L’Ecole Label Re-design and Upcoming Regional Tasting Events

Yes. The scuttlebutt is true. The world famous schoolhouse label that has graced the front of every bottle produced by the L’Ecole No. 41 winery since the 1980s is going away.

After much soul searching, and a complete redesign, owners Marty and Megan Clubb, made the change in the label in March of this year. The new design is a much more elegant and upscale drawing of the famous schoolhouse.

Although it was fun, the old, childlike drawing of the schoolhouse didn’t really lead the consumer to understand the quality and depth of the product in the bottle. This was definitely a problem as the winery has consistently produced high scoring wines that have attracted them to the world market.

L’Ecole produces wines from some of the best vineyards in the United States. With juice being sourced from Walla Walla’s Pepperbridge and 7-hills, and the Columbia Valley’s finest vineyards, the look on the outside of the bottle needed to match the exquisite quality and craftsmanship on the inside. This new label really brings the look and quality together.

The new label is being released currently, with this year’s spring released wines. You can view the new labels, which will be coming to stores and establishments in the area soon, or by going to the winery. For a special tasting and viewing opportunity in the Hermiston area, the winery will be a special guest at Farmer’s Kitchen on June 2nd from 5p.m. to 8p.m.. It would be great to see you there!

Speaking of tasting events, there are a number of events going on in the region over the next few weeks. Here is a short list of events soon to come:

If you’re “jonesing” for a great glass of wine, and you happen to be in the area, I suggest touring Baker city with Jones winery. They will be at Bella’s from 3 p.m. until 4:45, and at Earth and Vine from 5 p.m. until 7 p.m. on the 12th of May.

Great Pacific in downtown Pendleton will be hosting my friends from Saviah Cellars on May 13th. If you haven’t had any of Rich Funk’s “Jack” lineup, I’m sure you’ll be in for a treat. Everywhere I go I’m finding this label as the hip new glass-pour wine in the Northwest. Hopefully he’ll also be showing off his other labels as well.

Something I definitely do not want you to miss is the opening of Graybeal Distributing’s new expansion. On May 19th, my friends and past employers, Maryl and Barry Featherstone, and the whole Graybeal clan will open the warehouse for tours and tastings. The staff of Ste. Michelle wine estates will be on hand pouring vintages from their extensive lineup, as well as my old buddy Lloyd from Full Sail Brewing who always has a new brew to taste or story to tell. Starting at 5:30 p.m. and running until 7 p.m., I highly suggest attending this event.
Just in case you are one of those people who enjoys beer a little more than wine, I want to invite you to Bellinger Farms on June 2nd, or to Great Pacific on June 3rd for their Laguintas Brewery tastings.

As with every time I tell you about tasting events in the region, I ask you to be safe, find a designated driver, or plan to stick around before driving home. I want to be able to see you at the next event!

Enjoy!

Mmmmm...Mead!

My oldest son’s girlfriend’s dad has a very interesting hobby. He keeps bees. Living up on a grassy hill outside of Moscow, Idaho, John has the perfect environment for his hives. The little buggers seem to love it out there because they make some of the most delicious honey I’ve ever eaten in my life. Nearly white in color, the first-run honey from his hives is so pure and sweet that it tastes like sweet cream.

The only problem is that not all honey is super high quality. As the seasons change, and as the hive gets more mature, the honey darkens and becomes much more amber. It also picks up flavors from the wildflowers that the bees are also trying to pollinate from the area.

This is where it becomes my problem. My son, knowing that I’m the expert on all things alcoholic, delivered a bunch of amber honey to me a few weeks ago. His expectation was that I was going to brew up some Mead in my basement.

Now, I may be a great writer, and certainly a pleasant drunk. I may even know the general processes around making beer and wine. However, I don’t make alcoholic beverages. I just drink them.

Being the adventurous guy that I am, and never wanting to let my admiring son down, I have gotten to work on making my first batch of Mead. (Have you noticed it gets harder to impress kids in their 20s than it was when they were four or five?)

Luckily, there are hundreds of resources out there on making Mead. The internet is full of recipes. I also have a friend who lives close to me that is into the Medieval thing. (He is a king or something.) He teaches classes on how to make Mead which I fully intend on attending.

Did you know that Mead is possibly the oldest known alcoholic beverage? Its quaffing history goes back centuries to ancient Greece. It is mentioned in Hindu writings as far back as 1700 BC. Mead has been given credit in ancient times for making warriors fearless and strong in battle.

Mead also was given credit for what we now call a young couple’s “honeymoon”. Apparently a newlywed couple drank Mead for the first 30 days of their marriage so they could increase stamina and fertility in the bedroom. Liquid Viagra!

Part of my research has included a little Mead tasting as well. Commercially made Mead is available in Europe, and there are distributors who import through different wine and beer distributors worldwide. However, the only Mead that I know to be of commercial supply in this region is made by Honeywood Winery in Salem, Oregon.

Opened in 1933, Honeywood is Oregon’s oldest winery. Their specialty in the beginning was to produce brandies and liqueurs, however they have been producing wines for many years. Their fruit wines are super popular in the region for being super sweet and flavorful.

Honeywood offers two types of Mead. The traditional style, which has won many awards over the years, and a new Blackberry Mead, which I have not yet had. The traditional style Mead from Honeywood is made from clover honey. It has aromas of summer flowers. The flavors are super-sweet with a floral sense and a mouthfeel that is full and creamy.

You can get Honeywood Mead at several places in the region. Bellinger’s in Hermiston has the largest selection of Honeywood flavors. I suggest you slide in and try them.

Wine Events Abound Region Wide This Month

It must be November. Finally, after all the warm summer months, and the crazy months of harvest, we wine drinkers get to fill our social calendars again. Yes, in November there are literally dozens of wine tasting events to attend throughout the region. Some of them are profoundly large, and some simple and intimate.

To start the month off with a bang, the region’s largest event happens in the Tri Cities. The Tri Cities Wine Festival occurs November 5th and 6th at the Three Rivers Convention Center in Kennewick. For 32 years the Tri-Cities Wine Society has been hosting this now very large event which includes a judged wine competition of the regions top wineries. There are seminars on wines, grape growing, and wine industry forecasting. The gala event, which occurs on Saturday the 6th, offers the opportunity to taste over 400 different wines and sample foods from different regional caterers and restaurants. Cost at the door is $65 per person. You can find out more about the event at www.tcwinefest.com.

If you aren’t exactly into wine, but beer is your thing I suggest you slide on down to the Great Pacific in downtown Pendleton on the 11th. Deschutes Brewery will be offering a beer tasting that evening. The regional representative from Deschutes will be sampling the brews, and you can purchase a bottle or glass as you sit and visit with friends.

Next weekend, the 13th and 14th of November, will be another enormous wine event in the Tri Cities. Savor the Flavor, developed by my friends Becky and Phyllis Ferguson has been a growing event for the past several years. Being into food as much as wine, this is one of my favorite annual events. If you are into watching Bravo’s Top Chef, or Iron Chef competitions you will love this event. There are different stages where both professional, as well as amateur chefs from the region compete for bragging rights in timed cooking trials.

At the Savor event I am now fully involved this year as the “Liquid Libations” coordinator. This is a classroom offering classes on how to do everything from tasting wines, to pairing wines with foods. Jeff Hammond from Wildhorse Resort will even be doing classes on infusing Vodkas at home. I’ll be teaching a few classes on tasting methods, wine and cheese pairings, and sensory training along with other educators and wine writers from the region.

For those who are into cooking there is a second set of classes going on in another area. Even the kids have a “Kids Cook Too” area where they can get their cheffing skills on. Booths will offer foods, libations, and shopping. Top Chef Dave Martin will prepare a banquet on the evening of the 13th . To find out more or to get tickets go to www.savortricities.com or call 509-366-5306.

If that all isn’t enough, there are two more events going on in the Pendleton and Hermiston areas on the 18th and 19th. Jones of Washington Winery, from Quincy Washington is now being fully distributed in Northeast Oregon. These wines are very nice, and their prices are approachable. You can catch them at Bellinger Farms in Hermiston on the 18th, and at Great Pacific in Pendleton on the 19th.

See you there!

The 2009 Holiday Wine Lover’s Gift Guide

Last year, one of the favorite articles that I wrote was my holiday gift guide. You know, those little stocking stuffers that good little wine drinking boys and girls would enjoy. I’ve decided that Santa just needs help in this area once in a while.

That said, I know a few items that your wine drinking loved ones should appreciate this year. Put any of these under the tree and you are sure to get some appreciation under the mistletoe. These gifts range from $5 and up, so you can fit something into your budget.

First on my list is a really good corkscrew. There are many types out there. I personally appreciate a well made waiter’s corkscrew. The better ones have Teflon coating on the screw, making it easier to turn into the cork, and a two stage lift, making it easy to ratchet the cork out.

Many people expound on the love that they have for their “rabbit” style corkscrews. These gadgets have a clamp that grips the bottle, and with two swift movements the cork is extracted using a lever. If you want to go all the way, there are very fancy corkscrews that bolt onto the counter and are made of etched brass and hardwood.

Another type of corkscrew that is growing in popularity, especially at winery tasting rooms is the compressed gas style. This type has a needle that is forced into the cork. You press down and “pop” the cork is out.

Lastly, you can always buy a good pair of loafers. Yes…shoes. A widely distributed YouTube video has proven that you can open a bottle with your shoe. Just place the bottom of the bottle in the shoe. Cut the foil from the top, and smack the shoe and bottle against a wall. The force from the sloshing wine pushes the cork out in just a few strokes.

Last year I suggested buying people decanters, which may have been stashed in a cupboard in the best cases, and used as urinals in the worst. This year, there is a device out there called an aerator. It does basically the same thing as a decanter, but more efficiently. There are several brands out there that run from $20 to $70. You pour the wine from the bottle into the device and it forces air into the wine as it filters through to your glass.

For the wine lover who wants to own a piece of the action, I suggest buying into a wine club at one of the local wineries. Most wineries lay out the red carpet to their members. With the economy the way it is right now, there are several who are offering fantastic deals on their wines to club members.

What I really want from Santa is a shopping spree at a Graybeal Distributing, or at a local wine shop such as Great Pacific in Pendleton, or Bellingers in Hermiston. You can purchase a gift certificate from these places and let your favorite wino do their own shopping.

Lastly, for your favorite Santa’s helper, there is always the opportunity to spend the day with someone like…me. I make myself available for special guided wine tours and wine dinners throughout the region in the winter and spring months. If you’re interested you can reach me through my blog at www.onerichwineguy.blogspot.com.

Merry Christmas, and Cheers!

Give Mom Wine For Mother’s Day

As far as I’m concerned, there are two things in this world that prove that God exists…mothers and wine. Truly, if there is a great and wondrous being out there, which I believe there is, then what better way to show a sign of love, than these two wonderful and heavenly inventions.

Now that I’ve offended half of you, and confused the other half (no…this is not the religion section). I want to enhance my argument by showing that the two are meant to be together. How many times have you been at a party or event and seen women drinking wine, while the guys slug down beer.

I’m not saying that a real lady doesn’t appreciate beer, or that a manly man can’t enjoy a good glass of wine. But, women enjoy the nuances of wine so much more than us guys do. This is supported by recent studies showing that women are able to sense the esters in wine easier than guys.

To further my case, I have enormous experience standing in tasting events. In that experience I am never surprised to see women come out in droves to taste, enjoy, and mingle. There really is no argument against it. Women just simply love wine!

My point now being well established, I want to make the point that your mom deserves wine this Mother’s Day. What better way to celebrate your mom than adding a bottle to her gift basket or giving her a wine experience somewhere in the area. I’ve thought of a few examples of things you might offer mom this year. If I were a mom, I probably would love any one of these things.

Several women winemakers are now gracing the industry in this region. Bergevin Lane winery is owned by Annette Bergevin and Amber lane. Their wines are a great celebration of womanhood, from their lively and brilliant Viognier to their lively Oui Deux Syrah. Also, the wines of Dama are now available in Eastern Oregon. Mary Derby and Dawn Kammer have taken the womanhood concept to the fullest. Their website melds wines and fashion together using quotes from Channel and Yves Saint Laurent.

Other female winemakers from the region are Lynne Chamberlain, owner and winemaker for JLC Cellars, and Susan Cowan of Cowan Vineyards. Lynne’s Palate red blend, and Susan’s Tartan Red are among some of my favorite red blends from the region.

If you want to offer your mom something wine oriented that also includes a little togetherness as well, I suggest taking mom on a wine tour, or engaging in a wine class. I suggest taking mom out to a wine event. There are several throughout the year. You can give her a “promise” with a certificate to go to one of the many annual events such as Hermiston’s Wine and Cheese, and follow up with your promise in November.

There are also several places in the region that offer great opportunities to sip wine and visit with mom on a more frequent basis. In Pendleton, Great Pacific, Raphael’s, Hamleys, Como’s, and Stetsons all offer huge wine lists, with several by the glass options. In Hermiston, Farmer’s Kitchen offers a sizeable wine list, including some of the region’s best rated wines.

If you want a great wine gift basket, I suggest contacting Bellingers or Petal Pusher in Hermiston. Both have created beautiful custom baskets for me that my wife adored!

Happy Mother’s Day!