Love Letter to Washington

When I read this blog post my blood started boiling & my fangs grew. I've been passionate about the wines of Washington State for years & after visiting the region a couple times my passion was near insatiable. Visiting the vineyards, meeting the winemakers & the people behind this glorious juice ignited something inside of me. After tasting some of the younger wines, from younger vines even, I was shocked. How could such interesting wine come from such young vines? There is truly magic going on up there.

I know what Steve Heimoff is trying to do with this post. A little jab back at his neighbor to the north? Perhaps puff up the collective chest of the California wine industry? It's in his best interest to defend & ultimately market the wines of his backyard. I won't begrudge the man for that.

Washington's wines speak to me. They are unique, brooding, layered with flavor & oh so delicious. The vineyards are starkly beautiful. When I was standing at the top of Red Willow Vineyard I felt like the only person for miles. Before hiking to the top of the vineyard's Chapel Hill Block I sipped on an early RW vineyard syrah that David Lake (one of the founding fathers of the WA State wine industry) made for Columbia Winery. It was spicy, earthy, leathery & super sensual. After returning to the floor of the vineyard I participated in a syrah comparative tasting where I sampled one of the last wines that David Lake ever made. Recounting this now still gives me chills. I'll forever feel honored to have experienced what this man created & it only could have happened in Washington.