Wine To Your Mother

My adorable mother, who has endured everything, including
being the subject of my blog!

As much as I hate to admit it, I’m pretty much your typical guy.

I like to think of myself as some special hybrid product of the 1970s and 80s, with a lifetime of daytime talk show hosts and self help books to make men more fragile, sympathetic, and empathetic with the plight of the common female. Somehow, I’m more sensitive than the other men around me.

Truth is, when it comes to special events like anniversaries, birthdays, and especially Mother’s Day I become pretty much the typical blithering male who doesn’t go and buy a card or gift until midnight the night before the big event.

Honestly, it wasn’t until I read an article from a female wine blogger this week that I realized that it is mother’s day next weekend. At least I’m a week ahead of the other dweebs with XY chromosomes out there!

So, I know most of us will be out there looking to buy mom a gift this week. I know that I need to myself. But, as you know, I won’t be purchasing anything until next Saturday night. If you’re challenged in that way, just cut out this article and tape it to your dashboard until next week.

There are two types of mothers out there. Those who drink, and those who don’t . You can usually tell the ones who do. They have an extra lilt in their step even when everything else seems to go wrong. It’s as if they are oblivious from all the yelling in the backseat, puke on their shoulder, and their bra being used as a slingshot for Barbie and Ken. They’ve achieved a special zen from living better through chemistry.

If your mom is a wine drinker you’ll usually already know what kind of wine she likes to drink. I’m always amazed at how opinionated people can be about drinking only “red” or “white” wines. However, if you don’t pay that close of attention to your mom I have some suggestions as well.

First, if your mom is a hard core wine drinker you won’t want to go to Rite Aid and just pick up any old bottle from the bottom shelf. Put down the Barefoot Moscato there Bubba and step away slowly.

Your mom is probably a little more defined in her tastes than that if she’s drinking wine on a regular basis. I highly recommend that you go to a wine shop or a local winery tasting room and purchase her something a little more special. The nice thing is that Spring Release just happened these past few weeks and most of the wineries in the region have just popped out several brand new labels that will likely make a discerning mom squeal with joy.

If your mom is like mine. An old, cigarette smoking, bar hugging, tavern frau (just kidding mom...love you!) you might want to consider buying her wine in a box. Otherwise, I wouldn’t recommend any form of bulk wine purchase for the woman who changed your pee pants.

If mom is a red wine drinker, I suggest getting her a nice bottle of red wine such as a Merlot or Red Blend wine. I've picked up a huge number of under $15 bottles from the Northwest red blends recently, and with a few exceptions I've been pretty darned impressed. 

If your mom only likes sweet wine I suggest picking her up a nice Moscato or Late Harvest Riesling. There are several great wines from this region that are sweet. They range from $7 to over $400.  The amount you spend depends on your level of guilt left over from your evil teen years.

I wouldn’t personally use Mother’s day as a time to “enhance” momma’s drinking experience by purchasing her a 50 year old bottle of Chateau Expensive. Just get her a nice bottle of wine that says I love you in liquid form.

Happy Mother's Day!

You Can’t Go Wrong With Ste. Michelle Estates

A few weeks ago I attended an open house and trade tasting event in Pendleton. The winery doing the tasting was the team from Columbia Crest, just across the river in Patterson. As I was walking over to the table, the thoughts running through my mind were akin to “blah blah blah…all we ever drink is Columbia Crest around here.”

But, as I tasted through the wines I was reminded that there is nothing blah about Columbia Crest, It’s parent Ste. Michelle Wine Estates, or any of the other sister wineries in the Ste. Michelle family. Actually, the winery is one you just can’t go wrong with.

Did you know that Ste. Michelle offers eleven popular wine labels that are all processed within miles of you? The company also partners with four very prestigious California brands, and twelve European brands. Each of those brands offers several different blends and varietals worthy of mention, and many of them have received near perfect scores in wine competitions and magazines all over the world.

The other night I tasted six different wines, and found each of them to be satisfactory in the least. But, one thing that stood out to me was that the wines were capable of meeting completely different tastes and budgets equally as well.

The first of the wines was Columbia Crest’s new baby, their 2010 Moscato. I loved the nose on this wine, full of lychee and white roses. The sugars were a little high, but balanced incredibly well with the acidity and alcohol to make this a great wine for spicy foods. I desperately wanted to drink this with some Ceviche. This wine isn’t in chain stores yet, so you’ll need to pick it up at your favorite wine shop in the area.

Next, I enjoyed two different Chardonnays from Columbia Crest. The Horse Heaven Hills, and the Indian Wells 2008 vintages. Both were great in their own right, but very much different from each other. The “Tripple H” as I like to call it, was a very drinkable mixture of apple, pear, and minerality both on the nose and the palate. The finish of light vanilla cream was nice.

Conversely, the Indian Wells was filled with pineapple and other tropical fruit flavors. The structure of this wine had so many layers to it, that it was clearly a wine to be served with seafood in creamy, rich sauces.

Next we tasted the 2008 Horse Heaven Hills, and 2008 Indian Wells Cabernet Sauvignons. Once again these wines were so strong, yet different in their own rights that I was honestly taken back a little. The Horse Heaven is once again a very, very drinkable wine. It has flavors of cherry, chocolate, anise, and spices. On the other hand, the Indian Wells is a very ripe and jammy wine with dark fruit and vanilla from the nose to the back palate.

Last, I tasted Erath 2008 Estate Pinot Noir. I’m a big Pinot fan, and Erath is one of my favorites. Red Plums and Orange zest mix with chocolate and vanilla in this wine to make a wonderful light wine worth drinking regardless of the time or place.

I really do suggest that you explore Ste. Michelle Wine Estates various brands. It truly is an adventure.

Enjoy!