There was not enough space in the April issue of the Review of Washington Wines to elaborate on a couple of the wineries that were featured. So I shall do do here in this blog. Also, I have a special call out to The Library in Woodinville.

Pamplin Family Winery is located near Dundee, Oregon, but the two wines that are made are produced entirely from Washington grapes. The vision is to craft the best Bordeaux varietal wines. To do this they have to source their fruit from the neighboring state. The Proprietor, Dr. Robert Pamplin Jr., is a businessman, philanthropist, conservationist and ordained minister, among many accomplishments (to see his bio, go to the winery website). The President is Art North, who, by the way, contacted me to see if I was interesting in sampling the Pamplin wines. He is a business graduate of the University of Puget Sound in Tacoma and is married to Amy Pamplin, his college sweetheart. The winemaker is Robert Henry who came from the Finger Lakes region of Upstate New York. Educated as a chemist, he became a "cellar rat" in Virginia and then California, and studied viticulture at Fresno State University (see the website for his thoughts on winemaking). The winery's 2008 Proprietary Red, reviewed in the April issue, attests to the skill of this winemaking team. I look forward to reviewing the 2009 J|R|G Red in the near future.

Adams Bench had just opened its new tasting room when we visited it on February 25. Being located high up on Hollywood Hill in Woodinville, there was snow on the ground. Entering the tasting room was going into a warm, cozy though spacious environment, quite a contrast to the cramped space in the nearby winery facility. Tim and Erica Blue (and her sister Ursula and niece, Jamie) were gracious hosts as always. There, we tasted the new 2009 "the V" Cabernet Sauvignon and the 2009 Mays Discovery Cabernet, both reviewed in the April issue. We also sampled the 2009 "Ursula" Sangiovese which will be reviewed in the June issue. The tasting room, which is situated above the barrel room, overlooks the future site of a Chardonnay vineyard which will be planted with the idea of making sparkling wine. For pictures, see the Review of Washington Wines on Facebook.

The Library in Woodinville is another place I must mention. Located across from the Hollywood Vineayards Plaza (Purple Cafe) on the Woodinville-Redmond Road, it is a tasting room that is devoted to presenting the wines of Long Shadows (Walla Walla) and Den Hoed (Horse Heaven Hills and Wallula) and Boudreaux (Leavenworth). Traci McFarlane is the manager. Tastings are conducted in a comfortable library-like setting with a gas fireplace. There is a fee for tasting (about 45 minutes) which comprises of a flight of various wines, and appointments are necessary (call 425 408-1608, or go to www.thelibrarywines.com). The Library is an exciting new concept in wine tasting, and I recommend it highly.