*Bottle #55: Barrister Winery NV Columbia Valley Rough Justice
*Price Tag: $18
*Running Tab: $670
*Price Tag: $18
*Running Tab: $670
I'm not going to lie... My tongue might have been a little under the weather for this tasting. I had consumed some wines before and had just recently burnt my tongue on pizza. That being said, I am a completely reliable and unbiased source and you should listen to me. End of story.
I'm also not going to lie... This wine is produced in Spokane, WA. For some of you locals, names such as "Spokompton," "Spokanistan" and "Spokangeles" might come to mind. But nay, ghettolicious titles will not deter my quest for good, cheap wine!
Now there are great things to come out of Spokane, WA... Like Gonzaga U basketball's finest recruit, Adam Morrison, it's the second largest city in the state AND it hosted the 1974 World Fair! See! This wine could be #4!
The ultra-prestigious and accurate (cough) Wine Press Northwest prophesied Barrister Winery to be "one of the Northweset's emerging superstar wineries" and with just under 3,000 cases released in the 2009 vintage, the two cellar masters have definitely grown from daytime attorneys into nighttime garagistes.
Producing small quantities of Bordeaux-style red wines - a familiar tune Washington winemakers like to sing - Barrister keeps its title as a Spokomptonite artisan winemakers - a tune Washington winemakers have started to forget.
Cleverly dubbed "Rough Justice" by two city attorneys, this multi-varietal, multi-vintage blend might have sampled from many other blends' songs. Merlot-based, blended with Cab, Syrah and Cab Franc from such and such Red Mountain vineyards and such and such high-rolling, prominent grape growers' influence. Sounds like a lot of other melodies.
But look at how many Beatles' songs Oasis ripped off and they're still successful!
So how bout it, Spokane?
Sitting in my glass, this wine was nothing special. Her color was a deep burgundy with dark and jammy fruit juicing out of the glass with some hints of clove and cocoa. Swirl and spin her around to this similar tune and she still puts off the same, generic aromas and even a little bit of booze.
Sounds like a girl you'd like to dance with to that same song? Bring her up to your lips and she'll give you the same dark and jammy fruit with a marginally sweet midpalate and an toasted oak finish. Then you'll realize she laced her kiss with an ellicit drug that put your own your ass.
... Almost likewise, the Rough Justice stays true to its name where it's so sweet seeming at first, then it shocks you with moonshine and fierce, almost harsh acidity. I like it when you get a wave of tannins as a wine finishes but a hurricane of acidity is a different hypothetical environmental crisis.
My friend's response to the wine sums it up: "Why does it sting when I swallow it?"
Now flip that in as many dirty ways as you want, sickos, but keep in mind, wine drinking should be a pleasurable experience. This was not.
Score: 3.
I'm also not going to lie... This wine is produced in Spokane, WA. For some of you locals, names such as "Spokompton," "Spokanistan" and "Spokangeles" might come to mind. But nay, ghettolicious titles will not deter my quest for good, cheap wine!
Now there are great things to come out of Spokane, WA... Like Gonzaga U basketball's finest recruit, Adam Morrison, it's the second largest city in the state AND it hosted the 1974 World Fair! See! This wine could be #4!
The ultra-prestigious and accurate (cough) Wine Press Northwest prophesied Barrister Winery to be "one of the Northweset's emerging superstar wineries" and with just under 3,000 cases released in the 2009 vintage, the two cellar masters have definitely grown from daytime attorneys into nighttime garagistes.
Producing small quantities of Bordeaux-style red wines - a familiar tune Washington winemakers like to sing - Barrister keeps its title as a Spokomptonite artisan winemakers - a tune Washington winemakers have started to forget.
Cleverly dubbed "Rough Justice" by two city attorneys, this multi-varietal, multi-vintage blend might have sampled from many other blends' songs. Merlot-based, blended with Cab, Syrah and Cab Franc from such and such Red Mountain vineyards and such and such high-rolling, prominent grape growers' influence. Sounds like a lot of other melodies.
But look at how many Beatles' songs Oasis ripped off and they're still successful!
So how bout it, Spokane?
Sitting in my glass, this wine was nothing special. Her color was a deep burgundy with dark and jammy fruit juicing out of the glass with some hints of clove and cocoa. Swirl and spin her around to this similar tune and she still puts off the same, generic aromas and even a little bit of booze.
Sounds like a girl you'd like to dance with to that same song? Bring her up to your lips and she'll give you the same dark and jammy fruit with a marginally sweet midpalate and an toasted oak finish. Then you'll realize she laced her kiss with an ellicit drug that put your own your ass.
... Almost likewise, the Rough Justice stays true to its name where it's so sweet seeming at first, then it shocks you with moonshine and fierce, almost harsh acidity. I like it when you get a wave of tannins as a wine finishes but a hurricane of acidity is a different hypothetical environmental crisis.
My friend's response to the wine sums it up: "Why does it sting when I swallow it?"
Now flip that in as many dirty ways as you want, sickos, but keep in mind, wine drinking should be a pleasurable experience. This was not.
Score: 3.
2 comments:
"Then you'll realize she laced her kiss with an ellicit drug that put your own your ass."
Huh?
My lady friend and I sampled this at the wine bar in the Spokane Airport (along with 2 other reds and 3 whites -- all sampled in the proper order).
I thought it was above average, pretty much as you describe but, we certainly didn't get the bad after effects you and your friend experienced.
That isn't the reason my lady friend will be buying a few bottles, though -- she's a lawyer. A bottle will look good as a bookcase ornament, and she can pass a few around to her colleagues.
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