Northwest Wine Quest Blog

Wine Club Picks for May 2011 – Coeur de Terre Vineyard – McMinnville AVA

admin — Wed, 18 May 2011 03:06:08 +0000

Scott and Lisa moved to this location in 1998 after scouting potential vineyards over a Memorial Day weekend. Once settled, their first task was to plant a 3 acre block of Pinot which is known as “Renelle’s Block – otherwise known as “mother block, “ named after and dedicated to Scott’s mother, Renelle. Eventually they planted another 13 acres of Pinot, blocks named after Lisa’s great-grandmother, Sarah, and their two daughters, Abby and Tallulah.

posted in AVA Trip
©2012 Northwest Wine Quest Blog. All Rights Reserved.

“Petrol” Not Only for the Pumps

admin — Wed, 18 May 2011 02:50:15 +0000

This month we are featuring a Riesling that we found very unique and intriguing. Most of the Rieslings that we have featured in the past have been young, sweet or dry. All have been quite enjoyable and well received by our club members. This time however, you will notice a distinct difference in our selection. [...]

posted in General Wine Discussion
©2012 Northwest Wine Quest Blog. All Rights Reserved.

Wine Club Picks for April 2011 – Agate Field Vineyards & Paradisos Del Sol

admin — Wed, 18 May 2011 02:43:58 +0000

Paradisos del Sol located in Zillah, WA, opened its doors in 2000 and owner and winemaker, Paul Vandenberg, never looked back. Paul named it Paradisos because when he walks through the vineyard he feels like he is in paradise. Paul has been making wine since 1983 and he views himself as a winegrower not a winemaker. He also feels that he still has more to learn and sometimes he is amazed at the way his wines turn out. For example, . . .

posted in AVA Trip
©2012 Northwest Wine Quest Blog. All Rights Reserved.

Scoring Wine

admin — Tue, 10 May 2011 02:24:58 +0000

Wine critics have experienced palates and they can often detect subtle nuances in wine that the average wine drinker would not. When they critique a bottle of wine and assign a score, they are looking at the following:

posted in General Wine Discussion
©2012 Northwest Wine Quest Blog. All Rights Reserved.

Wine Club Picks for March 2011 – Bella Terrazza Vineyards & Ryan Patrick Vineyards

admin — Tue, 10 May 2011 02:17:07 +0000

We ended the month of February in a big way this year. We had a wonderful tasting party at our home on the 26th , and we ended our evening by having dinner at our favorite wine bar , Northwest Vintage, in downtown Puyallup. A big hearty thank you to all 30 you who attended [...]

posted in General Wine Discussion
©2012 Northwest Wine Quest Blog. All Rights Reserved.

Classic Food and Wine Combinations

admin — Thu, 31 Mar 2011 02:00:56 +0000

Food universally has changed over time. It is common now to mix, match and borrow techniques and flavors and spices from any number of cuisines. Today we have new foods and some new ways with wine. Believe it or not, an oaky chardonnay can sometimes pair beautifully with a steak just as nicely as a red wine.

posted in General Wine Discussion
©2012 Northwest Wine Quest Blog. All Rights Reserved.

Wine Club Picks for February 2011 – Viento – Columbia Gorge and Columbia Valley AVA’s

admin — Thu, 31 Mar 2011 01:14:18 +0000

We experienced Viento wines for the first time in the summer of 2010. The tasting room was quite small and it was located at The Gorge White Houses Annex off Highway 35 in Hood River. The Gorge White House is a historic home on a century old working farm. The fields were in bloom and people were gathering flower bouquets and purchasing seasonal fruit.

Gruner Veltliner “The Groovy Grape”

admin — Sat, 26 Feb 2011 22:35:17 +0000

Its nickname is GruVe (groovy). It is the most widely planted white grape variety in Austria. It makes up about 1/3 of all the vineyard land in the entire country, albeit a country the size of Maine. Most wine producers in Austria make more Gruner than Riesling because it is easier to grow and it is the source of some top Austrian wines.

RED WINE & CHOCOLATE & TUMBLEWEEDS?

admin — Thu, 24 Feb 2011 00:01:11 +0000

One of my favorite holidays each winter is Valentine’s Day. I’m a romantic at heart and I love nothing more than sharing a bottle of wine and some fine chocolate with my husband. It has been two years since our wine jaunt has taken us to the Yakima area to celebrate their first event of the season, “Red Wine and Chocolate.” This event always begins in early February and takes place over two weekends.

Wine Club Picks for January 2011 – The Pines 1852 – Columbia Gorge and Columbia Valley AVA’s

admin — Tue, 22 Feb 2011 04:45:43 +0000

The Pines 1852 was open for business in 2001 and is owned and operated by Lonnie Wright. According to Gretchen, the tasting room extraordinaire, Lonnie is considered a “grape guru,” in the Columbia Gorge area. Nobody knows the Columbia Gorge AVA better.