St. Laurent is worth a visit, if only for the view.  Their Syrah Rose makes a nice summer day in the hills above Wenatchee heavenly.  Winemaker Craig Mitrakul created this blend of Syrah, Reisling, and Chardonnay from 100% Wahluke Slope fruit.

“Our Rose has flavors and aromas of cherry, raspberry, apricot and melon.   On the palate these fruit flavors lead to a crisp dry finish.   Estate grown on our Wahluke Slope vineyards nestled above the Columbia River in Mattawa, Washington… It’s great chilled on its own or a wonderful companion to salads, seafood or barbequed chicken. The perfect accompaniment to morning brunch or refreshing and delicious on a warm sunny day. From the Mrachek family vineyards to you.”

I’m going to find out.  Now on to the tasting that lead me down the road of asking these questions. 

2007 Syncline Columbia Valley Syrah – this is the bigger, bold, dark colored, new world syrah. It was delicious and really opened up nicely over the course of a Friday night at home.

2002 Columbia Winery Red Willow Vineyard Syrah – this wine was crafted from the very first Syrah planting in Washington and winemaker David Lake really pushes the old world envelope in this offering.  Having spent 5 more years in the bottle this wine is very well rounded.

These two wines, produced in the same region, from the same varietal, are very different in style.  The Columbia is lighter in color and contained many of that minerality and earthiness that you’d expect from a old world style wine.  The Syncline was big, bold, and provided many of the dark berry fruit flavors.  Both wines were excellent and can be found in the $20-25 range at Pete’s Wine Shop in Bellevue.

Wine of the Week: Gilbert 2006 Syrah

According to the GIlberts: Our 2006 vintage Syrah is a super-saturated, hedonistic red wine with blueberry and dark plum fruit while cinnamon, black tea and bacon accompany loamy tannins that linger on the tongue. Performs gorgeously with grilled cuisine. Drink now through 2018. 89 points and “Best Buy” from Wine & Spirits.

This syrah was very well balanced and went perfectly with some beef off the grill and risotto.  At $26, its less than a lot of the small production wines, but you still get the same high quality.

Very classy label/bottle as well.

With Mark and Isabell in town for the weekend and flank steak coming off the grill and onto the table, it was time.

Gramercy clearly has the pedigree and story to create some world class wines.  Add-in Greg and Pam Harrington’s understanding of their customer base and you just get the feeling that they are going to do really well. Even the Wall Street Journal is on to them.

550 Cases produced with 97% Syrah and 3% Viognier

What we Thought: we enjoyed this wine and found it to be balanced, and didn’t have that overly spicy, overly alchoholy profile that you see in so many syrahs these days.  Not dark and brooding, but a little lighter in color, it was perfect with our steak and roasted vegetables.  With a little leftover, we tried this wine next to a Syrah from France on the second day and enjoyed pulling out the similarities and drastic differences in the two wines. 

According to Gramercy: This wine displays an amazingly floral nose with hints of orange rind. Flavors of liquid stone and gravel, with smoked meat and red and black fruits. This wine is all about balance with fantastic acidity and intense fruit and earth flavors.  This is a food wine, not for sipping on the porch! 

And finally, a great quote to close: "My goal is to make wines – the kind I like to drink – with lower alcohol, higher acid."  Greg Harrington.

Sometimes the best things are found in the strangest of places.  Out for a Sunday drive on the Washington peninsula we were enjoying the afternoon and a brief glimpse of the spring sunshine en route to Ocean Shores for a mini family reunion. 

One of those roadside signs, you know the ones that usually have the logos of Motel 8, McDonalds, and a Shell gas station, jumped out at me with the Walter Dacon image, same one on this page.  I had enjoyed a bottle of this as a take home prize from our volunteer work at the Washington Wine Auction Winemakers Picnic last summer, and the logo and name are unforgettably unique.

After blowing past the exit, we turned around, backtracked and tracked down this isolated winery near Shelton, Washington.  Their grounds are beautiful and their wine dog slightly intimidating.  We almost didn’t want to get out of the car, but the assistant winemaker Rick went out of his way to greet us and assure us that the dog was indeed quite friendly.

Walter Dacon’s website is under construction and really doesn’t give any background or satisfying story behind this winery that is so far off the beaten path – which is disappointing.

But, they do have a warm and friendly tasting room and happened to be pouring a horizontal selection of 4 different 06 Syrah’s.  All were tasty, but my favorite was the C’est Belle, which contained a small amount of Viognier – a nice Rhone style blending touch.  Walter Dacon is serious about blending and according to Rick, they believe that even .5% makes a big difference in their final products.

All said, a really good Syrah, and if you are in the neighborhood, Walter Dacon is worth a stop.

Tonight, I enjoyed this Syrah from Willis Hall. 

I met John Bell, the owner and winemaker, at the Washington Wine Highway last spring, and enjoyed chatting with him.  He comes from a wine hobby background, having worked at Boeing, and gotten into wine through their Wine and Beermaking club.  2003 was their first commercial vintage and by the tastes of the 2004 syrah, John is making some good wines.

Willis Hall is named after two of John’s most influetial relatives, taking their middle names to form his brand.

This syrah is deep dark garnet color, spicy, and a bit heavy. 

I’ve had great California and Washington syrahs, as well as the Australia cousin, shiraz, but after having this South African syrah from Gilga I have to say it tops them all! I like a touch of spiciness in syrah, but the Gilga managed to pull off both a touch of spice as well as excellent finesse. Tasting notes: great earthiness – real terroir of the Stellenbosch wine region – and a black currant sweetness to balance.

Odds are you are going to be hard pressed to find this specific wine in your local shop, but I would keep an eye out for it. This was as an outstanding $29 wine that ranks easily with $50+ wines. If you don’t see Gilga take a shot at any other South African syrah you might come across. Ask your local wine shop about this varietal from South Africa or if your are really ambitious, look up some importers or winesearcher.com and see how you can track down this type of wine… it’s worth it!

Charcoal? Check.

Food? Check.

Libation?……Libation?

Okay, so you don’t know what to serve. That’s okay; BBQs are hard meals to pair with wine, mostly because your guests and your parties come in all shapes and sizes. For instance, if you are planning to invite 50+ people for a day by the pool, where a spontaneous game of Marco Polo is likely to breakout, do yourself a favor: buy some burgers, dogs and cheap brew. By the time your friend Jimmy hits the water, no one will care what is in his/her glass. However, if you have planned a more docile affair, wine is a brilliant option.

The first thing to remember about BBQs is that they are often centered around food, which typically highlights meat. Burgers, sausages, steaks, and chicken are four of the most common items prepared. The second thing to remember is that BBQs often occur on warm, sunny days. This is where the conundrum arises: should you serve a white wine on a warm, sunny day, or can you serve a big red? The answer: do the right thing…pull out the red. Why? Dry, crisp whites aren’t greasy burgers’ or the spicy sausages’ best friend. However, both have been getting chummy with Syrah for decades.

I like Syrah with my BBQ for several reasons. First, is the cost: you can find a great bottle of Syrah for $15-$25 and a good one for $10. Second, it’s versatile; Syrah is produced all over the world. In France, its native country, it’s dark, intense and plum-like, with hints of dark berries. Domestically, it tends to have a bit more ripe fruit flavor and less tannic punch. In Australia, it is grown in very warm climates, which produce very ripe grapes, that create a sweeter, juicer wine that is high in alcohol*. Finally, and most importantly, it pairs wonderfully with smoky, grilled meats.

To further illustrate my point, I’ll ask you this: would you order a Sauvignon Blanc with sirloin in March? Then why are you doing it in July? Some might say that it’s warm, and they can’t handle a heavy wine. Wine drinking is an experience, and by choosing the right wine with your meal, you will only enhance that experience. The problem most people have with drinking a red wine on a hot day is that they serve it too warm. Red wine should never be served above 65 degrees, or cellar temp. However, most of us don’t have cellars, so we consume our reds at much higher temperatures, often upwards of 75 degrees. Next time you open a red, try cooling it slightly in the fridge, no more than a few minutes. I promise, if you follow these tips, you will be drinking Syrah year-round.

*In Australia they bottle their Syrah under the name Shiraz. This practice has been adopted by many Southern Hemisphere wineries and even some domestic, but it’s still the same grape.

Wines to consider:

- Landmark Vineyards Steelplow Syrah, ‘05: Simply put, it’s BBQ in a bottle, great value, almost Rhone-like goodness

- Spicerack Vineyards “Punchdown” Syrah, ’06: Just as the name implies, full of spice, made by 1 of 5 Marin County wineries