Posts Tagged Lake Chelan

1. Waking up each morning to this view of Lake Okanagan.

2. Dinner with Tsillan Cellars‘ owners Mr. & Mrs. Bob Jankelson. The hillside setting of Tsillan presents panoramic views of Lake Chelan, and the well-crafted wines — available only in the tasting room or through the wine club — provide yet more incentive to visit. The Chardonnay tasted rich but balanced and focused; I enjoyed the tight and earthy Sinistra (a Sangiovese-based blend); and about the fruity and full-bodied Bellissima Rossa, I wrote “Yes.” The company was just as good as the wines. My favorite part of the evening came when Mrs. Jankelson asked, with disarming frankness, “So, can you tell me, what is wine blogging? And why is it important?”

3. Sparkling Wine Brunch at Karma Vineyards. This winery convinced me, along with quite a few of my fellow bloggers, that Lake Chelan’s specialty might well be sparkling wines. Each of the wines we tasted had impressively small, pointy bubbles and bright acids, ensuring that they pair well with a range of foods. My favorites were the 2010 Karma Brut, which had rich apple fruit and balanced lemony acids, and (despite the unfortunate name) the 2011 Hard Row to Hoe “Good in Bed” Blanc de Noir, with its beautiful texture, pronounced berry flavor and juicy, orangey acids.

4. Bus Tastings. We spent a lot of time on buses at the Wine Blogger Conference this year, for better or worse, and the conference organizers had no intention of wasting that time. Why just sit there when you can be drinking wine? The best bus tasting culminated with a 2011 Moon Curser Petit Verdot, a variety which appears in Bordeaux-style blends far more often than in a varietal wine. It had a gorgeous mocha aroma, dark fruit, rustic tannins, a zing of acids and an aromatic finish. Delicious. The winery takes its name from local gold smugglers, who would curse the full moon as they tried to sneak their booty across the border at night.

5. 2010 Hainle Vineyards Estate Winery Gewürztraminer Ice Wine. Kristof Gillese led a fascinating session about judging wine, selecting several delicious British Columbian wines for us to sample. I very much enjoyed the rich and lively 1996 Summerhill Pyramid Winery sparkling wine, the cheery and earthy 2008 Tinhorn Creek Old Field Series Pinot Noir, and the velvety and peppery 2009 Painted Rock Merlot.

But the Hainle Gewürztraminer Ice Wine was staggeringly delicious. It’s rare to see a Gewürztraminer ice wine, I learned, because the fruit usually falls off the vine before the first frost, or at the very least loses its acidity. Conditions have to be just right, and with this wine, Hainle hit a home run. It had a rich but fresh honeysuckle aroma, and such verve on the palate! It started lush and sweet, as you might expect, but then startlingly zesty acids kicked in, followed by a pop of white-pepper spice. On the finish, I got a touch of orange along with an aromatic tobacco note. It was sublime. If you can find a way to get to Hainle to taste this wine, for God’s sake, do it.

The first winery we visited as part of the Wine Blogger’s Conference pre-conference excursion to Lake Chelan was not, in fact, on the lake. Since Rio Vista stands on a hillside overlooking the Columbia River about 10 miles to the north, it technically belongs to the huge Columbia River AVA, not the four-year-old Lake Chelan AVA (American Viticultural Area). Even so, travelers to Lake Chelan should consider a short detour to Rio Vista, accessible by road, boat or float plane.

Because of Seattle’s reputation, one might imagine that a vineyard in Washington State receives vast quantities of rain, but eastern Washington lies in the rain shadow of the Cascade Mountains, making it a veritable desert. Most wineries here need to irrigate their sun-soaked vineyards.

As tempted as I was to take advantage of that sun and bask on Rio Vista’s river-view terrace, I was here on business, and I headed straight to the bar to get tasting. Here are some of my favorite wines, most of which turned out to be blends:

2012 Wild Rose Rosé: A blend of 60% Merlot and 40% Syrah, this pink charmer had a tight, spicy aroma, creamy fruit and a zippy prickle on the finish. $19.

2012 Sunset on the River: This very unusual combination of Gewürztraminer, Pinot Gris and Chardonnay had a beautifully floral, aromatic nose. It starts sweet but tart acids take over, keeping things balanced. $20

2009 Loony Red: Another rather unorthodox blend, this wine mixes two Bordeaux varieties (Merlot and Cabernet Sauvignon) with a Rhône grape (Syrah). It works. I got sucked in right away by the enticing, darkly jammy aroma. The flavor didn’t disappoint, with a richly fruity start, some oak, some dusty tannins and a zing of spice. $28

2011 Malbec: This wine really divided the crowd. Some people loved the pronounced coffee aroma and the flavors of mocha and cherries, but others remarked that if they wanted a cup of coffee, they would go to Starbucks. $32

2011 Cabernet Sauvignon: We tasted this wine straight from the barrel, which always feels like a special experience, even if the wine is only half-baked. In this case, I wouldn’t have hesitated to drink a whole glass (or more). This creamy, fruity Cabernet had a carefully controlled spiciness and a delicious mocha finish. (Yet to be released — the 2009 costs $32.)

As tasty as these wines were, what really made the visit to Rio Vista unforgettable was the float plane ride. Groups of six of us headed down to the dock on the river and clambered aboard for 30-minute panoramic tours of the region. Quarters were close, but I happily snapped photos of the rugged hills and the lakeside vineyards (see my previous post about the landscape here).

I noticed that the fellow next to me wasn’t taking photos, and oddly enough, his eyes were closed. I didn’t think all that much of it until I saw beads of sweat forming on his brow, incongruous in the relatively cool airplane. It wasn’t until we were about 10 minutes from landing that the poor gentleman requested an air sickness bag.

Alas, this modestly sized receptacle proved inadequate for the task. My greenish-looking neighbor rapidly filled the sack with the colorful remains of the beautiful hors d’oeuvres he had been nibbling just minutes earlier. Thereafter, though he politely kept the bag close to his mouth as he wretched, with each heave, a fine (and occasionally not-so-fine) spray of vomit would burst into the air. Fireworks of bile glimmered for a split second in the sunlight before they landed on my window, my leg, my arm, my shirt, my camera, my glasses, and yes, my mouth.

Thankfully, just as we were reaching these new heights of ghastliness, the plane began its descent. “Oh no, oh no, oh no, oh no, oh no, oh no,” my neighbor said, as we made a final turn before landing. We all exited the plane with no small amount of relief, but none so much as my motion-sick friend, overfull air sickness bag in hand. It was, without question, an unforgettable introduction to Lake Chelan.