William Pollard Jr | aka: Wild 4 Washington Wine

Time for Red Mountain Syrah!  Many of my recent posts have focused on white and rose' wines. It's been two weeks of triple digit weather in SE Washington, so I have favored chilled wines. I am ready for a break from the heat. As much as I enjoy chilled white and pink wines in the summer, I still crave red wine, especially once the sun dips near the horizon. One of my favorite varieties is Syrah, Washington Syrah and Red Mountain Syrah. In that order. There's a quality and complexity to Red Mountain wines which titillates and gratifies the senses. This bottle of Kiona Vineyards and Winery 2012 Red Mountain Syrah did not disappoint. A worthwhile Wine of the Week. Tasting Notes Kiona 2012 Red Mountain Syrah Color : Bright Garnet. Nose : Violets, dark notes in background, soft soil, candied. Palate : Round, blue fruit focused to front, dry on the gums, tingle back of mouth, a little heat on the flavorful light finish. After 15 minutes : Broad nose, sarsaparilla...

Juli, thank you for the inspirational recommendation. Kia Ora! My New Zealand blogging partner, Juli Crompe of  Kiwi Daydreaming , is a fan of  Nobilo Wines  Sauvignon Blanc. You will always see a case of Nobilo wines in her home. Juli shared about the Nobilo Regional collection,  "...my wine of choice for any season, any day of the week." It is my pleasure this summer to confirm that Juli is correct. Nobilo makes wonderful New Zealand Sauvignon Blanc. Both the Nobilo Regional Collection and their Nobilo Icon Sauvignon Blanc will tingle your palate and toes. These are delicious, vibrant New Zealand wines. The Nobilo Regional Collection can often be found locally priced around $10. That's a win! If you want to take it up a notch, try the Nobilo Icon Sauvignon Blanc. Nobilo Icon wines are rich, complex and full bodied, with excellent weight, structure and balance. Definitely raising the bar for Sauvignon Blanc. Bring some Nobilo Sauvignon Blanc ho...

Sip Pink! I'd like to thank my friends at Protocol Wine Studio for hosting a wonderful and educational wine tasting last month with a focus on rose' wines. Summer is a natural fit for crisp, dry rose' wines. Don't think sweet pink/orange wines, think refreshing, appetite inducing versatile wines. Each of the three rose's samples I received were different and complimented different types of cuisine. I was especially intrigued by the Erzetic Winery Rose' from Slovenia and the Donelan Rose' from Sonoma. Very different and fun wines. Stock up now to allay the heat of summer. About Protocol Wine Studio Protocol Wine Studio hosted the June 2015 #WineStudio session on Rose' wines. Protocol Wine Studio is all about wine education, thus a better understanding of our world via wine and our part in that world. Bravo. Follow along with our tweets on Tuesday evenings at 6 pm Pacific. Tasting Notes 1. Erzetic Winery Damski Rose', Slovenia ...

New Zealand Wine Rocks! Another hot day on the sunny SE side of Washington state is wearing. The forecast is continued triple digit temperatures. With weather like this my favorite go to wine is Sauvignon Blanc. New Zealand Sauvignon Blanc. Today, I recommend you seek refuge from the heat from a selection of refreshing New Zealand white wines: Kim Crawford Pinot Gris, Unoaked Chardonnay and Sauvignon Blanc. In my part of the world Kim Crawford has become synonymous with quality New Zealand wine. After enjoying these three wines I can confirm it is a well deserved reputation. *Note : Regular readers know that in 2011 I started a New Zealand wine blog with my friend Juli Crompe, www.kiwidaydreaming.com , because of a mutual fixation with wines of New Zealand. Sadly, our New Zealand blog has lost steam, so I will post my New Zealand wine reviews to this blog. Juli is well and keeping busy. I had a pleasant visit with her earlier this year in Seattle at the Washington State Wine ...

30th Edition of #VAWinechat  On 25 June 2015 I participated in another fun #VAwinechat twitter wine tasting featuring Early Mountain Vineyards of Madison, Virginia. My friend Frank Morgan of Drink What You Like  is the host of #VAWinechat. He started Virginia Wine Chat  to bring wine bloggers and consumers together via a virtual gathering to discuss the wines, winemakers, wineries and regions of Virginia. I have been fortunate to participate in several Virginia Wine Chat wine tastings. Quality is strong in Virginia. Thank you Frank for the invitation and thank you Early Mountain Vineyards for sharing your lovely wines. A conversation with  Early Mountain Vineyards ​Twitter: @earlymountain Follow the twitter discussion #VAWineChat​ (L to R) Frank Morgan, Jonathan Hollerith, Ben Jordan.  Frank Morgan hosted the wine tasting with Early Mountain Vineyards' new Winemaker Ben Jordan and exiting Vineyard Manager and Winemaker Jonathan Holle...

trump [truhmp] noun \ˈtrəmp\ Trump a card of a suit any of whose cards will win over a card that is not of this suit - called also 'trump card' A decisive overriding factor or final resource - called also 'trump card' Trump a dependable and exemplary person As I prepare for another Virginia wine tasting courtesy of #VAWinechat, I want to address a previous Virginia wine tasting featuring Trump Winery of Monticello. Yes, that Trump, the Donald owns a Virginia winery. Today I will share with you the origin of Trump Winery as well as reviews of several Trump wines. We will not discuss politics on this post, only wine. Sparkling wines are thriving in Virginia. Of the 253 Wineries in Virginia, at least 21 are making sparkling wines. You may know that I am a big fan of sparkling wines. They are tasty, fun to drink and pair with almost any kind of food or occasion. The Trump Wines tasting was especially enticing because it started with two bottles of sparkling w...

Companion post to the podcast - " Successful Techies to Lake Chelan Wine Makers: Kevin & Holly Brown, Siren Song" Siren Song Grand Opening and Release Party July 2nd. We were fortunate to receive pre-lease bottles of the  Siren Song Wines 2013 The Muse Sparkling Brut Pinot Noir prior to this special #WineMuse podcast. We had to taste this wine since it shares the name of our Wine Muse podcast. My tasting notes are below. Listen to the podcast - Siren Song Wines . Husband and wife team, Holly and Kevin Brown, legends in High Tech circles for their founding of Visio, Symform, and Tableau Software, changed gears to pursue a creative, shared passion of food and wine. They started Siren Song Wines and the Foodie website, The Brown Lounge . Lake Chelan, Washington is one of the most scenic areas in the world, and the location of their new Mediterranean-inspired wine tasting room and event center. Part winery, restaurant, and event facility, this will be the perfect...