Vin du Lac 2006 Cuvee Rouge

*Bottle #25: Vin du Lac 2006 Columbia Valley Cuvee Rouge Red Wine

*Price: $20

*Running Tab: $315 (discounted!)

A couple weeks ago, I went to Lake Chelan, WA for a girlfriend's bachelorette party. Hands down the most alcohol I had consumed in a single weekend since college. A good majority of that alcohol was wine as we did a tasting tour throughout the Chelan Valley, which is striving to achieve AVA status in the state.

We went to four wineries/vineyards, all with beautiful views of the lake with wines fluctuating from decent to great. From the bottles I purchased for less than I should have (yay, industry discount!), I chose the Vin du Lac Cuvee Rouge red blend for this week's rendition.

Since the wine is young (2006) and full of everything but the kitchen sink (Syrah, Merlot, Cabernet Sauvignon, Petite Syrah, Malbec, Cabernet Franc and Sangiovese), I poured myself a glass and gave it a little time to hang out and open up (roughly 30 minutes). However, this unprofessional decanting may not have been the best idea for this wine.

Hands down, for as many great varietals used in this wine, the Cuvee Rouge was a complete lackluster let down. I remember the vineyard - French and artisan - in a stunning location, placed upon the hill shadowing Chelan Butte, with a grape-cultured staff and a full kitchen offering flavorsome treats alongside of their complimentary four-pour tasting. It seems the facility may have been a slight facade for the passable wines.

The Cuvee Rouge has a distinct smokey, musty and straw aroma to it (which is, in some cases, really nice), followed up with spice, oak and black olives. It was a chore to pull out much fruit on the nose but isn't necessary for me to like the bouquet of a wine.

This time it seemed as so it was a necessary attribute to have fruit on the palate, however. Despite the smoothness of the light and cheerfully-bodied wine, the slight acidity and barely noticeable tannins couldn't keep me from wondering if there was fruit juice squeezed from these grapes or if it was just sugar-eating yeasts turning it into purple booze. 

The Cuvee Rouge is just a bland table wine that could increase flavor with food but would fall over if it tried to stand on its own.

I was a little disappointed with this purchase because I looked back on the winery itself so fondly - which could be because it was the last stop on our winery binge and anything may have tasted like Mondavi at that point. Bummer.

Score: 3.  

Huge Bear 2005 Sauvignon Blanc

*Bottle #24: Huge Bear 2005 Sonoma County Sauvignon Blanc

*Price: $25 (Free for me!)

*Running Tab: $300

Another perk of working at locations of the vine, other than receiving discounted wine, is getting free wine. Winemakers/salespersons come in daily, trying to get you to sell their wine for a price they deem reasonable to make a profit off their new job, hopefully to justify them making wine instead of their former career as an accountant. 

Possibly a former accountant, Tim Carl is a new CEO of wine out in Calistoga, CA and singing his "Proud to be a Californian" tune patriotically with his mint-condition wine label, Huge Bear Wines. As told to me by Carl, the name came from a bear sighting in the 19th century and the bear's spirit of "strength and independence" captured the essence of California, later dubbing the state as the Bear Republic. 

A Californian puffed up about his native wines? Unheard of! But with good reason...  

With small yields thus smaller batches and typically nicer wines when made in such proportions (less than 100 cases), Huge Bear specializes in three wines grown strongly and sovereignly in California - Sauvignon Blanc, Chardonnay and Cabernet Sauvignon. Keeping it close to home, Huge Bear grows its 12-year-old vines in Sonoma County, where Knight Valley is - the home to the elusive "huge bear" story. Full circle, people, full circle.

This Sauv Blanc was atypically aged in oak, even though it was neutral French oak, the grape usually doesn't get near the stuff. I couldn't smell it or taste it anyway so it might not have made a difference other than giving the wine a certain complexity. 

It was the strangest thing - and I don't know if it was the power of suggestion by the winemaker - but Huge Bear had a stiff aroma of lime (key lime, says Carl), giving it a very cool mineral note. After spending some time in the glass, grapefruit came out over the lime and minerality. As a Sauv Blanc, I can always find some herbacious hint to the nose and it was there but extremely subtle. 

Huge Bear Sauv Blanc has a well deserved title, as it was very flavorful, largely full of those citrus fruits, acidity and light on the palate. This wine is still young so it has time to mature but it shouldn't be laid down for too long before it loses those unique citrus aromas and flavors. Perfect this time of year. 

Cheerful and a good combination of sweet and tart, this Sauvignon Blanc should be served cold and crisp to enhance all of the natural characteristics of the grape. I had it around room temperature and still liked it. And I'm fickle!

Score: 8.5.

Woodward Canyon 2004 Syrah

*Bottle #23: Woodward Canyon 2004 Columbia Valley Syrah

*Price: $34 

*Running Tab: $300

I sell this bottle at the Wine Bar like it's going out of style. I sell it like it's my job, because it is and it's a $54 bottle in-house and for some reason, that comes off as a good deal.

I sell the Woodward Canyon Columbia Valley 2004 Syrah because I think it's an awesome bottle for not a horrible price that I was lucky enough to drink for half off (employee discount, woo!). 

The cream of the crop, so to speak, for Washington wines are now growing in the Walla Walla Valley appellation. The region, which is widely overshadowed by the only decent wines of L'Ecole 41, is standing out as a low-yielding terroir with only 60 acres of vines. Woodward Canyon, along with the preeminence of the noted Leonetti Winery, were the pioneers of the region, putting Syrah and Merlot on the map in Washington wine geography. 

And Woodward Canyon has not faltered since and is now bringing in grapes from Yakima Valley and the Horse Heaven Hills for this vintage. A warm 2004 summer produced rich and complex grapes for the wine. Not to mention the fruit was hand-harvested, which means long, detailed scorching, sweaty days of plucking grapes off vines and not getting the pay deserved for such a task... 

For me, I've always loved Syrah. The Rhone varietal is bold, loud and spicy. She is a full-bodied lady, with tons of flavor and plenty of sass. The tannins should be there but not in your face like a Cab. 

Ol' Pioneer Woody did not disappoint. I was smelling some awesome blackberries, dark red fruits, raspberries, barrels of spice and vanilla. You definitely can smell the alcohol, Syrah's are typically higher in alcohol content per volume but holy moly, this stands out at a robust 15.1%. And I loved every second of it...

At 100% the varietal, the Syran was velvety smooth once in my mouth, giving it a small tannic tongue squeeze - like a hug! - with gentle, medium acidity at most and heaps of fruit. There's definitely an alcoholic aftertaste that lingered but the fruit held on just as long with it. 

Ol' Woody will only get better with age - I give it another five years and some intensity wrinkles should smooth out. 

I swear I don't have a thing for old men.

Score: 8.

Las Rocas 2005 Garnacha

*Bottle #22: Las Rocas de San Alejandro Garnacha 2005

*Price: $11

*Running Tab: $288

Plain and simple, I just like to say this wine. I feel very Antonio Banderas-esque. Too sexy and too easy to impersonate. 

As far as being effortless goes,"easy drinking" is an understatement with this wine. Grenache is typically smooth, high in alcohol content and full of ripe fruit. So no way, Jose, am I spitting this stuff out! 

There it is, sitting pretty in my huge, designated tasting glass (photo to come soon!), just taunting me with its deep, garnet color that gives promise of a better evening (it had been a long day). Spicey and Spanish, just like Antonio. 

Grenache, or Spanish Garnacha (Syrah - Shiraz, Pinot Gris - Grigio, tomato - tomawto), is arguably the most commonly planted red wine grape varietal in the world. Hot and dry conditions nurse this baby into its true self so Spain and southern France are comfortable regions for Grenache to grow in. Second to Tempranillo, Grenache-based wines are as Spanish as the "Running of the Bulls." 

What I found odd as I gazed at the red juice in my glass was the physical bubbles going on in the wine. I don't know if that could be from a little oxidation or possible carbonation or some other bottling error - it didn't seem to effect the flavor of the wine, however. The nose still stood true with pepper, black currant and raspberries, to the brim with characteristic spice. With 14.5% alcohol, you could smell the heat bulging out but it wasn't singeing my nose hairs like Everclear. A nice hazelnut pushed through at the end and maybe some brandy. Dirty old man brandy, minus the ice in the glass and the Cuban cigar.

Once in my mouth, I was stuffed with fruit and an equally forceful of an amount of alcohol defending what I smelt earlier. Despite that description, Las Rocas was smooth, simple and easy. So easy that it went down so fast and with that much alcohol, sobriety issues may or may not follow.

Fruit, booze and bad Antonio Banderas accents, how wrong can you go for $11!

Score: 8. 

2006 Fillaboa Albarino Rias Baixas

*Bottle #21: 2006 Fillaboa Albarino Rias Baixas, Spain 

*Price: $17

*Running Tab: $277

Okay, first things first. TOMORROW'S MY BIRTHDAY!

Got that out of my system... Because of this glorious and eventful, seemingly normal summer day that I was born on, a white wine was plucked from my withering cellar to enjoy in the abnormal heat Seattle has been enduring. 

The Albarino (which I manage to mispronounce almost every time - it's spelt EXACTLY like it should come out of your mouth, except you say "n'yo", instead of "no") varietal is a thick-skinned, aromatic Spanish white grape that is often compared to Viogniers and Gewurtztraminer. 

As far as Spanish Albarino goes, the grape can generally be found in the government controlled region of Rias Baixas, even more specifically in the town of Cambados - which kind of sounds like a meat you'd find in expensive fajitas. 

I can clearheadedly declare this as my favorite white wine to date, in the face of the fact that I've polished off the entire bottle. 

The acidity in the nose almost sparks. It's firm acid is far from abrasive but holds its own as a distinctive and flavorful characteristic of the wine. Stick your nose in there and you'll find almonds, peaches and pears with a mention of wood. I'm gonna take a shot in the dark and say it's oak.

The grape's name should come out of your mouth easy but the wine shouldn't. Because you'd like it. The same peaches are on the palate, with a nice acidity complimenting my above comments and a solid existence of heat from the 12.5% alcohol as it goes down. The finishing mouthfeel is nutty, screaming almonds all the way through. The medium-bodied, slightly sweet smelling wine is smooth and well-built for a full 60-second ride through this Spanish delicacy. 

This is what the Spaniards call "delicioso." I'm so bilingual on my birthday-almost. 

Score: 9.