I’m not sure why I haven’t written a blog post focusing on Barrage Cellars before, but it’s about time, and a great way to start the new year!

We’ve actually been fans of Barrage Cellars for quite awhile; these days we’re major advocates of the 2007 Outcast Cabernet Franc. And I’ve had many conversations with the amusing and talented owner/winemaker Kevin Correll at events such as the Seattle Wine Awards.

A few weeks ago, we ventured to the Barrage tasting room in the Woodinville Wine Warehouse District. In addition to some excellent Washington wines, we had a wonderful time talking to Kevin and his girlfriend, Rebecca, again. And we loved his dog, Murphy!

Like many winemakers here, Kevin started making wine as a hobby in his garage; from there, he moved his craft to the barn. Put the two words barn and garage together – Bar+rage – and voila, Barrage Cellars was born.

In addition to Outcast Cab Franc, Kevin creates wine with other Bordeaux grapes and makes some good whites too. We tasted the lineup at his tasting room, where he told us he prefers to blend wine with the same grape from different vineyards, rather than blending different grapes together in one wine.

While our favorite continues to be Kevin’s Cab Franc, the most popular Barrage wine has always been Riesling. The 2009 vintage is no exception. This wine is all about the fruit – from its aromas to the palate. With a price point of $18, this wine sells quickly.

I’ve also seen people at events flock to Kevin’s table for his Nuclear Blonde Chardonnay, just because of its name. We’re not big Chard drinkers, but this one is special.

As for the other reds, Dave leaned toward the Trifecta Merlot, while I favored the Double Barrel Cabernet Sauvignon. (This is typical of our palates.) Frankly, we wanted to bring all the reds home with us, but we ended up leaving with just the robust, delicious Cab Franc.

Cheers!