Author: Rainbear32

I read about this wine a few months back on the Costco Wine blog and decided then that I had to try it and review it, as best I could. Right off, the aroma of dark ripe berries hits your nose, along with a spicy note I can’t quite place.  It carries with it a…

Remy Drabkin has a knack for taming those “rowdy” Italian varietals and encouraging them to give up the very best parts of themselves.  This 2012 Barbera has been languishing in my cellar for about a year . . .and since I had 2 bottles, and since I LOVE what she does . . . I…

This festival has become our personal favorite wine and food extravaganza of the season.  Partially because of the vast array of wineries represented, and partially because it so close to home.  Oregon and Washington wines are represented by  a diverse field of great wineries, 68 in total. I have typically gone into each wine festival…

You know how it is when you wander the wine aisles at Costco . . . So many great options.  And many are very affordable.  I love to try things that I see in numerous  locations to see what the allure is about them.  Such is the case with this H3 Red Blend. There are…

A cold, overcast Saturday afternoon is a perfect opportunity to stay inside and taste wines from a variety of wonderful NW winemakers.  As is typical for me, I made a list . . a plan of attack, if you will.  I decided to try to visit vintners I hadn’t tried before, as well as a…

I’ve been fortunate enough to have visited Left Coast Cellars several times at their beautiful vineyard and tasting room just north of Rickreall on Hwy 99W.  I’ve even run into the owner Suzanne Larsen once at our Tigard Costco where she was introducing folks to her wines.  My very first encounter was in about 2012…

A few months ago we ventured up to the Walla Walla valley to sample some more of the regions great wines and were introduced to Three Rivers Winery.  I had seen their Red Blend in the stores recently, but virtually none of their other offerings. I recently opened a bottle of 2011 Malbec-Merlot . ….

It’s been an enjoyable holiday season of Thanksgiving and Christmas so far and it’s time to review another wine discovery. I was searching for something new, and inexpensive.  I’ve been a fan of many of the Delicato Family Vineyards wine offerings in the past, so when I found Nighthawk Black at my local grocery I…

  Since this was our maiden voyage in the Walla Walla area for tasting, we solicited suggestions of where to go were from friends and acquaintances in the wine industry.  Many great suggestions were made and a few required stops were inserted by me. Maryhill Winery  They have quite an impressive array of choices.  Here…

I was first introduced to this wine a little over a year ago at the Deepwood Wine and Jazz Fest in Salem, Oregon.  It was here, also, that I first met the Winemaker, Joe Williams.  I’ve had the pleasure of interacting with Joe on several occasions over the last year and consider him a friend….