Bronze Medal Winner

2007 Lewis Vineyard Riesling  / Yakima Valley

Appellation: Yakima Valley
Bottle date:  3/2/08
Release date:  4/1/08
Alcohol:  12.8%
Residual sugar:  2.7 %
Varietals: 100% Riesling
Vineyard:   Lewis Vineyard
Fermentation notes:  Fermented in stainless steel tank at cool temps.
Total production:  213 cases
Retail price:   $16.00/ per 750 ml

This is our second release from this well-respected vineyard that yields so much of the state’s best fruit. What’s different this year?  The very warm growing season gifted us with some lovely aromas of peaches & cream and lychee nut. This vintage has a bigger mouthfeel than our acclaimed 2006 Riesling while still delivering refreshing acidity. Finished in an off-dry style.  (T.B.)

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2007 Walla Walla Bound / Columbia Valley

Appellation:  Columbia Valley
Bottle date:  3/2/08
Release date:  Summer 2008
Alcohol:  12.9%
Residual sugar:  1%
Varietals: 60% Riesling, 40% Charnonnay
Vineyards:  60% Riesling Lewis Vineyard (Yakima Valley), 40% Charnonnay Birch Creek Vineyard (Walla Walla Valley)
Fermentation notes: Fermented in stainless steel. Partial wild yeast fermentation.
Total production:  25
Retail price:   $16.00/ per 750 ml

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2007 The White House / Columbia Valley

Appellation:  Columbia Valley
Bottle date:  3/2/08
Release date:  Summer 2008
Alcohol:  12.9%
Residual sugar:  1%
Varietals:  60% Riesling, 40% Chardonnay
Vineyards:   60% Riesling, Lewis Vineyard (Yakima Valley) 40% Chardonnay, Birch Creek Vineyard (Walla Walla Valley)
Fermentation notes:  Fermented Stainless Steel.  Partial wild yeast fermentation.
Total production:  61 cases
Retail price:   $14.00/ per 750 ml

A blend of gapes from two fine Eastern Washington vineyards.  Our white table wine is made for summer enjoyment. Aromas of pale straw, lime and slate matched with a bright acidity. This wine has an ever-so-slight presence of residual sugar to balance the prominent acids and food-friendly dry finish.  (T.B.)

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2007 Birch Creek Vineyard Chardonnay / Walla Walla Valley

Appellation:  Walla Walla Valley
Bottle date:  3/2/08
Release date:  Summer 2008
Alcohol:  13.7%
Varietals:  100% Chardonnay
Vineyards:   100% Birch Creek Vineyard
Fermentation notes:  Stainless Steel and Inhibited malo-lactic fermentation.    Partial wild yeast fermentation. 
Total production:  25 cases
Retail price:   $20.00/ per 750 ml

This is a special release from beautiful fruit grown on the Oregon side of the Walla Walla Valley AVA.   We wanted to see what this grape would be like without secondary fermentation and oak aging.  The wine was made in two 60 gallon stainless barrels with a partial lot reserved for wild yeast fermentation. Happily, this unoaked wine gave us juicy, floral, coconut, and straw aromas.   Its finish is all citrus and lemon, very dry with prominent acids.  It’s bright and fresh… something different!  (D.S.)

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2007 Trés Rosé / Columbia Valley

Appellation:  Columbia Valley
Bottle date:  3/2/08
Release date:  4/1/08
Alcohol:  13.5%
Residual sugar:  2%
Varietals: 50% Sangiovese, 50% Mourvèdre
Vineyards:  50% Boushey Vineyard (Yakima Valley), 50% Den Hoed (Yakima Valley)
Fermentation notes: Made in the Saignée method. Co-fermented in stainless steel.
Total production:  112
Retail price:   $16.00/ per 750 ml

This is our second release of Trés Rosé.  We continue to make this wine in the Saignée method; free run from our Boushey Vineyard Sangiovese and Den Hoed Mourvèdre production is reserved for this lot.  The juice is co-fermented in stainless steel and primary fermentation stopped at about 2% residual sugar.   Notes of strawberry, cherry pie, rhubarb are very prominent and flavors give way to red apple peel and pomegranate.  We discovered a long-evolving, sweet finish with a kiss of cinnamon and cherry pie.   And the color is so cool I want to wear it! This wine is perfect for hot summers in the cool shade.  Drink with appetizers, through dinner and with dessert too!    (D.S.)

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2006 Sangiovese / Walla Walla County

Appellation:  Walla Walla County
Bottle date:  11/18/07
Release date:  4/1/08
Alcohol:  14.2%
Varietals:  93% Sangiovese,  7% Syrah
Vineyards:   Sangiovese - 40% Morrison  (Walla Walla Valley), 31% Sundance (Walla Walla Valley), 22% Tasawik (Columbia Valley).  Syrah - 7% Rizutti (Walla Walla Valley)
Cooperage:  Aged in a mixture of seasoned and neutral French and American barrels. Total production:  168 cases
Retail price:   $20.00 bottle

The three of us are big believers in Washington State Sangiovese and we were thrilled to find three great vineyards for our 2006 Sangiovese right here in Walla Walla County! 

Morrison Vineyard has some of the nicest and most complex Sangiovese in the state and this wonderfully aromatic fruit forms the backbone of our blend.  Walla Walla is home to many small vineyards (under 2 acres) and Sundance of Walla Walla, an acre site off Kendall Road, is one of the most promising.  This beautiful spot gave us very small berries, which contribute dark color and prominent acid to the blend. The trio of vineyards is completed by Tasawik, a newer site on a bench above the Snake River with a perfect southwest exposure.  The chewy tannins and structure in the wine come from this site farmed by the Dahle/Broetje family.

This varietal can easily be overwhelmed with a lot of oak be we couldn’t resist putting a portion of the lot on a new 500 litre French oak puncheon.  We blended some Syrah to add a touch more spice and dark fruit character. 

We enjoy the way this wine opens up over time displaying leather and more dried cherries along with firm tannins and food-friendly acidity.  The finish is surprisingly nutty with a pinch of tobacco. A well structured wine for many occasions.  (S.M.)

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2006 Sangiovese Riserva / Walla Walla Valley

Appellation:  Walla Walla Valley
Bottle date:  11/22/08
Release date:  4/1/09
Alcohol:  14.1%
100% Single-Vineyard Sangiovese
Morrison Lane Vineyard
Cooperage:  Aged in seasoned French oak.
Total production: 21 cases
Retail price:   $26.00 bottle

In Tuscany winemakers often hold back some of their best wine in barrel to make what they call a 'Riserva'.  We were so impressed with one barrel of our 2006 Morrison Lane Sangiovese that we decided to save it from blend and give it more time.  It's been a long wait for this wine. two years in the barrel and six months in the bottle, but we think it was worth the wait!  Deepened aromas and intensified flavors are very evident from fruit that comes from one of the best sources for Sangiovese in Walla Walla.   - S.M.

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2006 Riesling  / Lewis Vineyards / Yakima Valley
100% Riesling
Single vineyard
200 cases produced
Released March 2007
Off-dry. Fermentation stopped at 1° brix
12.6 % alcohol
$12.00 per 750 ml

Winemakers Notes:
Single vineyard Riesling is a rare bird. Most winemakers like to blend from different sites in order to find the right balance. The Lewis Vineyard in Yakima valley offered us everything we needed right in one spot. The bright acid attacks your tongue before the apple and apricots and peach flavors come in to soothe the palate. The finish has a pinch of sweetness and it all makes for a refreshing, delicious glass of wine. Would it be too clichéd to say ‘summer sipper’? Buy it by the case. (S.M.)

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2006 Trés Rosé  / Columbia Valley
50% Mourvèdre / 50 % Sangiovese
Made in the Saignée method
50 cases produced
Released April 2007
Off-dry. Fermentation stopped at 1° brix
14.1% alcohol
$14.00 per 750 ml

Winemakers Notes:
We fully intended on making two separate dry Rosés this year but an experiment of blending convinced us to combine the two wines together and the resulting wine is Trés Rosé! Produced in the saignée method from 50% Sangiovese free run and 50 % Mourvèdre free run, this wine features an almost Pinot Noir-ish color, citrus and herbal aromas and a medium-bodied mouth-feel with a dash of refreshing residual sugar. A friend described this wine as “rhubarb pie straight out of the oven.”  Trés Bien!  (S.M.)

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2006 Zinfandel / Columbia Valley

Appellation:  Columbia Valley
Bottle date:  3/2/08
Release date:  4/1/08
Alcohol:  16.2%
Varietals:  76% Zinfandel, 16% Mourvèdre, 7% Sangiovese, 1% Syrah
Vineyards:   Zinfandel  -  76% Milbrandt, Pheasant Vineyard (Wahluke Slope)
Mourvèdre  -  16% den Hoed (Yakima Valley).  Sangiovese  -  3% Morrison Lane,  2% Tasawik (Columbia Valley) , 2% Sundance (Walla Walla Valley).  Syrah  -  1% Rizutti (Walla Walla Valley)
Cooperage:  Aged in a mixture of new, seasoned and neutral French and American and Hungarian barrels.
Total production:  80 cases
Retail price:   $26.00/ per 750 ml

We’re all fans of California Zinfandel and feel that conditions exist for this to be a great Washington State varietal.   The hot, dry Wahluke Slope is a natural home for this fruit and we found the Pheasant block at Milbrandt Vineyards to be an excellent site. 

The aromas are unmistakable and, on first swirl we cried out in unison, “Caramelized Walla Walla Sweet Onions and Klicker blueberries served on a plank of old-growth Western Red Cedar”!   Flavors of sour cherry and dried herbs are equally hard to miss.  There is an undercurrent of a wintergreen and clove on the finish. With the addition of Mourvèdre,  Sangiovese and Syrah we don’t think anyone will mistake it for a Sonoma Zinfandel but we think we are working with some pretty special fruit here.  (S.M.)

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2006 Semi-Sweet Dessert Zinfandel / Wahluke Slope

Appellation: Wahluke Slope
Bottling date: 3/9/08
Release date: 4/1/08
Alcohol:  16.5%
Residual sugar:
Varietal: 100% Zinfandel
Vineyards: 100% Milbrandt, Pheasant Vineyard (Wahluke Slope)
Cooperage:  Aged in a mixture of new and seasoned American and Hungarian barrels.
Total production:  24 cases
Retail price:   $28.00/ per 750 ml

Part of our Wahluke Slope Zinfandel came in extra ripe and we kept that portion separate to create this special port-style wine.   Aromas of ripe blueberries, warm strawberry jam, cedar and cloves are followed by mouth-filling and smooth flavors of blueberry cobbler, sweet black cherries and a bit of oak.  This semi-sweet, non-fortified wine has just enough remaining sugar to pair perfectly with barbeque or a special dessert.  (T.B.)

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2005 Sangiovese / Wahluke Slope
83% Sangiovese / 17% Barbera
Milbrandt Vineyard and Tasawik Vineyards
150 cases produced
Released April 2007
14.1% alcohol
$18.00 per 750 ml

Winemakers Notes:
One of our favorite table wines is Sangiovese, the main grape in the Chianti blend. Why? Every good dinner should have a robust, unpretentious wine as an accompaniment. Our Sangiovese comes from the well-drained soils of Wahluke Slope optimizing the growing conditions of this vigorous variety. Dark cherry fruit flavors and attractive cedar and vanilla aromas are backed up by an acidity that cleanses the palate between bites. Put a bottle on your table. (D.S.)

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2005 Syrah / Columbia Valley

Appellation:  Columbia Valley
Bottle date:  11/18/07
Release date:  4/1/08
Alcohol:  14.6%
Varietals:  92% Syrah, 7% Merlot and 1% Sangiovese
Vineyards: 
Syrah: 53% Boushey (Yakima Valley), 13% Les Collines (Walla Walla Valley), 13% Milbrandt (Wahluke Slope), 13% Tasawik (Columbia Valley)
Merlot: 7% Tasawik (Columbia Valley)
Sangiovese:  1% from Tasawik (Columbia Valley)
Cooperage:  Aged in a mixture of seasoned and neutral French and American barrels.
Total production:  186 cases
Suggested retail price:   $26.00/ per 750 ml

While maintaining the core of the 2004 Boushey Vineyards Syrah for our 2005 release, we blended in small amounts of other favorite vineyards from around the state to create this beautiful Columbia Valley Syrah.  The same lovely aromas of smoke and blackberry greet you but the difference is in the palate.  Layers of dark fruit, licorice, and cracked-pepper bacon all wrapped in silky tannins are just the beginning of this complex wine.  (S.M.)

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2004 Boushey Vineyard Syrah / Yakima Valley
100% Syrah
Single vineyard
170 cases produced
Released April 2007
14.5 % alcohol
$24.00 per 750 ml

Winemakers Notes:
Should you smell this wine or taste it? Both offer sensory rewards. Washington State is a Syrah lovers’ paradise and this wine is bliss. Farmed high above the Yakima Valley floor by Dick Boushey, the Boushey Vineyard features some of the oldest Syrah vines in the state. It’s a cool site that brings out the best in the grape. When you get fruit this good you just get out of the way. (T.B.)

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