Naches Heights Vineyard 2012 Riesling, Naches Heights, $11
Best Buy! Phil Cline’s biodynamic vineyard near Yakima, Wash., ranks as one of the state’s highest-elevation sites at nearly 2,100 feet, which makes it ideal for Riesling. A product of a nearly peerless vintage, its aromatic profile includes peach, apricot and Asian pear with clove spice. Its rich entry to the palate focuses on a juicy Red Haven peach, and while the residual sugar is listed at 1%, finishing flavors of lime juice and apricot pit easily tackle that sweetness. This wine received a silver medal at the 2014 Seattle Wine and Food Experience Wine Competition.
Rating: Excellent
Production: 850 cases
Alcohol: 12.4%
Hard to omit mention of Chehelam Riesling in nay such listing. Harry Nedry-Petersen made this , in my opinion, the ultimate in a dry , yet luscious version, more Austrian style than the boring sweet,”same old, Same old” versions more typical in the NW. While nice, I think /Eroica is overrated and a little overpriced-doesn;t touch Harry’s product!
Hi, Robert.
The Eroica is not mentioned here, either. As we indicated, these were Rieslings we’ve tasted in the past few weeks. Chehalem’s was not among those.
That said, we did review Chehalem’s 2011 Three Vineyards Riesling last fall – and loved it:
https://greatnorthwestwine.com/2013/10/11/chehalem-wines-2011-three-vineyards-riesling-willamette-valley-24/
Greetings Robert,
Andy & I remain huge fans and supporters of Chehalem Wines.
Perhaps you are unaware, but I wrote the profile of Chehalem Wines for the current issue of Wine Press Northwest, in which Chehalem was presented as Oregon Winery of the Year for 2014.
http://www.winepressnw.com/2014/03/11/2874609/2014-oregon-winery-of-the-year.html?sp=/99/1644/1668/
Harry Peterson-Nedry long has been one of my go-to winemakers for insight and history on many topics, and I’ve enjoyed interviewing Wynne during the past couple of years.
Chehalem is indeed a fascinating winery on many levels — including Riesling — and we look forward to watching how the next chapter is written.
I’d be curious to know which Riesling produced by Chehalem is your favorite, the SEXT or the Three Vineyard?