres big - to Brady. It was an exciting bottle to open. And, unfortunately, after getting the whole bottle-opening affair started with his Wine Boyz round, Skipper wasn't even able to make it to the party to try the wine. Nasty Boyz that we are, we didn't save him any. In our defence though, at least we waited until it was clear that he wasn't going to drop by.

Kennedy Shah

With Boo having tightened the No Buy Leash (are you hearing a lot of this lately?), I don't know if I'll be able to pull off the 3rd Annual Costco Wine Run across the border into Washington State this year. That could mean that I'll simply have to be satisfied with the bottles that are still around from the last two road trips.

Tonight's bottle is one of them. I didn't know anything about the winery when I picked up the bottle but that's one of the joys of shopping for American wines while in the US. When State-side, we Canadians can take some risks and just grab a bottle that might look interesting or novel because the lower liquor taxes means that US wines are a lot more reasonably price south of the 49th Parallel than they are back home in Vancouver.

1072. 2007 Kennedy Shaw Merlot (Rattlesnake Hills - Washington State)

During a brief internet search, I didn't find out much more about the winery than I knew before. I see that this is one of five labels produced by The Woodhouse Wine Estates - a family affair operated by the husband and wife team of Bijal and Sinead Shah. I didn't find anything further in terms of the difference between the labels; however, I did discover that this Kennedy Shaw label is named after the Shahs' daughter, Kennedy. For what it's worth, they seem to have given Kennedy the largest selection of wines under her label and the pricing on these wines is more of an entry-to-mid level price point. Two of the other labels seemed to offer a more limited selection - at a more premium price point. I noticed some Kennedy Shaw reserve wines are produced as well.

Although labeled as Merlot, the back label proclaims that the Merlot is blended with 12% Petit Verdot and 8% Malbec - rather an interesting blend to enhance the Merlot in my opinion. They might all be traditional Bordeaux grapes, but such a large percentage of Petit Verdot isn't all that common.

Big on fruit but it's not about to become a "must-buy" every time we cross in the States. Up here, Costco can't sell wine or beer. So, I'm not familiar with the range of wines that are commonly found in Costco but this one was pretty pedestrian. Oh well.

Sort of an American Thanksgiving

Despite living our lives awash in American media, one of the things we get used to in Canada is that we celebrate Thanksgiving a month earlier than folks do in the US. Accordingly, it didn't feel like anything out of the ordinary for us to have a Thanksgiving dinner a week before everyone else in the States would be loading up on turkey. There was no way that Boo wanted to experience the airport chaos that is American Thanksgiving; so, our little, mini-family reunion was timed so that we'd be able to make our way back across the 49th Parallel just in time to beat the rush - although it also meant we'd miss Black Friday, but that's another story.

Cuzzin' K and Coke came over from Raleigh and Boo's younger brother, Dan-o, was able to make it up from Florida so that we could all share dinner with Mom Mary.

Mom Mary's move back to and transition to the States hasn't been the easiest of journeys and Boo was apprehensive of how everything would transpire as the whole gang gathered. Seems like he needn't have overly worried. Family, food and wine can help immensely.

If there was one problem encountered though, it was that Boo discovered that our iPad is the perfect vehicle for Angry Birds. Talk about distractions.

987. N.V. Conte Priola Rosso (Medium Sweet) (Italy)

This was a bottle that HDR3, the default ale-drinker, had picked up. I have to admit that the "Medium Sweet Red Wine" that was most notable on the label had me wondering a bit; being a non-vintage wine didn't help ease my concern either. There wasn't much else on the label and I can't find any mention of a winery online, but the label does refer to L.P. Fossalta di Piave which is a small town north of Venice. I'd expected some sugary pop-like drink reminiscent of the Rich Red's and Ruby Red's of yore. It wasn't half as sweet as I'd expected and we didn't have to secretly serve it to the unwitting. I'll likely remain wary of such labels down the road, but I suppose it shows you can't judge a wine solely by the label.

988. 2010 S. Andrea in Colle Il Rosso (IGT Rosso Tuscany - Italy)

Again, this isn't an easy wine to find information about online. There's a bit more on the label this time around though and it is both a vintage and a classified (IGT) wine. Again, the most telling information on the label was that the name S. Andrea in Colle seems to refer to another small town and area outside of Florence. I suspect the wine is produced by a collective of growers in the region. Unlike the last wine, at least this label confirmed that the wine is made of Sangiovese - which would make sense for Tuscany.

One additional note on the label is that the wine is an "Alfio Moriconi Selection." I might not have been able to find anything about the winery, but Mr. Moriconi is a consulting buyer of European wines for the Total Wine chain. Accordingly, the bottle might be one made specifically for sale by Total Wine in the US.

Again, the wine was more than suitable for our purposes. I think the wine was meant to be approachable as an introductory wine for the newer consumer that is willing to try varietals that aren't as well-known as Cabernet or Merlot. Boo and Mom Mary had both had a bit - and they're still smiling - so it couldn't have been that bad.

Turkey and all the trimmings turned to pumpkin pie and cherry cobbler and that brought even more smiles to all those gathered.

989. 2009 Radius Merlot (Washington State)

Who'd have thunk it, but I couldn't easily find out anything about this wine either. Being from Washington State, I figured there'd be a winery website - but not one that I could find and the Washington wine industry has some pretty extensive websites. That likely means that this is a consumer brand wine - much like the two Italians.

Good thing I wasn't expected to know anything about the wines at dinner. Folks were definitely more concerned with everyone else's news and with how Mom Mary's move was working out. Those conversations carried on for some time; so, naturally, we needed to pull out another bottle of wine.

990. 2010 Adolph Mueller Piesporter Michelsberg Riesling Spätlese (Prädikatswein - Mosel - Germany)

Surprise, I couldn't find a website for this producer either but, luckily, German wine labels can tell you a fair bit about the wine inside - if you can ever figure out how to read them. "Prädikatswein" is a qualification that the industry uses to identify wines of superior quality. "Piesporter Michelsberg" is the collective of vineyards forming the area from where the grapes were grown in the bigger Mosel region. "Spätlese" is often translated as meaning "late harvest;" so, it's not surprising to find a fair whack of residual sugar in this wine.

That being said, I can't say as I know anything else about the wine or winery. We were drinking it on its own but I think the sweetness might have been a little less prominent if we'd opened it to drink along with dessert. As it was, it was more like a dessert in itself - which isn't necessarily the worst thing that can happen while on vacation.

I must be away from home because it's not too often that I don't know something about any of the wineries or can't find out something about the wine since it's being sold in our market. Not so much today. But then, trying wines that I wouldn't normally see or try or know anything about is a central part of this Odyssey.

And who we're drinking the wine with is another primary tenet of the blog. So, this is a special entry seeing as how far everyone had travelled to get together. If that wasn't reason for giving some thanks, I don't know what is.

The Great Unknown

This will have to be a bit of brief post - and not because I simply don't have anything to say about the dinner or the wine. Rather, for whatever reason, none of the pictures that we took at dinner seem to have survived the transfer from chip to computer. Hence, I don't rightly remember what the wine is that I'm going to add to The List.

Following our respective daytime activities - whether they be trolley picnic or swamp tour - the four of us made our way out to dinner. We had a restaurant in mind - Mr. B's Bistro, a New Orleans tradition - but it was on the other side of the French Quarter and we might have been persuaded to dine elsewhere if the right opportunity presented itself. In the meantime, as we wandered in search of Mr. B's, we took in more of the wild window displays and signs that populate the Quarter. November is pretty tame time of year for The Big Easy, but you'd never guess that by the excitement that screams from the windows.

We did find Mr. B's eventually and, luckily, got in without a reservation. We had no idea how popular or big the restaurant was. The place was hopping when we arrived around 8.30, but we were totally surprised at how quickly it emptied out. By the time we'd finished our dessert, we were one of the last tables - and it wasn't like we over-stayed our welcome. Guess folks just like to finish their meals early so that they can carry on with their partying in the streets.

As mentioned, we only have a couple of pictures from the dinner and none of them are of the wine bottle. We have shots of the wine filled wine glass accompanying Boo's pork belly and we have a shot of the bacon-wrapped shrimp and grits - that had to be one of the culinary delights of the entire trip - but nothing of the bottle itself. I know we took a few pictures because I had to ask our server if he'd leave the bottle on the table so that I could take a better look. Those computer gremlins. What can I say?

983. some Washington State Syrah (Washington State)

I do remember that we ordered a Washington State Syrah because 1) I was surprised that a restaurant, the calibre of Mr. B's, only served American wines and 2) I found it ironic that we'd flown to the opposite corner of the continent to order a Washington wine that was basically made right next to our back door. I took a look at the restaurant website to see if they posted their wine list, but such was not the case. I suppose this wine will forever have to remain a mystery.

I'm still counting it though. I'm not about to let a dinner like this go buy unaccounted for.

The First Semi-Final

It's been a week since I orchestrated a taste-off to coincide with the Women's World Cup. As the matches on the soccer pitch are reaching their final stages, I guess I'd best get on with my little World Cup of White Wine. The final four teams competing in Germany have been determined and, not so surprisingly, the four nations still battling on the field don't exactly match the four fighting it out in our wine glasses.

The semi-finalists in Germany are Japan, Sweden, France and the US. Two of those countries - Japan and Sweden - didn't even make it to my competition as their efforts on the soccer pitch far outstrip their prowess with white wines. The French filles may have pulled off a squeaker of a win in Germany, but they didn't quite measure up as successfully in our little taste taste. That leaves the US as the only country to win both on the field and in the wine glass - and, just as they had to win a second chance tasting in these pages, the American gals barely got past Brazil in overtime on the field. But it's now time that the US steps up to take on New Zealand in my little World Cup.

United States

vs.

New Zealand

Seeing as we're now contesting the semi-finals, I grabbed wines that feature varietals that each of the two countries may well be best known for. I'm not familiar with either of the wineries; so, the tasting was bound to be interesting.

864. 2007 Milbrandt Vineyards - The Estates - Evergreen Chardonnay (Columbia Valley - Washington)

865. 2008 ARA - Composite Sauvignon Blanc (Marlborough - New Zealand)

If memory serves, I think I picked up the Kiwi wine at the 2010 Vancouver Playhouse Wine Festival - where New Zealand was one of the featured regions. I think the wine can be purchased in Vancouver normally though as I've noticed the distinctive label in various stores in the past. As for the Washington wine, I likely picked that up while South of the border as I don't tend to buy many American wines at home.

The ARA Savvy is one of the resulting wines from an adventurous project in the Marlborough region of New Zealand's South island. I'm not going to go into any detail at this time, but I'll mention that this was a region-specific project that was started on acreage many felt could never be used successfully for grape production due to a perennial danger of frost. An interesting report on the winery can be found in Tom Cannavan's article at the Wine-pages site. Suffice it to say that I'm going to be on the look out for another one of their wines to try.

Washington State's Milbrandt Wineyards has some history to its story as well. The family had been farming in Oregon and Washington for decades when they decided to start planting their farmland with grapes in 1997. They've been selling their grapes to dozens of wineries - including some of their Riesling grapes to Chateau Ste. Michelle's for its Eroica (one of my favourite Rieslings) - but decided to open their own winery in 2005. Milbrandt has three label ranges and The Estates is their middle tier, sourcing fruit from only their own vineyards.

Interesting pedigrees for both wineries; however, there was no difficulty in picking a "winner" in this match. For me, the Sauv Blanc was a full head and shoulders above the Chard. Picking a Kiwi Sav Blanc always has a potential of drinking huge, green acids, but this one was far more restrained. I liked it a lot. On the other hand, the Chardy just didn't do it for me as much. Maybe in a different circumstance or against another Chardonnay, but not this time.

I'd say it was a 2-0 win for the Kiwis and they're on to the final. The American gals may have played their way to the final on the soccer pitch, but they didn't quite pull it off here. Now to pick the second finalist.