Cathedral Ridge Pinot Noir 2006 - Oregon

Nose of smoke and black cherry. The tastes carry through with the same notes, and some acidity and heat. This feels “young,” and might benefit from a couple of years of bottle age. (Or not. It’s hard to tell with anything less than great Pinots if they’ll improve with age, or just become tired versions of their younger selves.) Maybe. $26

Cloudline Pinot Noir 2006 – Oregon

We had this wine at Cedars Floating Restaurant in Coeur d’Alene, Idaho, at the recommendation of our waitress. (It’s always a question of how much wine experience wait staff have, and if their tastes are at all like ours.) The wine starts with a smoky, peppery nose. Tastes of earth, smokiness, black current. Very smooth, rich, and integrated. Yes. $45 on the restaurant’s wine list; we found it for about $24 retail. (Watch for an upcoming article about restaurant wine mark-ups.)

Cedars Restaurant floats on the waters along the shore of Lake Coeur d’Alene. It’s a cute concept, and the restaurant is kinda northwest nautical inside. The menu and wine list are nice for this part of the country, and food was cooked to order and imaginatively.

Cathedral Ridge 2007 Riesling – Oregon

Cathedral Ridge is a medium-sized winery in Hood River, Oregon. It has a modern tasting room and a good selection of wines to taste at no charge. This is simply a wonderful wine. Floral notes and roses on the nose. Tastes like a fresh honeydew melon. It’s a subtle, almost sensuous wine. The finish lingers and then softly fades away. Yes (House if it were widely available at retail.) $15

Wines for Comfort in the (Financial) Storm

It’s coming up toward the season for holiday dinners, sharing wines, and watching your portfolio’s meltdown. To help you make it through the financial storm, especially at this time of year, we present our suggestions for the best Financial Comfort Wines. These are wines that are soft and soothing, yet are also affordable (especially affordable). They have some depth to them, much more so than light, fruity, summer sipping wines. All are readily available and under $10 (either regular retail or so frequently on sale that you shouldn’t have any problem finding them for less than $10). Even an inexpensive wine can make you feel rich, or at least happy. (We have previously reviewed many of these wines – see our archives for specific reviews.)

REDS
Columbia Crest Syrah – Washington
Fruity, smoky, goes down easy.

Ravenswood Zinfandel – California
Full, dark, spicy, and fruity.

Red Diamond Syrah – Washington
Plums, black cherries, depth.

Bernard Griffin Cabernet-Merlot – Washington
Filling to go with winter stews and chilis.

WHITES
B&G Vouvray – France
A white with weight, but lots of character.

Columbia Crest Pinot Grigio – Washington
Fresh, yet depth to match with food.

A-Z Pinot Gris – Oregon
Smooth, easy drinking, but firm structure.

SPARKLING
Cristalino Rose Cava – Spain
Not big, not serious, just fun.

A-Z Pinot Gris 2006 – Oregon

This is a “halfway” Pinot Grigio. It’s not the Junior Chardonnay style, but neither is it dry and crisp. Floral and pear on the nose. Tastes more toward the crisp style (our preference), with notes of dried pears and ripe apples. Yes. $10

[Update: As previously mentioned, if we find a wine rated elsewhere, we will note those ratings – but only after we write our reviews. This received an 89 from Wine Spectator.]

Wine Tasting & Travel Tips

We had a great quick trip to several wineries in California, Washington, and Oregon. We’ll post reviews of many wines and wineries in the future, but thought we’d start with some ideas about how to make the winery wine-tasting experience the best possible.

• Make some choices before you go. If this is your first trip to wine country, you might want to go to some of the big names – for example in Napa you might visit Mondavi, Sterling, and Beringer.
• Visit some smaller wineries. Even if you’re a wine-tasting newbie, take some time to visit several smaller wineries – at the smallest ones you’ll have a good chance that the winemaker/owner will be pouring in the tasting room, and you’ll have some great conversations.
• Make appointments. If there’s some place you really want to see (especially small wineries) make an appointment in advance.
• Don’t try to do too much each day. We found that three to four wineries in the morning, and another three or four in the afternoon, were more than enough.
• Buy some wine. Unless the wine just isn’t enjoyable, purchase at least one bottle of something you enjoyed at the tasting room. It will support the winery, and be a wonderful memory of your travels.
  
• Don’t be afraid to pour. Even the small tasting amounts can add up. You’re there for wine tasting, not wine drinking. The pour bucket is totally acceptable to use.
• There are no “bad” wines. A wine might not be to your tastes, but don’t say, “that’s awful.” If you need to express a negative opinion, just say that the wine isn’t your style.
• Be prepared to pay. Many wineries, especially in Napa, now charge for tasting. Some apply the tasting fee to purchases, others don’t. Also in Napa, be prepared for the “Disneyland” experience – at some big and popular wineries, it’s now become industrial tourism, with complimentary souvenir tasting glasses (after you just paid $10 for tasting), huge cheese and gift shops, and tour busses lined up outside.
• For the big wineries, go early. And at any time of day, if there’s a tour bus in the parking lot, go elsewhere, fast.
• Take a tour or two. We’d suggest taking one “big” winery tour, and a smaller one. On this trip, the big tour was at Benziger in Glen Ellen (Sonoma Valley), where the 45-minute tour goes through the vineyards, the production facility, and the cellars, ending with a tasting. Our small tour was just the two of us (the other three guests were late) at Mayacamas (outside Napa Valley). There, we witnessed what winemaking was like a half century ago – not much has changed, and that’s all for the best. Note that the small Mayacamas tour and tasting was free, and the big Benziger had a charge. Both were excellent tours, nonetheless.
• Explore not just smaller wineries, but smaller regions. We found several good wineries outside Hood River, Oregon, and wanted to spend a lot more time at the wineries in Amador County in the Sierra Foothills.
• Be enthusiastic and appreciative. You just might be offered a special wine, or be offered to taste the whole tasting list, rather than just the limit of four (or however many) for free.

Outside B.R. Cohn winery, Sonoma

Wine Country Traveling

We’re off on a short trip to the wine regions of Yakima, Washington; Hood River, Oregon; Napa/Sonoma, California; and the Sierra Foothills of California. We should have some fun new wines to review when we return (and will try to find time to post a bit along the way on our trip).