Lummi Island Wine Tasting August 18 ’13
Something for Everyone
We have a lot of friends who don’t drink wine, and who therefore don’t come by the wine shop very often. Given how many hours we spend at this almost-a-real-business, long periods of time can pass without visiting with them. As one way to address this, we have stocked a few interesting non-alcoholic beverages for those who might have felt excluded by our limited offerings.
Who knew there was a world of innovative, relatively low-sugar, natural-ingredient beverages out there these days, wonderful alternatives to the likes of Coke, Pepsi– and of course their Ilk and their Kith and their Kin, including especially their diabolical “diet” versions which could only have come from the Subterranean Kitchens of Hades! But I digress…let’s just say we are looking for interesting and enjoyable non-alcoholic tasting options, and we would like those options to be “artisan” creations like the wines we prefer to carry.
For starters we have a little supply of Fever-Tree Ginger Beer, Hubert’s (i.e., Hansen’s) lemonade/iced tea blend, and Dry Soda’s juniper-berry flavor… all very tasty and unusual. For example tasting notes (I am not making this up) for the Fever Tree Ginger Beer say it “has three different gingers: from Ivory Coast, a green ginger to add lightness and surprising notes of lime; Nigerian ginger adds intensity and complexity; and Indian ginger is earthy with intriguing chocolate notes.” (Sounds like a nice pairing with Ginger Beef…!)
Last Weekend
After several weekends of record crowds (for us), last weekend proved to be very low-key. It was a little reminiscent of our early years, when the measure of success was how many interesting conversations we had in an afternoon. Those relaxing lulls when there are only the handful of people at the bar seem to happen less often in the Summer, so this past weekend it was nice to be able to spend more time with each of our visitors, including almost-locals Matt and Kyoko. Much of our conversation orbited around the Japanese Tea Ceremony, of which Kyoko is a student, and our interest in supporting Tea classes or events here on Lummi Island. Tea is a long-term interest of mine– I made raku tea bowls for each of our wedding guests back in 2000– and I admire the form as a meditative discipline that weaves mindfulness, movement, and service into a demanding practice.
Cloudlift Updraft
Since most of you didn’t come by last weekend, most of you didn’t get to taste the sample bottle of Cloudlift Updraft that Seattle winemaker Tom Stangeland had given us the previous weekend. We poured it for the Faithful who showed up, and lo and behold it was gone, but not until sometime Saturday (you see what I mean about a diminutive turnout…!). I haven’t contacted Tom about the wine yet, but suffice it to say it was a beautiful interpretation of a classic White Bordeaux (sauvignon blanc and semillon) with the added weight of the ripeness that Washington can deliver (compared to Bordeaux on average). All hands were uniformly in favor! So kudos, Tom, on a delicious wine…we WILL be in touch!
Support your local woodworker
Another of our infrequent guests last weekend was local woodworker and builder (and sailor!) Steve Thomas, whom I first met many years ago when we had our ancient wooden sailboats hauled out at the same time in Bellingham. It is probably enough to know that we have both had fiberglass sailboats for many years now despite our aesthetic preference for the beautiful (but so demanding!) wooden boats of our dreams. Of course, ‘glass makes a lot more sense for me than for him, because he is in fact a master woodworker, while I spent most of the twelve years I owned “Windsong” replacing little bits of rotten wood with various hi-tech plastics and epoxies. I mean, eventually it would all have been plastic anyway, right?
More to the point, Steve has recently completed an extensive remodel of a guest cottage on the North end of Lummi Island near Point Migley. “The goal was to redesign and remodel an island guest cottage originally built as a shed in the 1930’s.” Amazingly, the project was completed in a mere six months of intensive effort, and is a contender for recognition in Fine Homebuilding Magazine. If you drive around the north end of the Island you can see the cottage, and if you go to this link, you can vote “thumbs up” for his project. And if Enough of us vote for it, the project will get written up in a future issue of Fine Homebuilding! So Please, Please, click on the link and vote “thumbs up!’ Yes, we can do this! Do it NOW, thanks!
This week’s tasting
Morgues du Gres Fleur d’Eglantine Rosé ’12 France $14
Light orange-pink. Spice-accented aromas of redcurrant, strawberry and roses, with tangy red berry and orange zest. Finishes spicy and firm, with a lingering floral note.
Cantine Farro Falanghina ’11 Italy $18
Fresh, vibrant nose full of citrus, melon and mineral notes—a good example of a tighter, leaner version of golden yellow grapefalanghina, common in the mineral-rich Campi Flegrei area of Campania.
Talamonti Montepulciano d’Abruzzo ’11 Italy $10
High-toned, with a candied edge to the dark cherry aromas and flavors that are backed by hints of mace and dried flowers, with a dash of bitters on the finish.
Terres D’Artagnan Gascogne ’10 France $9
Alluring nose of black raspberry, flowers, and garrigue leads into a very juicy, round and harmonious palate with velvety, soft, ripened tannins and fresh acidity.
Altavins Tinto Joven ’11 Spain $11
Mouth and sense-filling blend of garnacha, syrah, and carinena, full of ripe dark fruit and berry flavors from Terra Alta’s hot days and cool nights close to Tarragona and the Mediterranean.
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