The wines of Sleight of Hand & Va Piano with Trey Busch and Justin Wylie

My local wine shop, Suburban Wines, put together a wonderful event held at Peter Pratt's Inn that included the wines of Sleight of Hand and Va Piano from Walla, Walla Washington. Trey Busch and Justin Wylie attended to show their wares and along with distributor Paul Myers gave us a great amount of insight into the Washington wine scene and its history. I was lucky enough to score a seat next to Trey and I had a real blast talking with him all evening. He's a great guy and a great advocate for Washington wines. I brought along two rare extra bottles from Trey's earlier days of winemaking: 05 Basel Cellars Lewis Reserve D-Vine and 05 SoH D-Vine Champoux Vineyard Cabernet. I think Trey said production on both was less than 2 barrels each. I think he enjoyed the mini trip down memory lane. The food was wonderful as usual as Chef Nick DiBona had a wonderful menu prepared. I scratched out some meager notes, but the tasting solidified my love of Washington Wines even more.

Lamb Kefta & Grilled Pita

• NV Va Piano Vineyards Sauvignon Blanc Bruno's Blend II 88 Points

  USA, Washington, Columbia Valley

  Crisp and clean, hints of nutmeg, cloves, tea leaves, a touch of grass and a nice amount of fresh cut melon on the finish.

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Pan Seared Grouper, Orange Bearnaise

• 2010 Sleight of Hand The Magician Evergreen Vineyard 89 Points

  USA, Washington, Columbia Valley

  Great acidity, notes of chopped peanuts, spices and orange zest. This was a terrific version of a US Gewurtz, never to be confused with Alsace mind you, but very enjoyable.

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• 2010 Sleight of Hand Chardonnay The Enchantress Old Vine 87 Points

  USA, Washington, Columbia Valley, Yakima Valley

  Flint, some mild pear fruit, creme brulee, vanilla, and cantaloupe notes. I'm not a big Chardonnay fan, but this was quite enjoyable and lovely with the Grouper.

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Braised Breast of Hudson Valley Veal, Savory Cauliflower Cake, Black Truffle Reggiano

• 2009 Sleight of Hand The Spellbinder 88 Points

  USA, Washington, Columbia Valley

  Very young and tight, big black fruit notes, hints of saddle leather, cassis, a bit stemmy though. Nice body, a bit high strung right now, needs time to settle.

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• 2009 Va Piano Vineyards Bruno's Blend 89 Points

  USA, Washington, Columbia Valley

  Dark in color, black fruit, plums, smoke, minerals, well balanced, nice body. Very good.

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• 2008 Sleight of Hand The Archimage 91 Points

  USA, Washington, Columbia Valley

  A dead ringer for a young Right Bank Bordeaux both on the nose and palate, really nice wine. Still very young and immature, but showing loads of promise. Notes of concentrated dark fruit, licorice, cigar box, cedar, could be a great wine in time.

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Pan Roasted Moulard Duck Breast, Braised Red Cabbage, Seared Foie Gras, Blackberry Honey Sauce

• 2007 Va Piano Vineyards Syrah Estate Walla Walla Valley 93 Points

  USA, Washington, Columbia Valley, Walla Walla Valley

  1st "wow" wine of the evening, poured black as midnight, loaded with dense plums, blackberry and blueberry fruit, hints of flint and wet stones, leather and the slightest touch of espresso beans. This is a great wine, needs some time still in the cellar.

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• 2009 Sleight of Hand Syrah Levitation 92 Points

  USA, Washington, Columbia Valley

  This was open for business, loads of ripe blueberry, raspberry, cedar and mushrooms. Really delicious wine, great body, well focused.

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• 2010 Sleight of Hand Syrah The Funkadelic 95 Points

  USA, Washington, Columbia Valley, Walla Walla Valley

  Whoa Nellie!! This was a huge but not over-the-top wine, the initial attack was in your face blast of black fruit, roasted game, anise, coffee beans, and then it settled down just a bit mid palate, deep and layered wine with a whole lot going on. This is a great wine that rivals the best Syrah's being produced in Washington.

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Almond Pot De Creme

• 2009 Sleight of Hand The Illusionist 91 Points

  USA, Washington, Columbia Valley

  Deep and dark, richly textured with impressive fruit levels, great grip and a long finish.

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• 2008 Va Piano Vineyards Cabernet Sauvignon Estate 93 Points

  USA, Washington, Columbia Valley, Walla Walla Valley

  This was a dark wine, a wonderful nose, hints of vanilla bean, lush with great depth of red fruits, hints of red raspberry, currant, shoe leather, very young and in need of some long cellaring.

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• 2005 Basel Cellars Syrah D'Vine 91 Points

  USA, Washington, Columbia Valley, Walla Walla Valley

  I brought this to drink with Trey. Dark fruit, hard tannins still, minerals, some oak, mushrooms and black licorice, hints of smoke as well. This could easily live another 10 years.

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• 2005 Sleight of Hand Cabernet Sauvignon D'Vine Champoux Vineyard 92 Points

  USA, Washington, Columbia Valley, Horse Heaven Hills

  I brought this wine to share with Trey. Black fruit, tannic, high toned, this is a big bruiser still. Lots of spice, coffee, liquid smoke, ground black pepper and roasted meat notes. Still has loads of time left.

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