February’s Wine and Dine focused on home, our home to be specific. My sister moved in with me a few months ago and we decided to host a Wine and Dine that reflected where we were raised, the Columbia Valley and the nearby Yakima Valley of Washington. We were surrounded by wineries growing up, and each spent our 21st birthdays wine tasting with our family. Wine tasting is still a common pastime when we visit home. We always seem to find places we haven’t been before. The goal of this Wine and Dine was to showcase a handful of wines from the area that are not as readily available outside the region.
The first wine of the evening was a mulled wine. It was made using Preston Cellars 2007 Gamay Noir. This is an award winning Rose that Preston recommends using with their spice blend for hot mulled wine. Preston is located on the outskirts of Pasco, Washington and is one of the oldest wineries in the region starting up in the early 1970’s.
Recipe for Mulled wine:
One bottle of Gamay Noir, Merlot, Cabernet Sauvignon or Red table wine, 3-4 cups of Cranberry juice (or other cran-juice combo) 1 package of mulling spices and an optional cinnamon stick (we omitted the cinnamon in our version).
The second wine of the evening was Gordon Brothers 2009 Chardonnay. The two Gordon brothers started this winery in the 1980’s. The first wine they produced was a Chardonnay, but they were notably one of the first red wine producers in the area. If you are looking for more of their wines, please note that they just changed their name from Gordon Brothers to Gordon Estate.
The third wine was Terra Blanca’s 2009 Viognier. Their Viognier is a bit drier than most and I like it that way. I have a confession; Terra Blanca is my favorite winery in the region. Their wine is always good, sometimes amazing, and the setting is beautiful. Their vineyard along with their tasting room is located on Red Mountain, an area with an exceptional reputation for grape quality. Hands down the most impressive quality of this winery is the tasting room and event facility. It looks like it is straight out of Tuscany. Whenever I have friends visiting the area I ALWAYS bring them here. It’s pretty amazing.
The fourth wine was Chandler Reach’s 36 Red. This is a Cabernet/Merlot blend. It is marketed as an everyday wine that will easily pair with a variety of foods. Chandler Reach is another beautiful Tuscan Villa inspired venue. This winery is located in the Yakima Valley and is a great stop on the way to the many other fantastic wineries in that region.
The fifth wine was Tagaris’ 2009 Boar Doe. It is a red blend made up of 60% Cabernet Sauvignon, 20% Malbec, 10% Merlot, 10% Petit Verdot. This was the hit of the night! Tagaris has some fun names for their wines and very creative labels as well. This winery is located less than a mile from our childhood home. This is one of my favorite places to go with friends in the summer. This winery is actually better known for their restaurant, Taverna Tagaris than for their wines, and once you taste the food and catch some live jazz on the patio you’ll understand why.
Lastly we had Genisis’ 2007 Cabernet Sauvignon. Genesis is the Premier label from Hogue Cellars. Hogue is one of the most widely distributed wines from the region. This was the second most well liked wine of the evening.
Now, on to the food:
Appetizers: Smoked salmon and cream cheese provided by Nate and Kimber. Stuffed endives provided by Jennifer.
Main dish: Runzas provided by Molly and Sarah – this was a meal we grew up with. They are bread pockets filled with meat (turkey and a bit of pork in this case), cabbage and onions.
Sides: Asparagus casserole provided by Ben, Cooked Carrots provided by Tamara and Rian, Salad provided by Rachel and Paul.
Dessert: Ginger and white chocolate cookies provided by Elizabeth, Éclairs provided by Katee and Travis.
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