Tamarack Cellars was founded in 1998 by Ron and Jamie Coleman. The winery is located in an old World War II firehouse – hence the name of the Firehouse Red – in the airport region in Walla Walla, Washington. Tamarack is growing to be one of the larger producers in the Walla Walla AVA, producing over 11,000 cases in the 2005 vintage. The Firehouse Red accounts for over half of the total production.

When I initially wrote about the Tamarack Firehouse Red as September’s Virtual Tasting wine, I referred to it as a “kitchen sink” wine. This is a bit of a disservice to winemaker Ron Coleman’s extraordinary blending skills. Let’s take a look at what’s in the 2006 Firehouse Red:

34% Cabernet Sauvignon (9% Horse Heaven Hills; 8% Rattlesnake Hills; 6% Wahluke Slope; 4% Red Mountain; 4% Columbia Valley; 3% Walla Walla Valley)

30% Syrah (16% Columbia Valley, 5% Horse Heaven Hills, 5% Wahluke Slope, 2% Walla Walla Valley)

21% Merlot (12% Columbia Valley, 6% Walla Walla Valley, 3% Rattlesnake Hills)

8% Cabernet Franc (4% Columbia Valley,2% Walla Walla Valley,2% Horse Heaven Hills,1% Rattlesnake Hills)

3% Sangiovese: Columbia Valley

2% Carmenere: Walla Walla Valley

2% Malbec: Columbia Valley

That is staggering minimum of twenty different vineyard and varietal sources! Now anyone can throw a whole lot of grapes together, but to do it consistently with such excellent results is a tribute to Coleman’s abilities.

Note, the percentages beneath the varietals are the contribution to the wine as a whole, i.e. Cab Franc from Columbia Valley composes 4% of the total wine.

The 2006 Firehouse Red was aged in French, American, and Hungarian oak for 16 months. The Hungarian oak contributes nicely to the spiciness of this wine.

We’ll do it all again next month. If you would like to suggest a wine, please send a comment or drop me an email.