One of the most common questions any wine expert receives is "What's your favorite wine?" For us, it's whatever wine happens to be in our glass at that moment. But if you're looking for some of the best wines we've tasted in recent weeks, here are a dozen that have earned our top "Outstanding!" rating. How does a wine earn our top rating? First, we taste all wines blind. … [Read more...] about Only the best Northwest red wines
Featured wines
Sauvignon Blanc a Pacific Northwest favorite
One of the Northwest's longtime steadily growing white wines is Sauvignon Blanc. In Washington, it is the No. 4 white grape, after Riesling, Chardonnay and Pinot Gris, bringing in about 7,000 tons during the 2014 harvest. Often, Sauvignon Blanc is the first grape picked, usually around Labor Day. Winemakers appreciate its bright, sleek acidity, while consumers love it for … [Read more...] about Sauvignon Blanc a Pacific Northwest favorite
Interest in Viognier growing across Pacific Northwest
Viognier is one of the most finicky and difficult wine grapes to grow. Pick it a little too early, and it comes out green and flavorless. Pick it a little too late, and the resulting wine can be flabby, oily and generally unpleasant. But hit it just right, and a glorious white wine can result. In the Pacific Northwest, Viognier is catching on in a big way, in part because … [Read more...] about Interest in Viognier growing across Pacific Northwest
Northwest Tempranillo continues to shine
Tempranillo's Northwest provenance is pretty easy to follow. Mike Sauer of Red Willow Vineyard in Washington's Yakima Valley planted the first Tempranillo vines in 1993. Two years later, Earl and Hilda Jones moved from Florida and established Abacela in Southern Oregon. They were the first with significant plantings, and their commercial examples generally brought the … [Read more...] about Northwest Tempranillo continues to shine
Cabernet Sauvignon is king in Washington wine country
Ask most winemakers around Washington about Cabernet Sauvignon, and they are likely to refer to the bold red wine as "King Cab." And in Washington, Cab is the king of wines. Cabernet Sauvignon grows well just about wherever it is planted (within reason), and it is most famous in the two most-renowned wine regions in the world: Bordeaux and Napa Valley. Here in Washington, it … [Read more...] about Cabernet Sauvignon is king in Washington wine country