Great NW Wine: Red Rhone blends, great Chardonnays, top stories of 2013

Published: Tue, 01/07/14

Wine of the Week

Mackey Vineyards 2009 Concordia, Columbia Valley

California escapees Roger and Philip Mackey came to the Walla Walla Valley in 2007, bought a small farm and began growing grapes.

This wine was crafted by Billo Naravane of Rasa Vineyards. It is a gorgeous blend of Syrah, Grenache and Mourvèdre, using grapes from Les Collines, Bacchus and Minick vineyards.

It opens with luscious aromas of blackberry jam, black licorice, vanilla bean and a dusting of cocoa powder. On the palate, this is a powerful yet harmonious wine with flavors of ripe blueberry, black cherry, pomegranate and chocolate. It's a big wine that really delivers the fruit, tannin, oak and acidity together.

This earned our top "Outstanding!" rating in a blind tasting.

Price: $38

Production: 370 cases

Alcohol: 14.9%

Website

Value wine of the Week

Duck Pond Cellars 2012 Pinot Gris, Willamette Valley

Mark Chargin makes wine in two states for the Fries family, and this Oregon Pinot Gris is focused on their estate holdings near Salem with the bulk of it coming off St. Jory Vineyard. The nose is filled with fruity aromas, starting with Bartlett pear and fresh pineapple, then lemon and lime. Fruit dominates the round and delicious flavors, featuring a pleasant entry of Granny Smith apple, sweet lime and enjoyable grassiness. There's a touch of minerality in the finish.

Price: $12

Production: 8,000 cases

Alcohol: 14.1%

Website

Barnard Griffin Wine Bar and Eatery presents jazz singer Miki Harvey

Seattle-based jazz singer Miki Harvey visits Barnard Griffin Wine Bar & Eatery on Saturday night for a 3-hour show. The energized décor makes for a great room to enjoy tasty food, beer, world-class wine & top-notch live music. The focus is on fresh, light and contemporary cuisine with a Mediterranean accent.

The Wine Bar & Eatery is within the Barnard Griffin Winery on Tulip Lane in Richland, Wash. Live music is featured most Saturdays. There is no cover charge, and the fun starts at 7 p.m.

The friendly staff invites you to sit back, relax and enjoy the music while you delight in a glass of Barnard Griffin wine or a local beer with delicious food.

Click here to read more.

Events calendar

Check out our events calendar, which shows what is happening in Washington, Oregon, British Columbia and Idaho wine countries.

Have an event? Please add it.

Go to events calendar

Southern Rhône-style reds

are hot Washington blends

In the past half-decade, more and more Washington winemakers are experimenting with red blends made in the Southern Rhône style. That is, they use such grapes as Syrah, Grenache, Mourvèdre, Cinsault, Counoise and even Petite Sirah.

They are often generically referred to as "GSM" blends for "Grenache-Syrah-Mourvèdre" - even if a wine isn't made with those exact varieties or in that order of grapes.

We have come to love these styles of wines, and it is great to have an alternative to Bordeaux-style red blends, which have dominated the category in Washington for the past 20 years.

The wines tend to be beautifully fruit-driven and pair well with such dishes as:

Rack of lamb.
Pork chops.
Bean stews.
Meatloaf.
Roast duck.

Recapping our top 100 wines

Last week, we unveiled our top 100 wines of 2013. The wines were released 20 per day for five days, then the top wine of the year was featured last week.

Here is the complete list of the top 100 wines, along with a link to each of the reviews.

We will now busily get to work on the 2014 list.

Chardonnays to start 2014

Chardonnay is the No. 1 grape in Washington - and the entire United States.

We have put together a list of 10 delicious Chardonnays we've tasted in the past couple of months.

Big stories in NW wine country

It was a big year in the world of wine throughout the Pacific Northwest.

As part of our look back at 2013, we put together our list of the top 20 stories.

Here are stories 20-11.

Here are stories 10-1.

Walla Walla winery relocates

to Olympic Peninsula town

Lullaby, a small winery owned by Virginie Bourgue, has relocated from Walla Walla to Port Townsend.

Bourgue, a French winemaker who came to Washington in 2002, self-distributes her 700 cases of production each year and wanted to be closer to Seattle but still in a rural area. She selected one of Washington's oldest cities

Bourgue has made wine for Bergevin Lane, Cadaretta and Olympic Cellars wineries in addition to Lullaby.

Seattle Wine & Food Experience

enters sixth year with big event

Jamie Peha, a staple of the Seattle wine scene for the past 20 years, continues to take the Seattle Wine & Food Experience to new heights.

The event, in February, sells more than 2,000 tickets each year and attracts wine lovers, wineries, restaurants and more.

Peha worked for the Washington State Wine Commission and was in charge of making Taste Washington a stand-alone event in 1998.

New wine reviews posted

We have posted several new reviews, including:

Milbrandt Vineyards 2010 Clifton Vineyards Mourvèdre, Wahluke Slope
Northwest Cellars 2011 Madrigal, Columbia Valley
Canoe Ridge Vineyard 2012 The Expedition Cabernet Sauvignon, Horse Heaven Hills
Smasne Cellars 2011 The Farmer White Wine, Snipes Mountain
Marchesi Vineyards 2012 Emma Sangiovese, Columbia Valley
Vino la Monarcha 2011 Pinot Noir Rosé, Ancient Lakes of Columbia Valley
Milbrandt Brothers 2011 Brothers' Blend, Columbia Valley
Smasne Cellars 2010 Konner Ray Red, Columbia Valley
Mackey Vineyards 2009 Merlot, Columbia Valley
Duck Pond Cellars 2012 Pinot Gris, Willamette Valley
Eleven Winery 2012 La Primavera, Washington
Canoe Ridge Vineyard 2012 The Expedition Chardonnay, Horse Heaven Hills

Read the reviews