Day 1 in Woodinville

Got into Seattle around 10:30am on Thursday morning and was up in Woodinville by 11:30. Parked to have lunch at the Purple Cafe and then just walked around the parking lot to 4 vintners tastings rooms. Met some great people and tasted a number of great wines.

This was by far the most exposure I've had to DeLille. I found their Chaleur Blanc and Syrah Doyenne to be fantastic wines. Great staff in the tasting room that were incredibly helpful with questions abotu DeLille and the surrounding area. Highly recommend a visit.

• 2009 DeLille Cellars Chaleur Estate Blanc 91 Points

  USA, Washington, Columbia Valley

  Holy cow! What a nose! Exotic tones of figs, apricots, white flowers and minerals create a very enjoyable perfume. The palate was a touch less exciting, but had nice acidity, lots of flint, white flowers and tropical fruits. I hadn't been aware that Bordeaux Blanc varietals excelled like this in Columbia Valley. This would be a fun wine to do a long vertical of.

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• 2008 DeLille Cellars Doyenne Aix 86 Points

  USA, Washington, Columbia Valley, Red Mountain

  Nose features dense, blueberry, blackberry liqueur and oak. Palate had some herbs, a bit of underbrush, some meatiness and cassis. Felt the finish was a bit disjointed as underlying heat bubbled to the surface through the dense dark fruit.

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• 2008 DeLille Cellars Syrah Doyenne Signature 92 Points

  USA, Washington, Columbia Valley, Yakima Valley

  This was my favorite wine that was being poured at DeLille. The nose was very characteristic of a young Cote-Rotie. with bacon drippings, roasted herbs, lots of black pepper and violets. The body of the wine was not as massive as their Grand Ciel Syrah, but offered far more balance, structure and elegance. It had a really nice tart cherry and smokey mineral compoent on the palate that I thoroughly enjoyed. One of my favorite Washington syrahs!

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• 2008 DeLille Cellars D2 81 Points

  USA, Washington, Columbia Valley

  DeLille's D2 was a bit of mess to me. The nose exhibited warm spices, blueberry pie, blackberry liqueur and lots of oak. The palate was unrestrained, unbalanced and overly alcoholic. Lots of chocolate, mocha, dense oak, smokey charcoal and raspberry notes create a disjointed and flabby wine. Finish had a good amount of alcohol too. Not for me.

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• 2006 DeLille Cellars Syrah Doyenne Grand Ciel Vineyard 82 Points

  USA, Washington, Columbia Valley, Red Mountain

  Very dark nose filled with jammy blueberries, blackberries, warm spices and roasted herbs. The palate is very dense and heavy exhibiting far less elegance and balance than their 2008 Doyenne Syrah I tasted alongside. The winery describes the palate of this wine as being "mind-bendingly jam-packed with blackberry liqueur..." and I would happen to agree. Sadly, I didn't think these flavors were balanced. The finish had a bunch of heat too. Not my style of wine.

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• 2008 DeLille Cellars Harrison Hill 89 Points

  USA, Washington, Columbia Valley, Yakima Valley Snipes Mountain

  65% cabernet, 25% merlot, 9% cab franc, and 1% petit verdot. Nose has a good bit of toasted oak, black cherries, and raspberries. Palate had subtle tobacco that I enjoyed with a good bit of roasted herbs. This wine will need some time to shed its baby fat, but there's a very nice wine lying underneath its primary flavors.

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• 2006 DeLille Cellars Cabernet Sauvignon Grand Ciel 89 Points

  USA, Washington, Columbia Valley, Red Mountain

  Intense nose of blackberries, blueberries, cedar and chocolate. The palate was incredibly dense and packed with a melange of dark berries, milk chocolate, toast, and charcoal. The finish had a touch of heat with some spicy red fruit and intense, drying tannins. I remember thinking to myself how young this wine was tasting...will need significant time for the tannin and fruit to integrate.

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At the recommendation of Dave Butner, I walked next door from DeLille to their tasting room. I had never heard of Brian Carter before, and found his Tuttorosso and Byzance to be outstanding. Ken in the tasting room took very good care of me too!

• 2009 Brian Carter Cellars Oriana 85 Points

  USA, Washington, Columbia Valley, Yakima Valley

  An interesting blend of 55% viognier, 29% roussanne, and 16% riesling. The nose had the exotic tones of the rhone varietals, and touch of sweetness from the riesling. It had nice floral and tropical fruit notes on the nose. Palate was a bit light with florals, tropical fruits and subtle pear and apple. The wine had nice acidity and a decent finish. Overall, I thought this was a bit bizarre...the riesling flavors came across as a bit sweet, while the rhone varietals kept to their less-sweet profiles...just a strange combination.

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• 2007 Brian Carter Cellars Tuttorosso 90 Points

  USA, Washington, Columbia Valley, Yakima Valley

  Nose had rich red fruit, charcoal and a brown sugar component. Palate had lush red and black fruit but great acidity and minerality that kept the balance of the wine on point. I'm not usually a fan of opulent, rich wines - but an exception is made here. Brian was able to make a really beautiful wine.

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• 2007 Brian Carter Cellars Byzance 90 Points

  USA, Washington, Columbia Valley

  Very interesing nose of roasted bay leaf, black pepper, black cherry and some cloves. The palate was mid-weight, which I enjoyed very much! It had a nice combination of spice and dark fruits, with some crushed rocks, and sweet pipe tobacco. While this is promoted as styled after Chateauneuf-de-Pape, I was happy to see the wine have a restraint and elegance that is sometimes lacking in CdP.

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• 2008 Brian Carter Cellars Corrida 84 Points

  USA, Washington, Columbia Valley

  Thought the oak and warm black and blue fruit really dominated this wine...from the perfume to the finish. The flavors were VERY rich and the acidity wasn't incredibly noticeable. Thought this was a bit clunky...could use some time to mellow out.

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• 2007 Brian Carter Cellars Le Coursier

  USA, Washington, Columbia Valley

  Incredibly bright nose of ripe raspberries, dense chocolate, and sweet cherry. The merlot sweetness really took over in this wine and it was a bit too sweet for me.

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• 2010 Brian Carter Cellars Abracadabra Rosé 89 Points

  USA, Washington, Columbia Valley

  Lots of strawberry, minerals and herbs. Nice fresh palate with enjoyable wet slate and red florals. Well done!

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• 2008 Brian Carter Cellars Abracadabra 84 Points

  USA, Washington, Columbia Valley

  A blend of 10 grape varietals, this is their basic table red wine blend. Thought the wine was relatively simplistic, but it serves as an enjoyable sipping wine.

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• 2008 Brian Carter Cellars Cabernet Sauvignon One Stone Tree Vineyard 89 Points

  USA, Washington, Columbia Valley, Wahluke Slope

  Dark color with herbs, dark fruit, cassis, leather and tobacco on the nose. Palate was dense and complex with nice dark fruit, herbs, spices, and toast. Will need a number of years for the heat on the finish to mellow out.

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Hadn't planned on visiting this winery, but just popped in as I strolled by. They have a very friendly team with whom I had some interesting conversations about vitaculture, winemaking and stylistic preferences. I had never heard of Dusted Valley before, but their V.R. Special and "regular" Cabernet are special wines.

• 2010 Dusted Valley Vintners Ramblin Rose Stoney Vine Vineyard 87 Points

  USA, Washington, Columbia Valley, Walla Walla Valley

  A floral driven and bright rose with tones of strawberry, white cherry and strawberry. Had nice minerality, and had the slightest touch of sweetness.

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• 2008 Dusted Valley Vintners Syrah Stained Tooth 83 Points

  USA, Washington, Columbia Valley

  The name of this wine is certainly accurate! The color is pitch black! Very modern syrah with tons of blueberry cream and massive black cherry. Not really my style as I didn't think it had much in the way of elegance or balance.

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• 2008 Dusted Valley Vintners Syrah Rachis 89 Points

  USA, Washington, Columbia Valley

  A fresher, more restrained syrah cuvee from Dusted Valley. Nice smoked meat on the palate with subtle charcoal, and red fruit. Finish had just a touch of heat, but overall a really nice syrah.

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• 2008 Dusted Valley Vintners Cabernet Sauvignon 90 Points

  USA, Washington, Columbia Valley

  Cedar nose with black fruit, subtle tobacco and spices. Palate was extremely silky with very rich, yet restrained black and red fruit. Nice sweet tannin on the finish. Very nice!

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• 2008 Dusted Valley Vintners Cabernet Sauvignon V.R. Special 91 Points

  USA, Washington, Columbia Valley, Walla Walla Valley

  Lush cabernet with blue and black fruit, healthy dose of clove and toast. Palate was VERY well balanced with rich, lush fruit that seemed to be saved from careening into the overblown territory by very fine minerality and acidity on the finish. Beautiful cabernet.

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The final stop of the day on day 1. Had some nice wine here, and I was happy I was able to try three of their recently released wines. Would like to try some of their wines with age since their structure is impressive.

• 2006 Sparkman Cellars Ruby Leigh 83 Points

  USA, Washington, Columbia Valley, Yakima Valley

  Nose was beautiful with warm spices, blueberry cream, black cherries and toast. Unfortunately, the palate was a bit disjointed to me. There was a sweetness to the wine that I didn't enjoy very much and the finish was incredibly hot and prickly.

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• 2008 Sparkman Cellars Ruby Leigh 86 Points

  USA, Washington, Columbia Valley

  The nose was a bit hot with dense purple fruit and baking spices. Palate had nice dark fruit, more baking spices and blueberries. Thought this was more enjoyable than the 2006 - much less heat on the palate.

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• 2008 Sparkman Cellars Stella Mae 91 Points

  USA, Washington, Columbia Valley, Yakima Valley

  Very elegant nose of cassis, blackberry, baking spices, and smokey minerals. Palate has very nice structure and a big presence with loads of dark fruit, minerals, and a nice acidic spine. Enjoyed this very much!

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• 2008 Sparkman Cellars Wilderness 88 Points

  USA, Washington, Columbia Valley

  Having just been released, this is just a baby. The nose had a bit a heat, but had nice tones of mocha, blackberry and blueberry. The wine itself is a beast. Unrelenting dark fruit, baking spices and herbs pound away at your palate. If you like gutsy, big-boy wines this will be a winner for you...if you don't I'd cellar this for a decade or more.

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• 2008 Sparkman Cellars Cabernet Sauvignon Kingpin 91 Points

  USA, Washington, Columbia Valley, Red Mountain

  Nose had a good dose of oak, cedar, mocha and dark fruit. This wine comes from old vines in the Klipsun Vineyard on Red Mountain and they have an added herbal complexity that other Red Mountain cabernets do not have. This has beautiful structure and length. I wouldn't touch these bottles for a while - should turn into a real beauty.

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Looking forward to Day 2 tomorrow.