Narratif Wines & NW Wine Collaborative

J.J. Compeau of Narratif Wines & NW Wine Collaborative

February 2022

As his name suggests, Jean Jacques (JJ) Compeau is of French heritage, with family members some of the earliest European fur trappers in North America.  He was born in Yakima, WA, though his family was always on the road following his father who played for 50 years in a rock band.  JJ dabbled in drumming, but found a passion in wine after working in a Yakima restaurant.  He and other staff members had to really learn about the wines, especially about wine and food pairing.  The experience led him to a career in many aspects of the WA wine industry, including retail, managing, and, most recently, winemaking.  He Selah wine shop/bar was the first to sell some of Washington’s premium wines during the mid 1990s.  Now JJ is selling his own wines in a tasting room he opened in Prosser in December 2021.  With his and others’ art on the walls and artifacts displayed from the WA wine industry’s early days, the new tasting room reflects JJ’s interest in wine art and history.

JJ produces wine under two labels.  His first label is Narratif Wines, named for their emphasis on telling a story, particularly the story of vineyards and AVAs.  The goal with this label is to reveal the flavor profiles of specific vineyards and AVAs, such as Dubrul and Red Willow Vineyards, both in the Yakima Valley AVA.  His second label is NW Wine Collaborative, suggesting the goal of collaborating with growers and winemakers to make high quality, affordable wines for restaurants.  The theme of collaboration is reflected by the three interlocking hands on the 2018 Collaboration Red Wine label.  JJ’s collaborators for this wine were winemakers at Hightower and Wit Cellars.  Listen to the interview to learn more about JJ’s wines, food and wine pairings, and much more.

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Lines on Wines · #124 JJ Compeau of Narratif Wines and NW Wine Collaborative

Chandler Reach Vineyards

Len Parris of Chandler Reach Vineyards & Winery

February 2022

After completing two years at Central Washington University, Len Parris became a “Road Scholar” pursuing jobs initially as a ski instructor.  By the time he was 24, he had 22 people working for him in a construction/plumbing business.  That business and a love interest eventually took him to the Seattle area, where he built homes for members of the Seattle Seahawks and Sonics.  In 1991, he ventured into the coffee business with the first drive-thru coffee place in the U.S.  His first trip to Italy in 1997 sparked an interest in the wine business.  He was impressed with the Italians’ agricultural lifestyle, and with the continuity of family ownership of estates, including the estate where he was staying that had been in the same family for over 600 years.  His friends urged him to start his own vineyard, which he did upon returning to Washington.  His father had given him some raw sagebrush acres not far from Red Mountain, and those acres are still the core of what is today an even larger Chandler Reach Estate Vineyard.

The vineyard plans evolved into something more grand, so that today the Chandler Reach Vineyards and Winery website states, “The Map says Washington, The Eyes say Tuscany.”  In addition to vines, the visitor sees a lovely Italian style villa offering rosé and red wines to taste.  Len makes the wines and offers a tasting experience that includes sipping in the vineyard and barrel tasting in the cave.  The signature blend is Monte Regalo, or mountain gift, and the most sought after Chandler Reach wine is Cabernet Franc.  Listen to this interview to find out what the mountain gifts, why the Cabernet Franc is so special, what has surprised Len most about working in the wine industry, and much more.

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Lines on Wines · #123 Len Parris of Chandler Reach Vineyards & Winery

Barrels and Wine

Chris Hansen of Seguin Moreau

January 2022

Barrels are integral to winemaking, and Seguin Moreau has been part of the process since the 19th century.  They began as two separate cooperages in Cognac, Moreau in 1838 and Seguin in 1870, and were merged when Remy Martin acquired both after 1960.  Today Seguin Moreau has production facilities in Cognac, Burgundy, and Napa that together make roughly 75,000 barrels annually, or 300 per day, and have nearly 5,000 customers across the globe.  The cooperage is known globally for state-of-the-art barrel making from only the finest woods, and for cutting edge research on barrels’ sensory impact on wine. 

I know from working in a tasting room that wine lovers have as many questions about barrels as they do about wine.  Barrel making is an ancient highly skilled craft that grew out of shipbuilding.  Today’s coopers still use many hand tools, but also highly specialized machines for precision cutting and bending.  They create liquid tight barrels without using any glue, adhesive or nails to hold the staves (planks) together.  The assembly process is almost as fascinating as the impact that oak barrels have on wine.  Because of the chemical composition of oak, its porosity to air, and the toasting process, oak has a truly transformative effect on wines that are fermented and/or aged in barrels.  In this interview, Chris Hansen, General Manager at Seguin Moreau Napa, talks about key facets of oak sourcing, barrel making, and barrels’ impact on wine.

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Lines on Wines · #122 Barrels and Wine

Lone Point Cellars

Jim and Dana Divis of Lone Point Cellars

For a jaw-dropping panoramic setting, it’s hard to beat Lone Point Cellars.  Located in Brewster about as far north as you can go in the Columbia Valley AVA, the facility sits on a 1200 ft high ridge overlooking the confluence of the Columbia and Okanogan Rivers, where you can take in a view for miles.  Jim and Dana Divis have created a true destination winery complete with wine tasting, dining, and 6 year-round cottage rentals, all within easy driving distance of numerous outdoor activities, including a world-class golf course.  Each 500 sq ft cottage includes a private deck and access to a gazebo-covered barbecue area.  Lone Point is an idyllic get-away spot anytime of the year!!!!

Jim is the winegrower and Dana the chef at what they call their “piece of paradise.”  They started with 12 acres of tree fruit in 1984, and expanded to 200 acres, while also raising 4 kids.  In 2014, Jim decided to plant vines, and they now have a 6 acre vineyard they source from for white and Rosé wines.  For their red wines, they typically use Red Mountain fruit.  The dining room offers a nice list of small bites, salads, paninis, pizzas, and desserts.  On Thursday nights, Dana does a reservations only 4-course dinner with wine pairings.  A passion for hunting is on display in the tasting room and on the wine labels, in that dogs on point are prominent.  A beautiful engraving of Jim’s beloved dog “Grace” graces the label, along with several low-key and artistic symbols of hunting.  There’s also a “Side-by-Side” red wine that’s an homage to hunting, and pairs nicely with many items on the menu. 

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Lines on Wines · #121 Jim & Dana Divis of Lone Point Cellars

Smoke Impact on Grapes & Wine

Tom Collins of WSU talks about Smoke Impact on Grapes and Wine

Tom Collins’ wine career began in the Finger Lakes region of New York.  A Navy ROTC Scholarship sent him to Cornell University where he majored in Russian and Soviet Studies.  On weekends when he wanted a break from studying, he went wine tasting with friends at local wineries.  Thus began a lifelong career in wine, with jobs at several different wineries and an eventual PhD from the University of CA at Davis in Agricultural and Environmental Chemistry. 

Tom’s research as a doctoral student focused on the effect of oak barrels on wine, so he knew something about burnt, or toasted, wood and wine.  In 2015, Tom became an Assistant Professor in Washington State University’s Viticulture and Enology Program where he conducts research on how vineyard and winery practices affect the chemical composition of grapes and wine.   A major part of his research has come to be focused on the impact of smoke on grapes and wine.  He and colleagues from Oregon State University and the University of CA at Davis recently received a $7.5 million USDA grant to study this topic over the next four years. 

Researchers are just beginning to understand how wildfire smoke affects wine grapes and wine.  In this interview, Tom discusses some of the things we know as well as things we need to know in order to preserve grape and wine quality in the midst of annual wildfires.  If you have wondered about how grapes are affected by smoke, factors about smoke likely to impact wine quality, whether smoke taint can appear during aging, if smoke exposed grapes affect red or white wine more, what things can be done in the vineyard and winery to minimize smoke impact, and many more things about smoke and wine, this is the interview for you!

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Lines on Wines · #120 Smoke Impact on Grapes & Wine

Coyote Canyon Vineyard and Winery

Mike Andrews and Justin Michaud of Coyote Canyon Vineyard & Winery

November 2021

Mike Andrews and his family farm land in the Horse Heaven Hills that was used by the government as a firing range during World War II.  His grandparents purchased land there in 1941 that they dry farmed with wheat, until they dug the first well in the 1950s.  Irrigated pasture land followed to create a thriving cattle business, alongside the wheat and other irrigated crops.  Mike intended to spend his life as a cattleman, but took a chance on planting his first wine grapes in 1994, just as the demand for grapes was really growing in WA.  He started with 21 acres of Cabernet Sauvignon, and soon got a contract from Chateau Ste Michelle for 700 acres of wine grapes.   Today, his Coyote Canyon Vineyard includes 1300 acres planted to 16 different grape varieties, including Albarino and Graciano that he was the first in the state to plant.

Justin Michaud joined Coyote Canyon Winery as winemaker in 2014, bringing a wealth of viticulture and winemaking experience from jobs in California, Washington and New Zealand.  He really likes working with new grape varieties, and thus Coyote Canyon was a perfect fit.  In addition to making Bordeaux and Rhone style wines typically found in Washington, Justin also gets to make Spanish and Italian style wines with grape varieties that are less common, such as Albarino, Graciano, Primitivo, and Barbera.  The goal is always to highlight the vineyard, but also to show people how different styles of winemaking can create different wines using the same grape from the same vineyard.  For example, Coyote Canyon Winery produces three different Albarino wines, all from the estate vineyard, but using very different fermentation and other winemaking techniques.  Learn about this fascinating Albarino project and much more from this interview with Mike and Justin.

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Lines on Wines · #119 Mike Andrews & Justin Michaud of Coyote Canyon Winery

Tapteil Vineyard & Winery

Larry and Jane Pearson

August 2021

After a night of tent camping in a sea of Red Mountain sagebrush, Larry Pearson knew the land was ideal for a vineyard.  He purchased it in 1984 and began planting 3+ acres of vines in 1985, when there were only three other vineyards on Red Mountain.  His goal was to produce outstanding Cabernet Sauvignon, and he certainly has done just that and much more since that time.   Tapteil Vineyard has grown to 45 acres of Bordeaux and Rhone grape varieties, and Larry and Jane also purchased vineyard land west of Red Mountain for Cabernet, Syrah, Riesling and Aglianico.  They keep up to 20% of the grapes for their own wines, and sell the rest to some of the top wineries in the state.

Larry made his first wine in 1979, but his first Tapteil release was 1998.  He became a full-time farmer and winemaker after 2012 when he fully retired from his engineering career.   Jane has brought sales, marketing and painting skills to Tapteil, and the tasting room walls display her paintings depicting the Red Mountain bucolic lifestyle.  She has also done artist labels for their Spilya Vineyard Syrah since 2005.  Larry and Jane will retire soon for a second time, as they have just sold Tapteil Vineyard, Winery and Tasting Room to Avennia Winery in Woodinville.  According to the press release, Avennia intends to have a tasting room on Red Mountain.   In this interview, Larry and Jane reflect on 30+ years of winegrowing on Red Mountain, the recent sale of the vineyard and winery, and what lies ahead for them.   

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Lines on Wines · #118 Larry & Jane Pearson of Tapteil Vineyard and Winery

Kitzke Cellars

Seth Kitzke of Kitzke Cellars in the new Candy Mountain AVA

Kitzke Cellars is the only winery in Washington’s new Candy Mountain AVA near Richland.  Inspired by a love of farming and their neighbor’s vines, Vickie and Paul Kitzke planted a small vineyard of red grape varieties on Candy Mountain in 2000.  In 2005, they produced their first vintage of Kitzke Cellars wines, and eventually turned their two-car garage into a tasting room.  Their son Seth spent his teenage years working in the vineyard, but was also a semi-professional snowboarder travelling the world.  When winemakers dropped by the house to chat, Seth was more likely to be found outside skateboarding than listening to the ins and outs of winemaking.  His priorities changed after college and marriage, when he pursued wine studies at the Northwest Wine Academy and worked with various winemakers, including Charlie Hoppes, Brian Carter and Charles Smith.  In 2015, he became head winemaker and viticulturalist for Kitze Cellars.

Seth is a rising star in the WA wine industry—a true winegrower who is involved 100% with everything from the vines in the ground to the wines in the bottle.  His wines are terroir driven to the point that he uses only natural yeasts in his winemaking.  He adopts other traditional winemaking methods such as field blending in the years when it’s possible.  He’s partial to Cabernet Franc because that’s a grape variety that really thrives on Candy Mountain.  But he also does several unusual wines for Washington, including Nebbiolo, a superb Super Tuscan, and a not-to-miss field-blended Bordeaux blend.  Listen to this interview to learn more about field blending, native yeasts, Nebbiolo, the new Candy Mountain AVA, and much more.

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Lines on Wines · #117 Seth Kitzke of Kitzke Cellars

Wautoma Springs Winery

Jessica Munnell of Wautoma Springs Winery

Lines on Wines would like to thank the Best Western Plus Inn at Horse Heaven for their generous sponsorship.

A vineyard meeting between Jessica Munnell and Tom Merkle eventually led to the creation of Wautoma Springs Winery in Prosser, WA.  Together, they bring years of viticultural and winemaking experience to crafting outstanding boutique wines with unforgettable flavors.  Jessica is the winemaker and Tom the owner and manager of Wautoma Springs Vineyard which, together with Stone Tree Vineyard in the Wahluke Slope AVA, supplies most of the fruit for Wautoma wines.  Tom’s roots in fruit farming are deep.  A 32-year old vine planted by his father at Indian Wells Vineyard stretches across the Wautoma Springs tasting room wall to honor the Merkle family’s farming heritage.  The palatial tasting room also offers many tins of seafood from around the world that patrons can consume as they taste. 

Both the labels and wines at Wautoma are memorable.   White and Rosé wine bottles display a native plant linked in some way to the color or nature of the wine inside.  Most red wine labels display either a character from a favorite Russian novel or a cuttlefish, whose ink reflects the wine color, especially in the case of Malbec.  In fact, the two Wautoma Malbec wines are named Inky and Little Inky, reflecting their color and bold flavor.   Cabernet Sauvignon and Malbec are two favorite wines of Tom and Jessica, and the El Prat wine is an outstanding blend of the two grape varieties.  Great wines, story, and art, as well as a love of food and travel, come together at Wautoma Springs Winery, as you will learn in this interview.

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Lines on Wines · #116 Jessica Munnell of Wautoma Springs Winery

Wine Cruises

Liz Day of Triple A of Washington (AAAWA) on Wine Cruises

Have you dreamed about a hassle-free trip through your favorite wine country that is relaxing, fun and educational? If so, a wine-themed cruise may be just the thing for you.  There are dozens of river and open water cruises to choose from on multiple continents.  As pandemic restrictions begin to ease, cruise lines are up and running again and booking for 2022 and 2023, with virus protocols in place to ensure passenger safety.  If you’re thinking of a wine themed cruise for 2022, this is the time to book.  Cruise along storied rivers through Europe’s wine regions, or here in the Pacific Northwest on the Columbia R, Snake R and other waters.  In this interview, Liz Day discusses many aspects of wine cruising, and offers advice to the first-time cruiser.  She is a wine and food cruise specialist with Triple A of Washington (AAAWA), who works closely with AmaWaterways and American Queen Steamboat Co., as well as other cruise lines. 

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Lines on Wines · #115 Wine Cruises with Liz Day of AAA

Frichette & Sashay Wines

Greg & Shae Frichette of Frichette Winery and Sashay Wines

A coin toss and some door knocks turned 5+ Red Mountain acres into home for Greg and Shae Frichette.  They came from California, where she was a corporate trainer and he an IT specialist, though they both came originally from farming families.  They were drawn to agricultural life and work, but also wanted the social aspect that comes with having a winery.  Today they live on site close by the Frichette Winery facility and tasting room, and the 2+ acre estate vineyard planted to Cabernet Franc and Cabernet Sauvignon.  They love the local community, and the intense, concentrated, bold wines characteristic of Red Mountain.    

Under the slightly textured and very elegant Frichette label, Greg and Shae produce Bordeaux style wines, including a Semillon and a list of red wines, both single varietal and blends.  Their wines are fruit driven and intense, but with the tannins tamed to a silky smoothness.  If you’re looking to discover how different vineyard sites affect Cabernet Sauvignon in the glass, this is a good place for you. And don’t miss the outstanding Punctual signature blend of Cabernet Franc and Cabernet Sauvignon from Scooteney Flats and Quintessence Vineyards.  Frichette wines also highlight the boldness of WA Merlot, a favorite variety for Greg and Shae.  Shae even makes a Merlot Rosé under her own Sashay label, which is one of the most unique labels in the industry, both in terms of concept and design.  Learn more about Frichette and Sashay wines in this fascinating interview!!

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Lines on Wines · #114 Greg & Shae Frichette of Frichette and Sashay Wines

Nefarious Cellars

Heather & Dean Neff of Nefarious Cellars

In 1998 when they first planted grapes on family lands near Pateros, Heather and Dean Neff were pioneer grape growers in the Chelan area.  They planted 7 grape varieties to see what would grow, and they still have two of those varieties, Riesling and Syrah, on the land today.  Heather and Dean both had business related degrees but knew little about enology and viticulture, so they headed to the Willamette Valley to work in the industry and study in the Chemeketa Community College Wine Studies Program.  After starting a small label in OR, they returned to Washington in 2004 and found a perfect vineyard site on the south shore of Lake Chelan.  Today that site contains their Defiance Estate Vineyard, a spacious guest house rental, and the Nefarious Cellars tasting room, all with stunning views of the lake.

In addition to their lakeside Defiance Vineyard, the Neffs have Rocky Mother and Stone’s Throw Vineyards on the original family lands near Pateros.  The vineyards are planted to Syrah, Viognier, Riesling and Malbec.  The Neffs source other grape varieties from both Chelan area vineyards and the Weinbau Vineyard in the Wahluke Slope AVA.  Heather makes all the white and rosé wines and Dean the reds.  The dry Rosé of Syrah and Pinot Noir is the perfect style for a Lake Chelan Rosé, given the prominence of those two grape varieties in the area.  Nefarious Cellars’ biggest production wine is a unique white blend they call the “patio sipper,” and a popular estate Malbec is known as the “gulpable selection”.  For Central Washington University alums, there is a new CWU Alumni Wine Club with Nefarious wines to choose from.   Learn about these wines and more in this interview.

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Lines on Wines · #113 Heather & Dean Neff of Nefarious Cellars

Muret-Gaston & Purple Star Wines

Kyle and Amy Johnson of Muret-Gaston and Purple Star Wines

It wasn’t until after they were married that Kyle and Amy Johnson discovered their families were connected ages ago on a distant continent.  That discovery eventually led to their Muret-Gaston label, which highlights the two family names.  But before that label appeared, Olsen Estates where Kyle was winemaker closed its doors, prompting Kyle and Amy to launch Purple Star wines that now receive 90 points in Wine Spectator.  The publication named Purple Star a Washington Winery to Watch.  It’s also an ideal source of accessible, affordable and approachable wines, as no bottle is more than $20 and the wines can be found in many grocery stores.  The tasting room located between Benton City and Prosser offers flights and glass pours of Muret-Gaston and Purple Star wines, along with picnic packs and other artisanal food items.

Both the Muret-Gaston and Purple Star wines highlight outstanding fruit from the Red Mountain, Wahluke Slope, and Yakima Valley AVAs.  Kyle also produces roughly every five years a Native Sun label, which is now always a Cabernet Sauvignon from Heart of the Hill Vineyard on Red Mountain and has received 94 points in Wine Spectator.  The multiple labels allow for different price points, but also for a variety of winemaking techniques, including a champagne press for whites and rosés, native yeasts for many wines, whole berry fermentation, a solera style non-vintage blend, and a mix of concrete and oak fermented Chardonnay.  Learn about these techniques, new plans for sparkling wine, and much more from listening to this interview. 

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Lines on Wines · #112 Kyle & Amy Johnson of Muret-Gaston and Purple Star Wines

Plain Cellars

Bob Sage of Plain Cellars

Bob Sage grew up in a red wine drinking family, with a father who first made cherry wine Bob endured and then grape wine that inspired him to make his own.  His first wine was his daughter’s wedding wine, a Cabernet/Syrah blend that each guest took home for toasting the couple on their first anniversary.  Some years later when profits from a face care brush product provided extra cash, Bob and his wife Roxanne built a winery and tasting room facility on their retirement land in Plain, Washington 13 miles north of Leavenworth.  The secluded mountain community not far from Lake Wenatchee offers a wealth of outdoor activities, including river floating, Nordic sports, hiking, fishing, camping, and mushroom picking.  The winery provides personalized weekend tastings with events every other weekend in summer that include music and food from “A Taste of Plain”.  Plain Cellars also has a tasting room and patio on the charming Front St. in downtown Leavenworth.

Plain Cellars is a family effort with everyone pitching in to pour in the tasting room, help with construction, and create unique labels.  Each year Bob produces two white wines, a rosé, 8 reds, and one port style dessert wine.  There is a nice mix of single varietal and blended wines mostly in the Bordeaux and Rhone styles.  The Calypso Rosé is different from many rosé wines in that it is a Sangiovese and Grenache blend.  Other Plain Cellars wines not often seen in Washington include a very popular Petite Sirah and a Port style dessert wine made with several Portuguese grape varieties.  Listen here to learn more about an inspiring story and award winning wines.

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Lines on Wines · #111 Bob Sage of Plain Cellars

Fortuity Cellars

Lee & Emily Fergestrom and Alexis Sells of Fortuity Cellars

Small Business Association’s 2019 Rising Startup of the Year in Washington and Northern Idaho

Chance moments that can change one’s life for good are summed up by the word “Fortuity,” and that’s the name Lee and Emily Fergestrom chose for their Wapato winery that produced its first wines in 2017.  Such moments have led to unique Fortuity wines and to Emily and Lee meeting in the first place, all because of an empty chair.  Since their first meeting and eventual marriage, chance, vision and a lot of hard work have resulted in Fortuity Cellars, which started the 2021 season with a new palatial winery and tasting room facility set on a stunning site overlooking the Yakima Valley about 15 minutes south of Yakima.  Lee and Emily have spent time getting to know growers and now source grapes from many of the top vineyards in the Yakima Valley.  They have been so successful that the Small Business Association named them 2019 Rising Startup of the Year in Washington and Northern Idaho.

Before starting the winery,  Lee and Emily were involved in very different careers and so needed to hire a winemaker who could turn their vision into reality.  They were lucky enough to lure Alexis Sells from the legendary Duckhorn Vineyards Winery in Napa Valley, a lure that was a coming home for Alexis.  Lexi is now using her winemaking experience in Walla Walla, New Zealand, and Napa to craft Bordeaux and Rhone style wines in the approachable, food-friendly Fortuity style.  Her Viognier and Rosé of Cinsault are about to be released.  At the winery, Lee and Emily are committed to providing a personalized tasting experience that includes lots of information on the wines and vineyards.  Some of the wines such as the 50/50 blend and the Sauvignon Blanc are quite unique, as are some of the vineyards, all discussed here in this interview.

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Lines on Wines · #110 Lee & Emily Fergestrom and Alexis Sells of Fortuity Cellars

Boudreaux Cellars

Rob Newsom of Boudreaux Cellars

Laissez les bons temps rouler: “Kick off your flip-flops and dance on the rooftops!”

It was an attempt to climb Mt. Rainier that led Rob Newsom to leave his rural North Louisiana roots and move to WA state in the 1970s.   He brought his cooking and bluegrass guitar picking skills with him and eventually became an expert mountain climber, guiding others on Mt. Denali.  He and a team of friends completed the first ascent of the North buttress of Mt. Hunter in Alaska, with its 4,000 ft. granite wall of ice.  This fearless spirit and an evening of too much Leonetti wine led to a winemaking challenge Rob couldn’t refuse.  As the story goes, Rob told his good friend Gary Figgins that his Leonetti wines had become too expensive.  Gary quickly responded, “So why don’t you make your own wine!”  He went on to tell him that all he needed to do was squish grapes in a trash can and then leave them alone.   Armed with that advice and Peynaud’s book on winemaking, Rob headed home determined to make his own wine. 

That was the late 1990s. In 2007, Seattle Magazine named Rob Newsom of Boudreaux Cellars Washington’s best new winemaker.  He built a beautiful stone winery facility in Icicle Canyon 4 miles off the power grid.  The family also has a facility on Front St. in downtown Leavenworth that is both tasting room and boutique shop for creative home and body products.  Boudreaux Cellars specializes in Cabernet Sauvignon, but also produces Malbec, Merlot, Syrah, Carménère, and Chardonnay.  The newest project involves small amounts of Sagrantino and Aglianico, both Italian varieties rarely found in the US.  The wines, setting, and fun-loving spirit are all treats at Boudreaux, but so is the music.  Rob is an outstanding guitarist and his daughter Keelya an excellent singer, in addition to being assistant winemaker.  They play country and bluegrass music that makes you want to “kick off your flip-flops, and dance on the rooftops” as you enjoy Boudreaux wines.

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Lines on Wines · #109 Rob Newsom of Boudreaux Cellars

Watermill Winery

Andrew Brown of Watermill Winery

The Walla Walla Valley AVA is typically associated with Washington state, but, in fact, roughly one-third of the wine region is in NE Oregon.  Some of Washington’s most exciting wines are now made with fruit from the Rocks District of Milton Freewater AVA, which is in the Walla Walla Valley AVA, but entirely in Oregon.  Wineries are springing up in this southern part of the Walla Walla Valley, and one is Watermill Winery in the town of Milton- Freewater, OR.  Founded in 2005 by Brown family members who have been apple farmers in the area for decades, the winery is housed in the 1940s Watermill building that was once home to a fruit packing plant for Watermill Food Company.  The winery building also houses a tap room for the family’s Blue Mountain Cider Company, as well as a game room.   Across a patio from the winery is a wine tasting facility, complete with full kitchen, conference rooms and a wine vault.

Today the Browns have 1500 acres of apples and 140 acres of vines in the Walla Walla Valley and Rocks District AVAs.  Andrew Brown, who is both wine and cider maker, crafts Watermill wines from the family’s seven estate vineyards.  There are three wine brands, or labels, including Hallowed Stones highlighting the Rock District terroir, the Blue label highlighting the Walla Walla Valley outside of the Rocks, and a low price point brand, ChancesR, offering a Chardonnay and red blend at $15 per bottle.  He also makes a range of hard ciders using all estate apples.  During “normal” opening times with no virus restrictions, Watermill offers vineyard tours, winery tours, and formal tastings in the Vault Room, in addition to regular wine and cider tastings.     

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Lines on Wines · #108 Andrew Brown of Watermill Winery

Mercer Wine Estates

Will Mercer and Jeremy Santo of Mercer Wine Estates

Willis Mercer came to the Yakima Valley in 1886 to start a sheep farm.  Since that time, the Mercer family has amassed roughly 12,000 acres in the valley planted to many different crops.  It was Willis’s grandson Don Mercer who first planted grapes in 1972, and those vines were the first ones planted in what today is the Horse Heaven Hills AVA.  The Mercers also pioneered irrigation in the valley in 1968.  Today Mercer’s 7 estate vineyards include over 2000 acres of the 16,000 planted to vines in the Horse Heaven Hills.  Mercer Wine Estates was 2016 Washington Winery of the Year, and in 2020 Auction of WA Wines named Rob Mercer Honorary Grower.  Given that they have been farming the area for well over 100 years, they are committed to sustainable agriculture and were the first winery to win the Environmental Excellence Award given by the Association of WA Businesses.      

Winemaker Jeremy Santo grew up in the Yakima Valley around wine, but didn’t imagine himself a winemaker until after college.  His first job after graduating from WSU was at Snoqualmie Winery, and he became winemaker at Mercer in 2017.  Today Jeremy oversees winemaking for 7 different Mercer brands that collectively produce 80,000 cases each year distributed nationally and overseas.  The ICAN label offers Rose and Chardonnay canned wines in a bottle-shaped can with a screw top.  Mercer produces more Malbec than anyone in the state, and offers a range of excellent and affordable Bordeaux and Rhone style wines, as well as Riesling and Chardonnay.  

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Lines on Wines · #107 Will Mercer & Jeremy Santo of Mercer Wine Estates

Prospice Wines

Jay Krutulis and Matt Reilly of Prospice Wines

It takes guts to leave a good job to start something completely new.  But that’s just what architect Matt Reilly and corporate lawyer Jay Krutulis did when they moved to Walla Walla to pursue enology and viticulture studies at the community college.   For Matt it was wine loving parents and for Jay an epiphany while sipping at a London bar that kindled their passion for wine.  As students at the College, they realized they had “eerily similar palates,” and they also made a memorable bottle of merlot together.  The experience led to a partnership that opened for business as Prospice Wines in May 2019.  The tasting room is out by the Walla Walla airport, and the inaugural vintage wines on offer there are from 2017.

When you listen to Matt and Jay talk about their wines, you realize that a lot of reflection and analysis goes into everything they do.  This is especially apparent as you come to understand the thinking behind their name and brand, which involved a long process of failed attempts before landing on the perfect Latin phrase.  Careful analysis is also apparent in their choice of vineyards across multiple AVAs, which results in unique blends as well as memorable single vineyard, single varietal wines.  They produce multiple single vineyard Syrahs, Cabs, and Cab Francs, affording tasters an opportunity to experience very different expressions of the same grape variety.   Visitors rave about the tasting experience at Prospice and critics rave about the wines.  Listen to the interview to learn more about this new not-to-miss winery in Walla Walla.

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Lines on Wines · #106 Matt Reilly & Jay Krutulis of Prospice Wines

Amorim Cork

Carlos de Jesus with Amorim Cork

Amorim Cork began as a family business in 1870 selling stoppers to the port wine industry.  On its 150th anniversary this year, it is still a family business headquartered in Portugal, but now services nearly 20,000 wineries on five continents.  Amorim is the largest cork producer in the world, with 70% of its business in wine stoppers and 30% in other business ventures from fashion to flooring to aerospace.   Cork is one of the most versatile products on the planet, and has been the wine bottle stopper of choice for several centuries.  It’s easy to see why when one thinks of cork’s structure.  There are 800 million air pocket cells in a single wine cork, giving it the lightness, compressibility, elasticity and sponginess for making an effective seal.   Cork has been so revered in Portugal that the oak tree from which it comes is legally protected, and has been so since the 13th century.  The trees typically grow for 200 years or more, and are harvested by hand for their bark every 9 years, once they reach a certain age.

In this interview, Lines on Wines talks with Amorim’s Director of Marketing and Communications, Carlos de Jesus.  We explore the uniqueness and versatility of cork, but also some of its challenges, particularly impurities such as TCA, a main culprit of cork taint.  Amorim has developed a long list of strategies for preventing and eliminating TCA to guarantee that 99.6% of its corks are free of detectable TCA.  They have also recently developed a Helix cork stopper with a threaded finish, so it can be twisted into and out of a bottle without a cork screw, making it as convenient to open as a screw cap.  Listen to this interview to learn much more about the uniqueness of cork, the myth about it “breathing”, comparisons between cork and other closures, and the myriad of ways cork and cork forests contribute to economic, social and environmental sustainability.

Listen to the Interview:

Lines on Wines · #105 Carlos de Jesus of Amorim Cork