Lummi Island Wine Tasting September 17 ’11
f you receive this by email, click on the heading to see pictures. If there are any…but of course you won’t know if you don’t click!).
As I am sure you all realize, this Saturday is National Apple Dumpling Day. Curiously, if you click on the link you will find a few words by whoever made up this holiday, but — I’m not making this up– no apple dumpling recipes! Are you KIDDING me? What’s THAT about? So I looked around the Web for a recipe and found a lot of variations, several of which ARE familiar to me, but they weren’t called “apple dumplings.” No, “apple dumpling” sounds like a pastry that somehow uses apples as an ingredient in a light, delicate creation from the local artisan patisserie.
No, the “apple dumplings” I am familiar with involved pastry and apples, but were aptly named “Cannonballs.” They were an occasional dessert served in the Mess Hall at the Naval Academy when I was a midshipman back in the early sixties. Picture a whole apple (cored), soaked in cinnamon-sugar sauce and surrounded with pie crust, and topped with buttery hard sauce. This is a man-sized dessert, all right, and we are not talking about wimpy little apples, no sir, we are talking about fist-sized, belly-filling apples. The important point is that eating even one is a challenge.
That’s why, on the odd occasion on which cannonballs were served, there was an old tradition that any plebe (freshman) who could eat TWELVE of them could escape the rigors of all of the remainder of Plebe Year, which were many and unpleasant. I had one classmate who did that: Mike Mcneely. Mike was slight in stature, a boxer of some skill, feisty, funny, terminally irreverent, and and an avid reader. And he ate twelve cannonballs in less than an hour. Mike, wherever you are, we salute you and wish you well, and if you ever drop by I can find a great bottle of wine to share with you! Aye, hoist yer glasses, lads! And another bottle for anyone who can get me in touch with him!
TRUFFLE ALERT! TRUFFLE ALERT! TRUFFLE ALERT! TRUFFLE ALERT! TRUFFLE ALERT!
For no particular reason, Pat is making truffles for this weekend. All I have been told is that they involve Dark Chocolate and Toasted Coconut. My devious mind is thinking, let’s see, this is spur of the moment, no pre-orders, and Drydock, so traffic is low…hmm, I might actually be able to snag one of these for myself this time! That is no easy feat because usually they are sold out before they are even made! Call now to reserve (360.758.2959) , or drop by and take your chances, maybe there will be some not spoken for…(yeah, right…!)
DRYDOCK DRYDOCK DRYDOCK DRYDOCK DRYDOCK DRYDOCK DRYDOCK
Yes, folks, here it is Drydock again, this time in spades. This year, maybe because of budget issues, maybe because of the just-ended-after-two-years-of-negotiations approval of the new 35-year lease with Lummi Nation for the right to cross their little patch of tidelands with our mainland dock, or maybe because large numbers of Islanders just lit outa here for September to avoid the hassle– for whatever reason, the Island seems deserted, and the wine shop is very, very quiet.
This is Thursday evening as I write this, and we had two visitors tonight. Well, actually two who passed through, and two who stayed to taste and chat. The conversation revolved around the Noise issue in Scenic Estates from the Quarry. Truck engines, truck backup beepers, explosions, rock fragments sliding and crashing–it ain’t exactly serene. If that’s an issue for you, get together with your neighbors, get some noise measurement equipment, document the problem, and take it to your friendly, supportive County Council; I’m sure they will be responsive and helpful. After all, they have a great track record over the past several years with ferry fares and negotiations with the Tribe to cross their little patch of tidelands, for which we may already own a right-of-way dating back a hundred years, but which would require going to court to prove. But I digress…I have written elsewhere about my feelings about all of that…
At the moment, a lot of folks on the Island are feeling Euphoric about the two-years-in-the-making Closure of the County Council’s approval of the new 35-year lease agreement with the tribe, as if it were bringing come kind of closure, some kind of dressing to a festering wound. Many are optimistic, and see this is a Brighter Day, a Good Thing. And I bet it’s really, really nice to be able to reframe a total defeat into some kind of long-fought Victory. Seems as optimistic as expecting to get some truffles this weekend without calling to order any (!), so I wish you “good luck with that.” But at the same time I think of words from a song by Leonard Cohen (an old acquaintance) from his song/poem “A Thousand Kisses Deep:”
The ponies run, the girls are young,
The odds are there to beat.
You win a while, and then it’s done –
Your little winning streak.
I sincerely hope it all works out for everyone. In the meantime, I invite you all to drop by on what will probably be another quiet weekend, a good opportunity to hang out, talk about whatever, drink some nice wine, and, Zorba-like, shrug your shoulders over it all and dance (but not on our new window tables, as our woodsmith advises he did not plan for that in his design!)
LAST WEEK LAST WEEK LAST WEEK LAST WEEK LAST WEEK LAST WEEK
Last week’s wines were all superb, and all enjoyed a following. One of the more interesting of them was the Sant’ Antonio Monti Garbi Ripasso, which is made in a particularly interesting way, by “re-passing” new juice over the skins of dried (raisined) grapes that had been used to make (the quite expensive) wine Amarone. (read more) The ripasso method adds some of the texture and flavor from Amarone (which is lovely) to what would otherwise be vin ordinaire (althought a pretty nice one!) Try some!
This week’s wines:
Novelty Hill Chardonnay Stillwater Creek 09 Washington 91pts $17
Smooth and round, with a spicy, creamy blanket wrapping around a deftly balanced core of pear and citrus flavors that extend into the graceful finish.
Kiona cab-merlot ‘05 Washington $10:
Rich, earthy, spicy, and crisp; good showing of Washington fruit at a real bargain price; great for sipping or with any meal.
Rubio San Polo ’09 Italy $14
From Montalcino, but neither a Brunello nor a Rosso, this lovely upstart bursts from the glass with layers of dark fruit that build with notable intensity. Plump and engaging, thi wine is a huge overachiever in its price range.
Dynasty Cellars DCZ zinfandel ‘07 Washington $26
Sourced from the premium Walla Walla “Les Collines” vineyard, this wine is jam-packed with rich, dark, berry fruit and a long, lingering, slightly peppery finish that will leave you gasping for more.
Lummi Island Wine Tasting Sept 10 ’11
Here it is only the Tuesday after the Labor Day Studio Tour, and I am writing this week’s post already while still a little dazed from a FULL Saturday and Sunday. Especially Saturday, which had possibly the most visitors and the most tastings we have ever before done in one day. It was loud, it was festive, it was summer, it was crazy! By comparison Sunday traffic was steady, but much lower key, much quieter, and more personal, with more opportunity to connect with our visitors personally, which is of course the fun part of this whole operation.
We departed from our usual practice of offering four or five wines for our weekend tasting menu. Instead, we rotated wines among selections from four of our neighbor wineries here in Whatcom County: Legoe Bay Winery right here on Lummi Island; Mt. Baker Vineyards , Whatcom County’s oldest and best established winery, dating back some thirty years; Dynasty Cellars, barely a mile away across Haro Strait on the ferry; and Masquerade , Whatcom County’s newest winery, which just moved to Bellingham from Walla Walla.
As usual, the most recent Legoe Bay viognier continues their consistent tradition of quality with this grape, and the 2007 syrah is very possibly their best one yet. The throngs agreed, and we saw a lot of these wines go out the door. If you are one of those locals who poo-poos your neighborhood winery, I urge you to give these wines another try, as they offer terrific quality for the meager price.
We also bought a pretty good stash of Mt. Baker Roussanne, and have been pouring a lot of samples to a growing following of believers. After we bought another five cases a few weeks ago they raised the price back up (it was lowered because so few people had ever heard of Roussanne!) ; the next batch will sell at $12 a bottle, not $9, so if you like a mouth-filling, full-textured white wine, come by soon and load up– this is a great wine at this price!
Finally, we were very impressed with several wines we poured from Masquerade Cellars, with its new winery just moved to Bellingham (Iowa St) from Prosser. Their bubbly "Effervescent Elephant" is terrific and reminiscent of some very expensive French champagnes, and their syrah and cabernets are big and rich. All were showing exceptionally well over the weekend, as were the wines from Dynasty.
All in all, our neighbor wineries are making some great juice out there, and it was great to promote their efforts. We will continue to offer their selections and to pour them for you from time to time.
WHY am I writing the blog early , you might wonder…? It is so we can take off for a few of these beautiful late summer days on the boat. Somehow the summer has slipped through our hands like water, frictionlessly, leaving all the imagined outings and explorations on the impossibly cluttered and overloaded Shelf of All the Things You Didn’t Get Around To, and it seems important to wrest from the relentless Hands of Time at least a few days of bobbing at anchor in a quiet cove. (not our boat, but you get the idea…!)
Our artist for the next month or two, as I mentioned last week, is our friend Brendan, with a lot of new paintings from recent travels to New Zealand, Italy, and Hawaii. Gallery supporter and regular visitor Mary Jane bought the painting of the Whatcom Chief, our stalwart ferry, which MJ has coveted since Brendan first showed it here a year ago. (If you click on the image below I think a larger version will open…) Though it only shows a small portion of the boat, it is instantly recognizable to every Islander.
This Saturday’s tasting:
Casa Lapostolle sauv blanc ’10 Chile $10
Brilliant pale lime yellow. Intense aromas of sweet citrus, tropical fresh fruit; light and fresh on the palate, with pleasant roundness and a grassy, minerally finish.
Chateau D’Oupia Minervois ’09 France $12
A blend 60% Old Vines Carignan (from vineyards up to 100 years old), 30% Syrah, and 10% Grenache. Elegant and balanced, It is aromatic, full and densely colored, with a long finish of dark fruits, enjoyable to drink young and can age 5-7 years.
Sant’ Antonio Monti Garbi Ripasso ’08 Italy $17
Nose of roasted meats, raspberries, and red licorice; full bodied and crisp, with smooth, ripe tannin on the palate; Intense and up front fruit of plum, blackberry and black cherry.
The Warrior Red ’07 Washington $14
A blend of 88% Merlot, 10% Cab Sauv, and 2% Petit Verdot; offers classic plum and red fruit notes with hint of chalk and minerality to support the delicious bouquet of cassis, spice, and blackberry. The balance is impeccable, with real elegance and restraint that gives this wine the kind of class that’s remarkable at the price.
Lummi Island Wine Tasting Artists Studio Tour Sept 3-4 ’11
Here it is, another Labor Day Weekend and another Lummi Island Artists’ Studio Tour, when thirty Island artists display their creations and people from far and wide come to visit. Every year we join in celebrating the end of summer here at the Wine Gallery with a new show; we are open both Saturday and Sunday from 10am-6pm. Also, of course, we continue to be open on Thursday and Friday evenings from 4-7 pm, so drop by on Friday night and avoid the holiday crowds!
Our returning artist for September is Brendan Dunn, whose acrylics and oils of Hawaiian flowers and Northwest scenes adorned our walls a year ago. This year he has been travelling and hiking in New Zealand and Italy (no they are not exactly in the same direction), and some of his new works derive from those experiences. Brendan will be available to visit with you and talk about his travels and his paintings both Saturday and Sunday from 10-1.
Last weekend, you will recall, was the debut of our new window tables, custom built by Island woodworking artist Tom Lutz. As you can see, the tables are a Hit…maybe even a little Magical!
Last week’s wines were not what you would call “flashy,” but I would be happy to share a glass of any of them with you. I think the Delille Doyenne Rose has become a wine we look forward to every spring; Provencal in style, but American in intensity, it’s a real glass of real wine that happens to be pale, pink, and refreshing. The Stephen Vincent Chardonnay is everything you like about California chardonnay. The Chateau D’Oupia “Les Heretiques” was surprisingly satisfying at its modest price, with abundant evidence of its roots, showing great fruit and lovely notes of garrigue. And finally, the Langmeil SMG does everything a big Aussie Rhone blend is supposed to do: knock you out with fruit-forward intensity.
This weekend’s wines:
This weekend we will be pouring wines from several nearby wineries: Legoe Bay Winery right here on Lummi Island; Mt. Baker Vineyards, Whatcom County’s oldest and best established winery, dating back some thirty years; Dynasty Cellars, barely a mile away across Haro Strait on the ferry; and Masquerade, Whatcom County’s newest winery, which just moved to Bellingham from Walla Walla.
We found Masquerade quite serendipitously last week while shopping for doors out on Iowa street. Literally one day earlier we had gotten an announcement from this new (in our area anyway) winery about an introductory tasting for local wine retailers. So, of course, seeing the sign, we popped in and tried the wines. All YOU need to know is that they are really tasty, AND that they include a lovely sparkling wine very nicely made in the classic Methode Champenoise.
Depending on when you drop by, we might be pouring any four of the following fourteen wines:
Legoe Bay: Viognier, Pinot Gris, Syrah
Mt. Baker Vineyards: Riesling, Roussane, Late Harvest Viognier, Sangiovese, Malbec, Cab Franc
Dynasty Cellars: Meritage blend, ZInfandel
Masquerade: Sparkling wine, Cabernet Sauvignon, Syrah
As the old joke goes about voting, come early and come often to sample All of these lovelies!
Lummi Island Wine Tasting August 27 ’11
To begin with, we are doing a bit of a, what do they call it, a “makeover” in the wine shop. We mentioned several weeks ago that we were making a few changes that we hoped would improve traffic flow and make the limited space work better for all of us. Step one was moving the “Best Buys” rack, which gets most of the action, away from the tasting area. That seems to have worked quite well.
The second part of the plan has taken a little time to implement. That is, our local woodworking guru, Tom Lutz (who supervised the development of our whole space, from walls to cabinets to our bar (a Happy Place!) has installed lovely window-tables along our front wall. We have moved out the wine racks along that wall to make room for you to sit, sip, and enjoy the view. We also think the extra floor space will make it easier to move around the shop to browse all the displays. Below are Ryan and Mary Jane showing us how it works! (you can click on the picture for a larger image!). And for more information on Tom Lutz’s work, see his website . Yes, he IS available to make your woodworking Dreams come true!
On the local scene, our weather continues to be lovely (despite a couple of days of laid-back summer rains), and also it is the time of year when our local Historic Reefnet Fishery is in operation right out in front of us out in Legoe Bay. A couple of mornings ago I looked out to this eerie view, in which the early morning sun was shining on Legoe Bay and the reefnetters, while we and Orcas Island across the channel remained in shadow. The effect was so startling I took a photo, which may give some idea of the interesting light contrasts…it was quite arresting. (click on the picture for a larger image!)
Last week’s wines were great, although I did make a last minute substitution from the blog posted selection. Because it was actually HOT (we deployed our portable air conditioner for the first time in two years!…I’m not making this up!), I postponed our tasting of the Dynasty Cellars Zin from our neighbors across Haro Strait until a cooler day, and added a rosé, making the whole array lighter. This summer we have developed a definite taste for the Provencal style of rosé (light and dry) and have gone through cases and cases of several labels because it is so delightfully refreshing on a summer afternoon or evening. So look for the Dynasty Zin tasting on our next cool and gray weekend. This weekend we will again be starting with a rosé and a white, followed by a couple of economical and tasty reds.
Last week’s Argyle Brut sparkling wine from Oregon obviously touched a cordial nerve, because we sold out in short order. We will look for more if anyone missed the boat…call or drop a note. And as occasionally happens, the Atalaya ’08, which was nice but a little disappointing six months ago compared to the ’07, had evolved to be showing magnificently, so we are cleaned out. The Three Trees Cougoumeilles also struck a nerve, yet again showing that “89pts” is a magical wine rating score…not flashy enough for 90. not ordinary enough for 88, and usually priced to sell. My friends, a toast to the 89-point wines, the poor person’s ‘perfect wines!”
This week’s wines :
Delille Doyenne Rose ’10 Washington $20
Bright and refreshing, a zinger of a dry. Provencal-style rosé that brims with guava, rhubarb and tea flavors, finishing with creamy texture balanced with the zip of acidity. Grenache, Cinsault and Mourvèdre.
Stephen Vincent Chardonnay 09 California $10
A terrific value, the 2008 Chardonnay offers attractive melony, buttery citrus, and tropical fruit characteristics as well as a hint of minerality. Elegant, fresh, and medium-bodied, it tastes far better than its humble price suggests.
Chateau D’Oupia “Les Heretiques” ’09 France $10
Made in Minervois from Carignan and syrah with native wild yeast; delivers aromas and flavors of dried herbs and pressed ripe blackberry; fruit-rich, hedonistic, and a great buy. (see video review)
Langmeil Three Gardens SMG ’09 Australia $16
Rich, silky-smooth and round, delivering a generous wave of red berry, cherry, spice and licorice that plays out through a long, harmonious finish. Shiraz, Grenache and Mourvèdre.
2072 Granger Way
