Hello Friends and Wine Lovers!

Once again, it is high time we get around to the Splendiferous, Ubiquitous, and Righteous Newsletter of Extreme . . . uh . . . “Something”. And the Tasting Announcement for Which It Stands. One Nation. Under Vine. And so on. Etc., etc. This week we continue our tour of the ever-changing wine world by taking a quick trip North. (Or a really, really long trip South.) We’re having Wines of Washington! (W.O.W. for those who love anagrams.) The wines hailing from this region make me proud to be a . . .well . . . I guess I’m not a Washingtonian although I was born there. But, hey. We could be there in 15 minutes, if we need to. That gives us just as much access to all the tasty treats Washington wineries have to offer. So let’s dive in!

Washington! Yep. Just to the North. From here. It’s up there. (Those of you on the mailing list currently living in Washington, just look out your window. There it is.) There are few wine regions in the world that are quite as exciting as what’s going on in Washington. Let’s take a brief look back in the History of winemaking in Washington. The first grapes were planted in 1825. You’ll never guess where. Vancouver. Th’ Couve. Go figure. As far as I can tell, those vines didn’t really yield much more than an interest in planting more elsewhere. And that’s what people did. Fast-forward about 82 years, and here we are! What!? You want more History than that? History makes me sleepy. How about some exciting facts instead?

Washington now has 9 AVAs (American Viticultural Areas) which are recognized by the government as unique growing areas. The largest is Columbia Valley, which can be summarized as “Most of Eastern Washington”. The area ranges from the base of the Cascade Mountains, up to the Okanogan Valley in Northern Washington, follows the Snake River to Idaho, and follows the Columbia River even into Oregon. There are several other AVAs within the limits of Columbia Valley, including Yakima, Walla Walla, Red Mountain, Horse Heaven Hills, and the newly-established-and-news-to-me regions of Wahluke Slope and the I-never-even-heard-of-before-but-sounds-dangerous Rattlesnake Hills. What does this all mean to you? Quite possibly nothing. But where a wine comes from can mean as much as what it’s made of. Also, it’s quite interesting to see that as the Washington wines garner more attention, the immense Columbia Valley appellation gets carved up into smaller, bite-sized areas, indicating that specific areas produce wines that are considered unique to those particular areas.

All that considered, all the wines tomorrow are from the Columbia Valley AVA. What!? That’s not a bad thing! Here’s the deal. All the wines we’ve got in here are blends, rather than pure varietal wines. This means the winemaker has more of a hand in how the wine ends up and has more control over the balance of the end result. This also means the grapes are most-often sourced from multiple sites, giving the winemaker greater control over the price, so they tend to be cheaper. This also, also means that although one wine might be made mostly from Walla Walla grapes but has a small amount of grapes grown in Yakima, it is then considered Columbia Valley because it’s not exclusive to any one region. Most of these wineries here are located in Walla Walla, but source their grapes from all over Washington. Are they good? Oh, yes!

So Friday, April 20th, between 4:30 and 9:00 PM it’s:

Washington!!!
Camraderie 2004 Trinquer (Sauvignon Blanc, Viognier, Semillon)
L’Ecole No. 41 2005 Recess Red (Merlot, Cab Sauv, Cab Franc, Syrah, Petit Verdot, Carmenere)
Goose Ridge 2004 Estate Red Wine (Cab Sauv, Merlot, Syrah)
Zerba Cellars 2004 “Wild Z” (Syrah, Merlot, Cab Sauv, Cab Franc, Sangiovese, Grenache)
Reininger 2003 Helix Pomatia (Cab Sauv, Merlot, Syrah, Cab Franc)

Washington, Washington!!
Isenhower 2005 Wild Thyme (Syrah, Cabernet Sauvingon)
Walla Walla Vintners 2004 Washington Cuvee (Merlot, Cab Sauv, Cab Franc, Syrah)

Washington, Washington, Washington! (Still For Cystic Fibrosis)!!!
Zerba Cellars 2005 Syrah Ice Wine

A stellar deal at $10 for the First 5, $6 for the Extra 2 Premium Pours, and $5 for the Charity Pour.
Hope to see you here!

Seize the Wine!

Next Friday tasting is Wines of the French Rhone!

M