Two weeks ago, I wrote about two blind tastings of two Malbecs and two Syrahs my wife and I conducted at home (to see the posting, scroll down below to the article). Now that the reviews have been published in the February issue of the Review of Washington Wines, I can reveal the identities of the wines.

2011 Malbec A: Walla Walla Vintners, Columbia Valley (55% Sagemoor, 36% Summit View, 9% Dwelley)

2011 Malbec B: Kontos Cellars, Walla Walla Valley, Summit View Vineyard

2011 Syrah A: Kontos Cellars, Walla Walla Valley, Les Collines Vineyard

2011 Syrah B: CAVU, Horse Heaven Hills, Alder Ridge Vineyard

Here are some further comments in addition to those in the first article.

Differences in one wine from another of the same varietal, can be functions of terroir and/or winemaking styles. These four wines each seem to combine both of these functions. The Walla Walla Vintners Malbec is 55% Columbia Valley (just north of Pasco) and 45% Walla Walla Valley (Summit View and Dwelley). It comes on more like an Argentinan Malbec with its bold, direct fruit flavors, that also have components of Sagemoor dust and minerals and Walla Walla Valley gravel and loess. The Kontos is all Summit View and displays an earthy, aromatic character that is reminiscent of a Malbec from Cahors in France's Lot Valley. Both Syrahs are good examples of ones from different AVAs. The Kontos Cellars shows the Les Collines loess laden, sun-drenched Blue Mountain foothills terroir. The CAVU shows the floral aromatics and ripeness from the south facing slope above the Columbia River where the Alder Ridge vineyard is located. Both show varietal purity, with the Kontos leaning toward the earthy style and the CAVU toward the floral.

All this is to say that wines of the same variety can differ stylistically as a result of where the grapes come from and how they are handled. This is no single "style" of Malbec or Syrah, but rather a variety of types. This is one of the things that make Washington wines so unique, in that there is a lot of variety. This can be, at times, confusing for the consumer who wonders what kind of Malbec (Argentinian, or French styled?) or Syrah (fruit-driven, or terroir-driven?) he or she is getting. Part of a wine writer's job is to describe wines in such a way that indicates a wine's style as well as quality. This is what I try to do.

 

An Interesting Article about Tulpen Cellars

A couple of days ago, I ran across an article by Shannon Borg in the February issue of Seattle Magazine about Ken Hart and Rick Trumbull whose wines are reviewed in the February issue of the Review of Washington Wines. It is titled "Tulpen Cellars Takes on Dry Farming of Wine Grapes." It writes about how the two manage vineyards without irrigation of the vines, a technique that is acquiring more interest. To see the article, go to seattlemag.com and then enter the keyword Tulpen on the Search line. This will take you to a link to the article. For further discussion of dry farming of vineyards, see the Review blog posting below about the Walla Walla Vintners Estate Vineyard which is also managed by Hart and Trumbull.