Washington: Epic Bookwalter

Happy New Year Everyone! Hope everyone had a great holiday season! And yes, I am lagging. Oh well. New Year Resolution: Keep up with the drinking and posting! 

Snowy drive

It was a scenic and snowy drive from Seattle and we finally made it to Richland, East Washington a little after dark. Not wasting any time, we made our first stop at Bookwalter winery just down the street from where we were staying. This will be exciting since I had Bookwalter wines a year ago!

Snowy and festive!

It was a spanish style stand alone winery all covered in white and a full parking lot. The restaurant/wine bar was popping, with live music and a full house for the holidays. We got seated immediately and had full attention from our waitress. Their food selection sounded delicious and was well thought out with the wines in mind.

Epic Flight

We ordered the Epic flight:

Couplet 2011
A blend of chardonnnay and viognier, this had plenty of the floral bouquet you would expect from viognier with roses in the mix. This was fresh and light with no oak at all. Well balanced with wonderful notes of lemon, green apple and honeysuckle, this was enjoyable and a great wine to begin the Washington tasting with! OOO

Foreshadow Merlot 2010
This was an interesting one since I have had the 2009. This was high in alcohol (it hits you!) meaning plenty of sugar for the yeasties, making me think it was a warm year. But no, 2010 was a cool year! Just a young merlot I guess. Nonetheless, this had plenty of tannins to go around and pretty bright with notes of earthiness and fruits like cherry although it was not very fruity surprisingly. Definitely on the savory side. Compared with the 2009, this was on the opposite end with the fruit. OOO

Foreshadow Cabernet Sauvignon 2010
With a nose of toasty caramel and blackcurrant, this had layers of tannins, with juicy notes of dark red cherries, walnuts and cigar. Lingering finish of dark fruits. I would not call it smooth but this was enjoyable. Sounds pretty similar to 2009 except for the chocolate and cigar.  OOOo

Erlenmeyer flask

Protagonist 2010
A blend of merlot, cabernet sauvignon, petite verdot, syrah and cabernet franc, this was quite the party! Nose of toasty caramel and juicy fruits. This was less tannic than expected, with a smooth silky medium to heavy mouthfeel. With a touch of sugar residual, this was juicy and fruity with notes of cocoa and blackcurrant. This had a lingering finish of raisins. And I love the way they served it. YUM! OOOO

Next stop: Barnard and Griffin!