Sean P. Sullivan's Northwest Wine Report

Harvest has begun in Washington, with Chelan's Karma Vineyards bringing in five tons of Wente clone Chardonnay from French Creek Vineyard in the Yakima Valley. The fruit, which came in on August 15th, will be used for sparkling wine. Landon Sam Keirsey, cellar master at Karma, said that the winery brought in this same fruit on August 17th last year. Sugar was measured on August 12th at 16 to 18 Brix and will be measured again tomorrow at the winery.

Let harvest begin!

Pictures courtesy of Damon LaLonde (left picture) and Landon Sam Kiersey. 

Resident photographer Richard Duval captured veraison at Hightower Vineyard on Red Mountain earlier this month. “If bud break is the starting gun of the race to harvest, then surely veraison – the change of grape color that signifies ripening – is the beginning of the bell lap towards full fruit,” he noted. “Harvest is coming and that means your favorite wineries will gear up soon for grapes arriving on the crush pad - the colorful, chaotic finale of the wine season.” Stay tuned.

Click on the picture to see a larger image.

A round-up of stories on Northwest wine from August 1^st to 7^th. Read previous round-ups here.

From around the country…

Greenville News writes about Columbia Winery.


From the blogosphere…

Great Northwest Wine writes about Red Mountain. They also write about Chateau Ste Michelle focusing on aged Riesling, a wild fire barely missing DavenLore Winery, and DANCIN Vineyards.

Washington Wine Blog writes about Alexandria Nicole.

The following are some of the standout wines from recent tastings.

Adams Bench Cabernet Sauvignon Stillwater Creek Vineyard Columbia Valley 2013 $70
Adams Bench has made a name for itself on the strength of its Cabernet and this is an impressive addition to the lineup, full of rich black fruit flavors and firm, chewy tannins.

Angel Vine Zinfandel Alder Ridge Vineyard Columbia Valley 2012 $24
Angel Vine focuses largely on Zinfandel and Primitivo and crafts some of the most compelling versions of these varieties the state has to offer. Raspberry and cranberry aromas lead to tart, broad fruit flavors that show a fine sense of balance.

Below are my Wine Enthusiast reviews for September 2016. Wines are listed alphabetically by winery. Read additional information on how I review wines here. All of these reviews are freely available on-line at the Wine Enthusiast Buying Guide. There is also a freely available Wine Enthusiast Tasting Guide app. See previous Wine Enthusiast reviews re-published in this space here. Search Wine Enthusiast's on-line database here.

283 wines reviewed in the September issue of Wine Enthusiast. EFESTE leads the way with a strong set of red, white, and rosé releases. A few particular standouts are the Boushey and Red Willow Syrahs (EFESTE 2013 Jolie Bouche Boushey Vineyard Syrah Yakima Valley $44, 92 points; EFESTE 2013 Eleni Red Willow Vineyard Syrah Yakima Valley $54, 92 points); a standout second vintage of the Oldfield Rosé (EFESTE 2015 Oldfield Estate Rosé Yakima Valley $22, 92 points; and finally a stellar oyster wine in the Feral Sauvignon Blanc (EFESTE 2015 Feral Evergreen Vineyard Sauvignon Blanc Ancient Lakes $20, 91 points).

The following is an excerpt from the September 2016 Wine Enthusiast Buying Guide.

Washington State is generally known for the consistent quality and style of its wines, largely thanks to warm summers and irrigation. Recent vintages, however, have resulted in wines that show dramatic stylistic differences.