One of the more clever names in the Northwest for a proprietary blend is Chuck Reininger's use of Pomatia. The roots of this Columbia Valley brand by the Walla Walla Valley winemaker stem from a family farm in the town of Helix, Ore. The scientific Latin name for the Burgundy snail is Helix pomatia. The blend changes slightly each vintage between Syrah (39%) and Cabernet … [Read more...] about Helix by Reininger 2014 Pomatia, Columbia Valley $22
Outstanding
Treos Wines 2016 Dry Muscat, Willamette Valley, $21
Dave Jepson's three decades working for Hewlett-Packard led him to Europe, and his time in Alsace continues to inspire his love for Muscat. It shows, and his consistency with these varieties has made him one of the Pacific Northwest's top magicians with Muscat done dry. In 2016, his blend of estate fruit near Monmouth, Ore., cropped to 1.5 tons per acre guided him to Muscat … [Read more...] about Treos Wines 2016 Dry Muscat, Willamette Valley, $21
Tendril Wine Cellars 2014 Mount Richmond Vineyard Pinot Noir, Willamette Valley $60
One of the Northwest's most respected winemakers is Tony Rynders, who prides himself on a "low and slow" approach, particularly with these four barrels of Pinot Noir from a vineyard prized by Campbell family at Elk Cove. H devoted 17 months to French oak, with two of those barrels being new before more than a year of bottling aging. Its dark blue fruit profile of blackcurrant, … [Read more...] about Tendril Wine Cellars 2014 Mount Richmond Vineyard Pinot Noir, Willamette Valley $60
Silvara Vineyards 2015 Syrah, Columbia Valley $32
Leavenworth vintner Gary Seidler collaborated with the Fore Feathers Wine Estates team in Prosser for this stunning Syrah pulled from Zillah Ranch Vineyard in the Rattlesnake Hills and McNary Vineyard in the Horse Heaven Hills. The historically hot 2015 vintage allowed Tom Merkle's crew to pull off all of this Syrah by Oct. 1, making for an intense and penetrating drink of deep … [Read more...] about Silvara Vineyards 2015 Syrah, Columbia Valley $32
Convergence Zone Cellars 2015 Ciel du Cheval Vineyard Drizzle Pinot Gris, Red Mountain, $15
Best Buy! Based on the market price for the grape, there's very little Pinot Gris planted on Red Mountain. As a result, there's always a sense of intrigue following each release of Scott Greenberg's Drizzle from the Holmes family's famed Ciel du Cheval Vineyard. Understandably, harvest for the Convergence Zone Cellars order is among the first fulfilled, and in the historically … [Read more...] about Convergence Zone Cellars 2015 Ciel du Cheval Vineyard Drizzle Pinot Gris, Red Mountain, $15