Beyond the Bottle: June 2008 Archives

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June 29, 2008

Charles Smith Kung Fu Girl 2007 Riesling

What I Drank With Dinner (WIDWD) After wondering if summer would ever get here, it came on strong this weekend in Seattle with temperatures yesterday in the high eighties and today hitting ninety degrees. For me, there is nothing better on a hot evening than enjoying spicy food washed down with a cold, crisp wine. Whenever dining on Asian fare, it is a Washington riesling that usually accompanies it. Tonight it was going to be Korean barbecue with a bottle of Charles Smith Kung Fu Girl 2007 Riesling ($12.99). Kari had a tri-tip steak marinating since Friday, which I...

Posted by Thad at 07:49 PM | Permalink | Comments (1)

June 28, 2008

Cottonwood 2004 Marina Piper Pinot Noir

What I Drank With Dinner (WIDWD) The other night, Kari cooked up a batch of pappardelle pasta with beef ragu, which was made from a chuck roast slow cooked in a broth with wine and tomatoes. A fresh, red leaf lettuce salad tossed with sliced pink lady apples provided a colorful complement to the main dish. I was tempted to pull an Italian nebbiollo or sangiovese, but decided to try a bottle of the Cottonwood 2004 Marina Piper Pinot Noir ($26.99) from the Dundee Hills of Oregon. This was one of several '04 pinots from Oregon that had recently...

Posted by Thad at 03:39 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

June 27, 2008

July 25 - 29: Oregon Pinot or Washington Riesling?

In late July, Oregon and Washington will play host to distinct international wine events, showcasing each state's signature wines: pinot noir and riesling. Folks from around the world will be descending on our region to celebrate these two varietals in both New and Old World forms. For anyone wanting an immersion in Oregon pinot and Washington riesling, the dates Friday, July 25 thru Tuesday, July 29, are an extended weekend to mark on the calendar. First up is the 22nd annual International Pinot Noir Celebration (IPNC), which will be held from Friday, July 25 thru Sunday, July 27 in...

Posted by Thad at 09:16 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

June 23, 2008

Vitis Vinifera: The Beauty Inside

Can you see the beauty inside of me? What happened to the beauty I had inside of me? Bono wasn't thinking of wine when he wrote these lyrics for the song, City of Blinding Lights. But they immediately came to mind when recently sampling a number of over-ripe, over-oaked, over-alcohol, over-everything wines from our region. While swirling, sniffing, and tasting these wines, it was as if the grapes were sadly asking, "Can you see the beauty inside of me?", in hopes that something might be left to express their true nature. Alas, it was not to be, for it...

Posted by Thad at 07:31 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

June 22, 2008

Review: Tashtego Cafe at Seabrook

Last summer, we discovered a wonderful new place on the Washington coast, the Seabrook beach community. Just two and a half hours south of Seattle, this seaside village offers nice vacation homes in a setting designed according to new urbanism principles. As a result, we no longer have to trek five or more hours to the Oregon coast for a beach vacation, for we now have a comparable experience in our own backyard. For Memorial Day weekend, we ventured back with friends and were excited to see that the village restaurant, Tashtego Café, had opened. According to a recent newspaper...

Posted by Thad at 06:59 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)

June 21, 2008

Tertulia Cellars 2006 Viognier

What I Drank With Dinner (WIDWD) With pork chops and onions grilling, a pot of Spanish rice cooking, and fresh avocados ready to be sliced, I pulled from the refrigerator a bottle of Tertulia Cellars 2006 Viognier. This wine immediately reminded me of the visit I enjoyed at the Tertulia Cellars winery in Walla Walla last spring, which was where I purchased this bottle for $18. The Tertulia '06 Viognier (14%) is comprised of 76% viognier and 24% roussanne. Some of the viognier and all of the roussanne was sourced from the Lonesome Spring Ranch in the Yakima Valley...

Posted by Thad at 01:10 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

June 19, 2008

Maysara Pinot Noir and Pinot Gris

What I Drank With Dinner (WIDWD) During last week's visit to Tulsa, we enjoyed a taste of the Pacific Northwest with fresh Copper River sockeye salmon and Dungeness crab joined by a pair of Maysara 2006 wines, a pinot noir ($21.99) and a pinot gris ($16.99). Overall, the seafood was fantastic, while the wine fell a bit short. I grilled the salt and pepper seasoned sockeye on a plank of cedar along with a batch of fresh asparagus. It was joined by a filet of wild King salmon, which went straight on the grill. In addition, we had rice...

Posted by Thad at 08:40 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

June 13, 2008

Living On Tulsa Wine

This week, my wife, Kari, and our two daughters, are in Tulsa, visiting my mother, siblings and a lot of cousins. With Seattle colder than Siberia these days, this trip offers us an opportunity to get a jump start on summer time weather (it's 90 degrees with 100% humidity here). Whenever traveling out this way, we like to bring a taste of the Pacific Northwest with us, especially for my mom, Terry, who is from Oregon. But with luggage restrictions and security issues discouraging us to carry on seafood and wine, we decided to ship some Copper River salmon...

Posted by Thad at 10:53 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)

June 10, 2008

Ponzi Vineyards 2006 Pinot Noir

What I Drank With Dinner (WIDWD) With this being an unusually cool and rainy spring in Seattle, we've started planning meals around the weather forecast so we can get outside and grill. So it was with the promise of good weather the next day, that Kari marinated a few thick pork chops in a brine that included garlic, peppercorns, and all spice seasoning. Fortunately, the forecast for decent weather came true, thus we were able to enjoy a grilled meal outside. Before cooking, we dried the chops and then rubbed them with a mix of brown sugar, cummin, cayenne...

Posted by Thad at 06:10 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)

June 09, 2008

Review: Crow and Betty Restaurants

Last month, I had the opportunity to dine at two sister restaurants, Crow and Betty, within weeks of one another. These two places are owned by Craig Serbousek and Jesse Thomas, who opened Crow several years ago and last year launched Betty, both in the Queen Anne area. As a result, Crow and Betty share a lot of common ground such as a bistro-style menu, a diverse list of old and new world wines, and very attentive service, all provided at moderate prices. The environments at both places are open and well designed, with plenty of bar and chef counter...

Posted by Thad at 06:55 AM | Permalink | Comments (1)

June 08, 2008

Broadley Vineyards 2005 Bergstrom Pinot Noir

What I Drank With Dinner (WIDWD) If there is one Oregon pinot noir that has been imprinted in my memory, it is a bottle of Broadley Vineyards wine. It was a turning point for me, in that it was the first Oregon pinot noir that captivated me like no other wine before it. In May of 2006, we were celebrating the birthday of my father-in-law, Bob, by dining al fresco on a beautiful spring evening in Seattle. We enjoyed a grilled salmon dinner with a bottle of 2004 Claudia's Choice pinot noir. I will never forget that wine nor...

Posted by Thad at 07:13 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)

June 07, 2008

Amity Vineyards 2006 Riesling Willamette Valley

What I Drank With Dinner (WIDWD) As part of my Northwest Palate prize, I received a bottle of the Amity 2006 Riesling. I was glad to get this bottle in the mixed case, as I really enjoy riesling, especially that produced in the Pacific Northwest. And I was really excited to try a bottle of Amity, a winery started in 1974 by one of Oregon's early wine pioneers, Myron Redford. Before opening the bottle, I was glad to see the approach Amity took in detailing the who, what and where of this wine on the back label. In fact,...

Posted by Thad at 01:48 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

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June 29, 2008

Charles Smith Kung Fu Girl 2007 Riesling

June 28, 2008

Cottonwood 2004 Marina Piper Pinot Noir

June 27, 2008

July 25 - 29: Oregon Pinot or Washington Riesling?

June 23, 2008

Vitis Vinifera: The Beauty Inside

June 22, 2008

Review: Tashtego Cafe at Seabrook

June 21, 2008

Tertulia Cellars 2006 Viognier

June 19, 2008

Maysara Pinot Noir and Pinot Gris

June 13, 2008

Living On Tulsa Wine

June 10, 2008

Ponzi Vineyards 2006 Pinot Noir

June 09, 2008

Review: Crow and Betty Restaurants

June 08, 2008

Broadley Vineyards 2005 Bergstrom Pinot Noir

June 07, 2008

Amity Vineyards 2006 Riesling Willamette Valley

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