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RE: Cayuse release weekend - 3/28/2014 7:29:15 PM

skifree

Posts: 3411
Joined: 3/14/2010
From: SE King County, Washington
Status: offline

quote:

ORIGINAL: ChrisinSunnyside

Stupid question here, but what are the dates of the Cayuse weekend?

We're thinking about going down April 12 for the Rotiesian Crawfish Boil, and know things get filled up hotel and restaurant wise on Cayuse weekend, so I'm hoping it is not then.

April 4-5. Think you are safe.

_____________________________

So much wine, so little time

(in reply to ChrisinCowiche)

Post #: 31

RE: Cayuse release weekend - 3/28/2014 11:52:56 PM

JerryL

Posts: 596
Joined: 12/27/2012
From: Kenmore, Wa
Status: offline

You really only need the name of someone on the list.

. They don't know what we look like.

(in reply to skifree)

Post #: 32

RE: Cayuse release weekend - 4/7/2014 9:57:01 AM

skifree

Posts: 3411
Joined: 3/14/2010
From: SE King County, Washington
Status: offline

Back from the weekend in twice Walla, am curious to see what other people thought as this was my first time to attend.

My thoughts:

Liked the Cayuse wines as usual, but found the atmosphere difficult to take formal notes - crowded so kept being jostled and having to find a spot to stand comfortably. Also, servers with trays of food came by often - which I liked a lot, but kept me from concentrating. First impression was favorable, especially for the Frog, En Cerise, and Camaspelo.

They did not have Widowmaker, Edith, or Flying Pig to taste this year. Eight wines total were at the tasting - GOK, Camaspelo, Cailloux, En Cerise, En Chamberlin, Bionic Frog, Armada, Impulsivo.

[image][URL=http://s1312.photobucket.com/user/SkifreeH/media/cayuse_zps32f73f43.jpg.html]

[/URL][/image]

Overall, the town was less crowded than I expected, and rolled up the carpet really early on Friday - all the restaurants closed at 9 right after we arrived! Other tasting rooms were active but not over-crowded. Had no problem getting a tee time at Wine Valley on Sunday, and had no one in back of us.

Loved the food culture in town - Maple Café was amazing for breakfast, lots of dinner choices. Even the pizza truck we settled on Friday was a treat - everything locally sourced and very interesting choices. I had Sorrento ham, dates, and fresh arrugala - excellent pairing.

As for the wines, Cayuse was the start of the day, and set the bar high. Rasa paled in comparison. Big surprise was Trust, especially their Davidson Vineyard Syrah. Overall, I had complete palate fatigue after 6 places, so did not taste as many as I hoped. I have no idea how one would taste 200 wines in a day even if you spit.

_____________________________

So much wine, so little time

(in reply to JerryL)

Post #: 33

RE: Cayuse release weekend - 4/7/2014 10:23:09 AM

Slye

Posts: 1923
Joined: 8/3/2013
Status: offline

quote:

ORIGINAL: skifree

Back from the weekend in twice Walla, am curious to see what other people thought as this was my first time to attend.

My thoughts:

Liked the Cayuse wines as usual, but found the atmosphere difficult to take formal notes - crowded so kept being jostled and having to find a spot to stand comfortably. Also, servers with trays of food came by often - which I liked a lot, but kept me from concentrating. First impression was favorable, especially for the Frog, En Cerise, and Camaspelo.

They did not have Widowmaker, Edith, or Flying Pig to taste this year. Eight wines total were at the tasting - GOK, Camaspelo, Cailloux, En Cerise, En Chamberlin, Bionic Frog, Armada, Impulsivo.

[image][URL=http://s1312.photobucket.com/user/SkifreeH/media/cayuse_zps32f73f43.jpg.html][/URL][/image]

Overall, the town was less crowded than I expected, and rolled up the carpet really early on Friday - all the restaurants closed at 9 right after we arrived! Other tasting rooms were active but not over-crowded. Had no problem getting a tee time at Wine Valley on Sunday, and had no one in back of us.

Loved the food culture in town - Maple Café was amazing for breakfast, lots of dinner choices. Even the pizza truck we settled on Friday was a treat - everything locally sourced and very interesting choices. I had Sorrento ham, dates, and fresh arrugala - excellent pairing.

As for the wines, Cayuse was the start of the day, and set the bar high. Rasa paled in comparison. Big surprise was Trust, especially their Davidson Vineyard Syrah. Overall, I had complete palate fatigue after 6 places, so did not taste as many as I hoped. I have no idea how one would taste 200 wines in a day even if you spit.

Hey F -- sorry we did not run across each other. I agree about the palate fatigue. We arrived Thursday, and tasted a good deal of the day on Friday and Saturday. Saturday we were smarter, and carried water to stay hydrated, which made a big difference.

On Cayuse, I agree about Frog and En Cerise being particularly good out of barrel. I was disappointed they were only pouring eight wines -- I think they usually do a bit more. I will say that we went near the end of the day (around 4) on Friday -- much less crowded and more pleasant experience than Saturday.

Our other highlights -- Garrison Creek (a beautiful setting, and some great wines, particularly their Syrah and Merlot. they also have a Zin, which is one of the few of which I am aware from WA); Maison Blue (excellent selection, including a really nice chardonnay); Kerloo (a return favorite for us, they have a killer Grenache at the moment); Figgins (a first for us; excellent pinot noir from Oregon and a wonderful bordeaux style estate red).

We also went to the Community College tasting room -- some great values there, and a nice way to support the next generation of wine makers.

We went out to Waitsburg to taste the wines of Lullaby - we love her Viognier, and her table white (a sauv blanc) is a great every day drinker. She also now has a late harvest viognier which is excellent.

We also went to Long Shadow. A bit of a disappointment. We thought the wines were good, but not great. It was a bit crowded, and they only had one person pouring, so lots of delays and not much opportunity to ask about and talk about the wines. It felt more like a big scale sell operation.

I also tend to agree with you on Rasa. I think his wines are quite good, but particularly the reds seem overpriced -- or, as I like to say, if you are going to pay close to $100 per bottle, there are a lot of options out there in the world.

On food, I would also highly recommend Bacon and Eggs for breakfast. We went Saturday around 9:30 and had to wait 1/2 hour. We went at 8:30 Sunday (they open at 8) and got seats at the bar, but were asked if we had reservations -- yes, reservations for breakfast. It is worth it.

Brasserie 4 and Saffron were great for dinner, and we had a very good lunch at Green Spoon. We also had a meal from cheese and sliced meats from the Italian salumeria on Main Street (can't remember the name at the moment).

My overall impression is that there are a lot more wineries on Main Street than even a year ago. I wonder if the character of Main Street will change (probably for good and bad) with the increase in wineries and tasting rooms. Still a great place to go from Seattle for a long weekend. We would definitely recommend arriving Thursday and leaving Sunday, if you have the time. It makes the weekend a bit more relaxed, and provides two full days in the area.

(in reply to skifree)

Post #: 34

RE: Cayuse release weekend - 4/7/2014 3:36:21 PM

skifree

Posts: 3411
Joined: 3/14/2010
From: SE King County, Washington
Status: offline

WW must be a breakfast place - also a long wait for Maple Café. My friend loved the Swedish flapjacks so much he had them twice. They bake their omelets which was unique, and made them very fluffy. Also, the eggs benedict was great as well.

I liked the number of wineries downtown - no driving. The only thing I found strange was how quickly they closed - 5 PM for most. I would prefer to bike / golf / hike during the day, and taste in the late afternoon and evening.

Sorry we missed each other, hopefully next year!

_____________________________

So much wine, so little time

(in reply to Slye)

Post #: 35

RE: Cayuse release weekend - 4/7/2014 3:47:35 PM

mye

Posts: 2317
Joined: 3/26/2009
From: Bellevue, WA
Status: offline

Headed in Sat morning superrrrr early. goodness, leaving at 5:30 is always fun.

Cayuse - lots of people share the view that it's hard to stand/talk comfortably. but the servers with the meatballs, pate on toast, etc.. all very tasty :)
The wines were great, first time there.. wish i coulda tasted the widowmaker. i really wish someone would SELL me some to try but no luck so far :)
Loved the Chamberlin, that took the prize for me.. Frog is of course reliably good but way too young/big out of barrel. I was allocated En Cerise so happy to have tasted that and enjoyed it quite a bit.
All in all, the wines were impressive as was the event..

Next Figgins - clean facility.. but only have 1 wine.. good but $85 good? hmm.. Toil the pinot is good but $50? there's tons of oregon pinot in 2012 that's great and under $40.. so didn't bite on a 3 pack.

They said Doubleback might be open but appt only. well we're close so went to try.. they fit us in.. really nice of them!
sweet looking tasting room. tried a couple of 2012 barrel sample of the Healy and McQueen vineyard cab (pre -blend). then tried the 2011 blended Doubleback wine. pretty good juice.. again $89 is pricey.
but got a few bottles with Drew's signature on them.. sending one to my grandma who's a lifetime Patriot's fan :)

Next hit up Rasa to pick up the 40% off sale purchases. not sure it's fair after cayuse/figgins/DB to compare Rasa, but the wines weren't bad, but didn't 'stand out' as much.
I still LOVE the creative impulse.. but $95? wow.. getting palate fatigue at this point too.. too much wine.. spitting a lot too

Swung by Grammercy.. open tasting.. very unfortunate a bus load of bachelorettes showed up right before us.. there must've been 30 people in the tasting room and my throat was hurting from having to almost yell to communicate in there.
Wine was good. really like the Viognier.. surprised me for sure.. the syrahs/cabs were ok.. palate fatigue and frankly better wines kinda let this down. not that they don't have better wines, but didn't get to taste them..

Finished around 4 so was gonna stop by Maison Bleue, but saw Kerloo right next door.. stop in! why not! major palate fatigue and in general a little tired.
but their grenache was indeed killer.. bought a btl of that to take home. good people too. will definitely have to stop by next time.

Last top while waiting for dinner reso at 5:30pm, dropped in at Maison Bleue.. talked to Jon about the whole club/list change and the whole name change thread on Wine Berserker.. :)
Loved the Boushey Vineyard stuff.. especially the boushey grenance (midi?). yum.. although at this point the whites are tasting mega acidic, and the reds taste like juice.. no fair to evaluate even so i won't. just bought some of the ones i liked and that's that.

Dinner Brasserie 4 - exceptional food. dear god the seafood bouillabaisse was KILLER. the beef bourgnion was good but too bad the seafood dish dominated.
had a quiche, a sandwich, escargot, some fries, etc.. all in all great meal.

Got back to hotel around 7.. slept at 7:30pm.. until the next morning. ;)

< Message edited by mye -- 4/7/2014 3:48:10 PM >

(in reply to Slye)

Post #: 36

RE: Cayuse release weekend - 4/7/2014 4:11:49 PM

Slye

Posts: 1923
Joined: 8/3/2013
Status: offline

quote:

ORIGINAL: mye

Headed in Sat morning superrrrr early. goodness, leaving at 5:30 is always fun.

Cayuse - lots of people share the view that it's hard to stand/talk comfortably. but the servers with the meatballs, pate on toast, etc.. all very tasty :)
The wines were great, first time there.. wish i coulda tasted the widowmaker. i really wish someone would SELL me some to try but no luck so far :)
Loved the Chamberlin, that took the prize for me.. Frog is of course reliably good but way too young/big out of barrel. I was allocated En Cerise so happy to have tasted that and enjoyed it quite a bit.
All in all, the wines were impressive as was the event..

Next Figgins - clean facility.. but only have 1 wine.. good but $85 good? hmm.. Toil the pinot is good but $50? there's tons of oregon pinot in 2012 that's great and under $40.. so didn't bite on a 3 pack.

They said Doubleback might be open but appt only. well we're close so went to try.. they fit us in.. really nice of them!
sweet looking tasting room. tried a couple of 2012 barrel sample of the Healy and McQueen vineyard cab (pre -blend). then tried the 2011 blended Doubleback wine. pretty good juice.. again $89 is pricey.
but got a few bottles with Drew's signature on them.. sending one to my grandma who's a lifetime Patriot's fan :)

Next hit up Rasa to pick up the 40% off sale purchases. not sure it's fair after cayuse/figgins/DB to compare Rasa, but the wines weren't bad, but didn't 'stand out' as much.
I still LOVE the creative impulse.. but $95? wow.. getting palate fatigue at this point too.. too much wine.. spitting a lot too

Swung by Grammercy.. open tasting.. very unfortunate a bus load of bachelorettes showed up right before us.. there must've been 30 people in the tasting room and my throat was hurting from having to almost yell to communicate in there.
Wine was good. really like the Viognier.. surprised me for sure.. the syrahs/cabs were ok.. palate fatigue and frankly better wines kinda let this down. not that they don't have better wines, but didn't get to taste them..

Finished around 4 so was gonna stop by Maison Bleue, but saw Kerloo right next door.. stop in! why not! major palate fatigue and in general a little tired.
but their grenache was indeed killer.. bought a btl of that to take home. good people too. will definitely have to stop by next time.

Last top while waiting for dinner reso at 5:30pm, dropped in at Maison Bleue.. talked to Jon about the whole club/list change and the whole name change thread on Wine Berserker.. :)
Loved the Boushey Vineyard stuff.. especially the boushey grenance (midi?). yum.. although at this point the whites are tasting mega acidic, and the reds taste like juice.. no fair to evaluate even so i won't. just bought some of the ones i liked and that's that.

Dinner Brasserie 4 - exceptional food. dear god the seafood bouillabaisse was KILLER. the beef bourgnion was good but too bad the seafood dish dominated.
had a quiche, a sandwich, escargot, some fries, etc.. all in all great meal.

Got back to hotel around 7.. slept at 7:30pm.. until the next morning. ;)

Oh yes, we also did Gramercy. Too bad about the bachelorette party! We loved their Rose. Their whites were good, but we only bought two of the rose.

Ahhh, the bouillabaisse at Brasserie 4 -- I had that as well. I have to say one of the best I have ever had. The broth was heaven.

Sounds like you got a lot in in one day, including lots of driving!

Yes, the closing time on the tasting rooms is unfortunate -- though I found Otis Kenyon, Kerloo, and Maison Bleue, among a few others, open later this past weekend because of all the people in for Cayuse. I do think they would do well to hire extra people that weekend, and a few of the other big weekends, as they could probably get more buyers -- though I guess some of them are doing quite well and may not need more traffic!

PM me -- I might have some Widowmaker for you to buy if you want.

(in reply to mye)

Post #: 37

RE: Cayuse release weekend - 4/7/2014 4:30:31 PM

mye

Posts: 2317
Joined: 3/26/2009
From: Bellevue, WA
Status: offline

quote:

ORIGINAL: Slye

Ahhh, the bouillabaisse at Brasserie 4 -- I had that as well. I have to say one of the best I have ever had. The broth was heaven.

Sounds like you got a lot in in one day, including lots of driving!

Yah that was one of the best bouillabaisse i've ever had as well.. We had 4 people so was able to order a bunch to share, altho really just give me a serving of the BB and i'm set. :)
You probably didn't see us when you came in b/c the baby decided at 6:45 that we must not stay any longer.. like not a minute longer.. sorry to the large table next to us.. we left in a hurry :)

thankfully we had a designated driver who also paid for dinner. can't complain right? ;)

(in reply to Slye)

Post #: 38

RE: Cayuse release weekend - 4/7/2014 4:43:33 PM

sinebubble

Posts: 54
Joined: 9/7/2008
From: Seattle, WA
Status: offline

We rolled in on Thursday and left on Sunday. Saffron, Brassiere 4, dished out their usual fantastic food. Between breakfast at our B&B and our dinners, we ate like royalty.

Kerloo – My faded palate really hurt me here, but I will say the Upland Grenache was killer. I balked at the $46 price, but, looking back, I’m unsure why.

Rôtie Cellars – All the buzz I’ve heard about Rôtie is justified. The Southern White (Viognier, Roussanne and Marsanne was amazing with just enough acid to level the oily Viognier. Followed by an equally amazing Northern Red. The Southern was good. LIKE RôTIE!

Reynvaan – Viognier continues to impress. The Cab was good. Nice people. Too bad about all the stuff we complain about elsewhere. It’s a business and they deserve to be successful. Might be my last trip there, however.

Cayuse – Crowded early on Friday and Saturday, thinned a bit then crowded later on Sunday (had to come three times to pick up all the wine I hauled back for friends). Surprising number of babies and small children and even a couple teens. We’ve never seen this before and when I asked someone (name withheld) about it, I was told this was not a family friendly event and they were surprised about it as well. Concern was expressed that it could lead to trouble for the event. Not sure why they don’t send out a friendly reminder that the party is obviously an adult only event, but I suspect next year they may very well take action. Of course that means we won’t be able to bring our own baby next year :\

Anyway, the quality of the food somehow surpassed previous years! The lamb “taco’s”, cucumber olive tapenade and meatballs being huge hits with the ladies. We’re expecting, so wife ate about half of everything that came by. I saw it all. I was surprised by how much food was being brought out and consumed. Very generous of Cayuse!

Had the Horsepower Grenache and Syrah this year (previously just sampled the Syrah). The Syrah is much more subdued than last year. Both are lovely and fit well with the rest of the lineup. Email goes out soon and shipping in November.

Heard about and drove by Vineyard #1, the site of their new project. The vineyard is just south of Milton Freewater – just a tiny patch on a hillside. Christophe said the vertical was 60 degrees in some parts. Unknown what will become of the Syrah they’ve planted here, but maybe we’ll hear about it again in a couple years.

A new building is being constructed on the grounds to hold the new wines and provide on-site bathrooms. Sorry to see the glamorous port-a-poties go away.

Regarding the wines themselves, only six were being poured, and I though the Bionic Frog, Cailloux, and En Chamberlin were showing best.

I don’t know of any other more generous wine event. Christophe, Trevor and crew pour a lot of great wine and serve a grip of fantastic food. I hope they continue to keep things going and nothing spoils the fun!

A special shout out to Trey and Jerry (and Keith) of Slight of Hands. Great wine (Stoney Vine Grenache 2013 = TOTAL AWESOME) and amazing hospitality! Friday was incredible and we’re fortunate to be invited. Thanks guys!

(in reply to Slye)

Post #: 39