deVine Table

AniChe Cellars at right pouring at Debuts and Discoveries

It’s hard to keep up with all the new wineries in Washington State these days. That’s why we like events like Debuts and Discoveries. An event dedicated to tasting wines from new players in the Washington wine scene helps us to taste a number of wines in one night.  I was lucky enough to be a judge at the event, so tasting as many wines as possible was honestly my duty!

Requirements for judging at this event include taking into account each winery as a whole. That means considering the quality of ALL the wines each winery serves that evening. I pity the wineries that only poured one wine. They probably didn’t give themselves a fighting chance.  Also taken into account is the quality for the price, the presentation of the bottle, and the service staff.

The panel of judges called out these 3 Washington wineries as the ones to watch:

1.  Cairdeas Winery

2. AniChe Cellars

3. Icon Cellars

I was pleased to see AniChe Cellars as one of the wineries emerging victorious.  Of the four wines they poured, the Albariño is a standout for me. Produced with fruit from Dutchman Vineyards, this charming white wine is full of gorgeous pear and mineral notes. A great summer sipper. Another particularly interesting wine they poured was the “Moth Love” that was like umami in a glass. Next time the hubby and I are in the Gorge region, we’re making a stop at this winery!

I was disappointed that Open Road Winery didn’t make the cut, but I suspect that’s because they only served white wines. However, my notes declare, “not a loser in the bunch.”  Their Old Vine Semillon with some tannin and butteriness is produced from 27 year old vines (truly old by Washington standards!). It also recently won a Gold Medal at the Seattle Wine Awards.

Treveri Cellars deserves a mention here, too. Producing all sparkling wines, they definitely stand out from the rest. Not only that, they’re using fascinating varietals. If you have a chance to taste their Müller Thurgau sparkler, go for it! If you’re unable to make it out to their Sparkle Tasting Room in Yakima, Wine World Warehouse in Seattle carries Treveri Cellars wines. Village Wines in Woodinville is currently offering the Sparkling Gewurztraminer as a glass pour.

I’m feeling inspired to pour some new wines at our table. Are you?

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Tags: Albarino, AniChe cellars, Cairdeas cellars, Debuts and discoveries, Gewurztraminer, Icon cellars, Muller thurgau, Open Road Winery, Seattle uncorked, Semillon

This entry was posted on Wednesday, July 6th, 2011 at 1:43 pm and is filed under Events, Red Wine, Sparkling Wine, White Wine. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.