cooking School and Washington Wines

Loretta Paganini School fo Cooking
Tasted Sunday, October 25, 2015 by Loren Sonkin with 318 views

Introduction

A pretty if overcast autumn day in northeast Ohio. A group of ten of us converged on the local cooking school which allows BYO for lunch. Today's theme was Washington State wines. The wines were opened in the order listed. Basically served in pairs to match the courses of food offered.

Flight 1 (13 Notes)

All the wines were enjoyable. There are obviously a wide range of wines from Washington but this proved to be a nice smattering of wines that worked well with our food.

  • 2012 Cameron Hughes Riesling Lot 390 88 Points

    USA, Washington, Columbia Valley

    Purchased for $6. What a great value. I will say it seems advanced for its age, but who cares. I did not see the cork. Golden in color. The nose is nice with a floral touch, a bit of pineapple and some minerals. On the palate, it is mostly dry. There is an awareness of sweetness but I don't actually taste it. I wonder if in the last couple of years, that element has integrated/faded. Decent balance. Overall, for the money, this was excellent and a nice starter.

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  • 2012 SIXTO Chardonnay Moxee 88 Points

    USA, Washington

    This seemed to have an overt amount of oak for my tastes. Others like it more. It was interesting, it did not seem like a ton of oak, just way too much oak for the fruit, if that makes sense. Light golden in color. The nose has vanilla, fresh cut oak, spice and a bit of peach. Maybe some ginger with air. On the palate, the vanilla dominates. A touch of peach. Some roughness on the finish. Its a style thing for me. As I said, others likes it more. Certainly drinkable, but a taste was enough.

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  • 2011 Northstar Merlot Columbia Valley 89 Points

    USA, Washington, Columbia Valley

    Purple core, ruby rim. The nose has plums, dark cherries and herbal notes. Smooth and easy drinking on the palate. Still seems young. No complexity. Slight heat on the finish.

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  • 2009 Long Shadows Wineries Merlot Pedestal 91 Points

    USA, Washington, Columbia Valley

    Purple in color, slightly flat. On the nose, this is more intense and serious. Black cherries, some dark chocolate, a bit of plums. On the palate, much more intense. Deep and penetrating. Dark cherries and plums. Showing some layering. There is a lot of heat on the finish here, and perhaps some air would have helped it (it was pop and pour). If not for that heat, this would have been a mid-90's score. In any event, delicious and outstanding.

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  • 2007 Sineann Cabernet Franc Champoux Vineyard 91 Points

    USA, Washington, Columbia Valley, Horse Heaven Hills

    This is in a very good spot right now. Purple core, ruby at the rim. The nose is dusty with cassis and slight cigar box notes. On the palate, there is a nice complexity here. Good mouth feel. Nice balance. Long finish. No hurry, but I am not sure this gets better.

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  • 2011 Sleight of Hand The Conjurer 91 Points

    USA, Washington, Columbia Valley

    This is in a great spot now too. Inky purple in color. The nose has lush black raspberries. Also some blueberries. Medium bodied. On the palate, there is a nice complexity here. Really nice texture. Intense cassis, dark cherry and slight blueberry fruit. Good balance. This really showed well, but no hurry. It still has some development left.

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  • 2009 Sineann Cabernet Sauvignon Reserve Baby Poux Vineyard 92 Points

    USA, Washington, Columbia Valley

    This needed some time. The last glass opened later in the evening was the best. Purple in color. The nose is very tight. Later it shows cassis, toast and some black cherries. Great texture. Juicy acidity. Lots of tannins at this point. Ripe cassis and dark cherry fruit on the palate. Nice finish. Glass stopper.

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  • 2013 Pearl and Stone Wandering Red Wine 90 Points

    USA, Washington, Columbia Valley, Yakima Valley

    This is a relatively new project. 44% Cab, 30% Merlot, 25% Cab Franc and 1% Petite Verdot. The nose is dusty with cassis and dark cherries. This is easy drinking on the palate. Some varietal complexity. Little tannins. I think this should be drunk sooner than later, but it provides a lot of pleasure right now.

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  • 2010 Cayuse God Only Knows 93 Points

    USA, Washington, Columbia Valley, Walla Walla Valley

    Very good although not as good as an 09 earlier this year. Maybe it needs some time. Ruby in color, darker at the core. On the palate, iron and black cherries. Also a fair amount of black olives and a caramel note. Maybe some black pepper too. Must be some Syrah in here. On the palate, there are some tannins. Lots of black cherry and raspberry fruit. This is a big wine. Long finish.

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  • 2008 Cayuse Syrah Armada Vineyard 95 Points

    USA, Washington, Columbia Valley, Walla Walla Valley

    Purple in color. The nose is really nice with black raspberries, spice, slight gamey notes, black olive, black pepper. Slight floral note too (violets?). Very smooth on the palate. Some silky tannins but for the most part, the tannins are resolved. The wine still drinks young though and seems to be just entering into adulthood. A very nice complexity as well. Someone mentioned it as being smokey, but I didn't get that. Outstanding wine.

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  • 2012 Reynvaan Family Vineyards Syrah The Contender In the Rocks 96 Points

    USA, Washington, Columbia Valley, Walla Walla Valley

    A new wine for me and my WOTN. My wifes too. It has an elegance that the other wines did not despite its youth. Jeff thought it had some viognier which might explain the lovely nose. Best on the table. Black raspberries, violets, plums and this really interesting earthy quality. Amazingly full bodied, creamy texture. On the palate, complex though tight. Great black raspberry fruit. Long finish. But, it is the elegance that just barely made this better than the Cayuse for me.

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  • 2011 Force Majeure Collaboration Series III Ciel du Cheval Vineyard 92 Points

    USA, Washington, Columbia Valley, Red Mountain

    Inky purple in color. The nose has black raspberries, kirsch, spice and pepper. On the palate, this is a bit tannic at the moment. It needs some time. Black raspberries and baking spice dominate the palate. Seems to have some depth but needs time to show it. Some heat on the finish.

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  • 1978 Château Doisy-Daëne

    France, Bordeaux, Sauternais, Barsac

    I don't know what this wine is really. The cork said Doisy and Barsac. It did not say which Doisy, so I will not post a score on CT. The label was completely missing. Orange gold in color. The nose is honeyed with brown sugar and apricots. Slightly viscous. Remnants of sweetness but drinking mostly dry. Smooth. Nice enough acidity. Fun wine. If I had to score, maybe 86 to 88.

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