This week:
July 20, 2010
Vol. 11, No. 29
Wine Press Northwest's Wine of the Week is an independent opinion based on double- and single-blind tastings.
David Hill Vineyards & Winery 2007 Black Jack Pinot Noir
Appellation: Willamette Valley
If you're a card player and Pinot Noir lover, the bottle is worth owning simply for its striking label. You won't be gambling on the vineyard's Block 21 juice though, as this ranks with the best productions by Jason Bull for his bosses in Forest Grove, Ore. The nose is stacked with black cherries and coffee as hints of caramel, pineapple juice, rose petal and cedar get shuffled in. Cherries and coconut pay out on the balanced palate, followed by pomegranate, oregano, saddle leather and coffee. Rated "Outstanding" by Wine Press Northwest magazine.
Price: $45.
Cases produced: 189 cases.
Food matches: Pair with prime cuts of beef, duck or mushroom-based dishes.
46350 N.W. David Hill Road, Forest Grove, OR 97116, 503-992-8545, www.davidhillwinery.com
Recent wines of the week
-- Heymann Whinery NV Cranberry Wine, Washington
-- Sleight of Hand Cellars 2007 Levitation Syrah, Columbia Valley
Best Buys
-- Renegade Wine Co. 2008 Red Wine, Columbia Valley, $14
-- Hoodsport Winery 2008 Pinot Gris, Yakima Valley, $11
More about David Hill Winery
David Hill Vineyard & Winery near Forest Grove, Ore., (west of Portland), produces its wines from 40 acres of estate grapes. The tasting room is in a farmhouse built in 1883, and the winery began operation in the early 1990s. The quality of this winery has seen dramatic improvements since the arrival of winemaker Jason Bull.
The winery is named for David Hill, an Oregon pioneer who was chairman of the territorial government in Oregon. Hillsboro, near Forest Grove, also was named in his honor. The winery is located on a hill named David Hill (shouldn't that be David Hill Hill?).
Where do we stand?
For the purposes of understanding the industry I write about, I have a few grapes in my backyard. They also help me gauge how a vintage looks. Over the weekend, I did a fair bit of "green thinning" with my Sangiovese, meaning I culled a whole lot of grape clusters in the hopes the rest will ripen evenly and fully. Sangiovese tends to grow like a weed anyways, but the amount of fruit hanging on my vines is ridiculous.
It also got me to thinking: We're basically three weeks away from veraison, when grapes traditionally begin to change color. Frankly, I don't see the clusters on my vines getting to that point in the next three weeks, thanks in part to the rather cool, wet spring we enjoyed and the overly hot few weeks we've endured. On one hand, the precipitation the Columbia Valley received in May and June let vines grow, but the cool temperatures didn't necessarily allow them to mature normally. On the other hand, vines tend to shut down when temperatures rise much above 90 degrees. Thus, a hot day in the low 100s does nothing for the maturation of the grapes (happily, it seems to do wonders for my basil).
Around Eastern Washington, grape growers are saying they are about a week behind. In Oregon's Willamette Valley, I've heard as much as three weeks. Could this be another 1999, considered by relevant experts to be one of the finest vintages in the past 15 years? Or could it be a bust? Either way, the next 10 weeks will be exciting.
Consideration for wine bloggers
During last week's Riesling Rendezvous, I was asked no fewer than five times what I thought of the Wine Bloggers Conference last month in Walla Walla, Wash. Now that I've had some time to consider what I observed and learned, I'm able to provide some feedback.
Basically, I loved watching 300 people who are so passionate about wine that they want to share their thoughts with anyone who might listen. I also found the live blogging session fascinating, which has me thinking in a different direction. And I was amused that the session I spoke at ("Improving your writing") devolved into a discussion on whether blogging for free makes you a better writer.
Read more on The Wine Knows blog.
Barnard Griffin and Muscat
This week, Bob Woehler talks about dessert wines made from Muscat Canelli and Orange Muscat grapes at Barnard Griffin in Richland, Wash.
Listen to it now on winepressnw.com.
The Bobcast is a weekly audio podcast. You can subscribe to it at no cost through the iTunes store. Simply search for "Bob Woehler" and click "Subscribe." Each week's episode will automatically be downloaded, allowing you to listen to it on your computer or your iPod.
Great Northwest Winery Restaurants
The cover of our Summer issue of Wine Press Northwest features "100 Great Northwest Wine Destinations." We created 10 categories of destinations (wineries, restaurants, etc.) and featured 10 businesses to spotlight. Each week, we will highlight one category to provide you with ideas to consider as your travel through the Pacific Northwest.
Winery restaurants: The concept of wineries running their own restaurants is catching on throughout the Pacific Northwest, with British Columbia leading the way and Washington quickly catching up. Here are 10 winery restaurants to try while visiting wine country.
Read more.
Upcoming wine events
Each week, we highlight an upcoming wine event in the Pacific Northwest.
This Saturday's annual Sunriver Sunfest Wine Festival is guaranteed to be a great time. For two days at Sunriver Village Mall, visitors will be able to try wines from throughout the Northwest, all for just $10.
To see more events (or submit yours at no cost), go to our calendar. We currently have 87 upcoming events on our calendar.
What we're reading
Here are links to stories and blog posts we think you'll find interesting. In most cases, the stories are related to Northwest wine, though on occasion we will include stories on cuisine or specialty foods.
Here are this week's stories:
Pennsylvania tests bizarre wine vending machines.
The HoseMaster of Wine takes a dark turn down a literary alley.
A bra that holds wine.
See what else we're reading.
Where in NW Wine Country
Last week's mystery photo turned out to be no mystery.
Rather, 60% of you correctly identified the photo as showing Evergreen Vineyard near George, Wash., (and in the proposed Ancient Lakes AVA), while 26% wondered if it showed The Terraces Vineyard in the eastern Horse Heaven Hills. Just 14% of you guessed it was at Seven Hills Vineyard in Oregon's Walla Walla Valley, while absolutely none of you thought it was at Klipsun Vineyard on Red Mountain.
This week's photo was found on flickr.com (credit: "iwona kellie"). I'll give you one clue: It's near a lake.
Click to vote
Wine cartoon of the week
We have added a new cartoon to our "wine funnies" gallery.
Check it out.
Etienne Hugel
Etienne Hugel, the 12th generation of the famed Hugel winery in France's Alsace, provides us with a global view of Riesling - and how Northwest wines fit into the picture. We chatted with the energetic Hugel during last week's Riesling Rendezvous.
You can watch the Northwest Winecast two ways (both free):
On our Web site:
http://www.winepressnw.com/
On YouTube:
http://www.youtube.com/WinePressNW
Find Northwest wine events
Looking for a wine-related event? Click here for our Northwest wine events calendar.
Wine Press Northwest e-edition
We have loaded up the past eight issues of Wine Press Northwest in a freely available e-edition format, with a goal of eventually posting a complete archive of the magazine, going back to 1998.
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