Full Pull

• By Paul Zitarelli
  Full Pull Latta (+Block Party REMINDER), 8/8/2018

  (Latta Latta GSM) Block Party REMINDER: We're getting down to the final days where you can access the $35 advance-purchase pricing for our warehouse complex's 3rd annual Block Party: Sunday August 12, 12-6pm. Day-of tix are $45, so if you're planning on attending, you'd do well to get your tickets now. And please note: because of the scope and complexity of the event, we will not be able to accommodate any wine pickups on the 12th. Thank you for understanding. ----- Hello friends. This summer, I’ve been reminded continuously how important it is to have and be good neighbors. And it’s not just because of the release of the wonderful Mr. Rogers documentary, or the recent incident of locking myself (and my dog) out of the house mere minutes after my partner left on a plane for the east coast. The greatest reminder of neighborly love has come through Full Pull, specifically the delicious wine and killer deals we’re able to negotiate with our neighboring winemakers. The latest steal of the summer has come from our closest neighbor, Andrew Latta, who recently hit it big with a mountain of praise for his 2014 vintage. From William Kelley to Sean Sullivan, it seems like reviewers universally agree with what we’ve known for a long time—Andrew is making some of the finest wine in Washington. The slew of new scores has led to a near sell-out of Andrew’s 2014s, but he is holding the last bottles of his Roussanne, GSM, and Mourvedre for our list members. This may be the last chance to get these wines while Latta could still conceivably be called a hidden gem.  The hold we have on these wines is going to evaporate after we place our order, so please understand these may be one-and-done wines for us with no potential for reorder. Please keep this in mind when ordering.While the price point of this wine might suggest an entry-level bottling in the Latta lineup, this GSM is anything but introductory. More of a GM than a GSM, it’s made up of 50% Grenache, 46% Mourvedre, and just 4% Syrah. The Grenache and Mourvedre both come from Upland Vineyard on Snipes Mountain, the site that Andrew uses for his single varietal bottlings of the two. Upland (which we’ll cover more below) is one of the most interesting sites in Washington—a truly terroir expressive location that has the attention of some of our state’s best winemakers. The Syrah used for this blend comes from Freewater Rocks Vineyard in the Rocks, one of the other deeply terroir-driven AVAs in our region. [Note: this review will be included in the September issue of Wine Enthusiast, at which point we expect any remaining stock to disappear.]Wine Enthusiast: Copyrighted material withheld. [Context note: 94pts is as strong a review as Sean has given to any of the 177 Rhone reds he has reviewed for Wine Enthusiast. The other three Rhone reds to earn 94pt reviews cost $35 (‘15 Kevin White Pionnier), $45 (‘13 B. Leighton Gratitude), and $85 (‘14 Betz Reserve du Soleil). All that to say: Mr. Sullivan seems to consider this as strong a value as there is in Washington Rhone reds.]