What a treat – we spent an afternoon with two exceptional Washington winemakers, John Bigelow of JM Cellars and Morgan Lee of Two Vintners Wines (et al) in April at their tasting rooms at The Vault in Maltby. Not surprisingly, their wines were exceptional and their stories kept us both intrigued and laughing at the same time. And we finally met Alice, Morgan’s sweet Black Lab, who has a stunning red wine named after her. We tasted that wine, along with several of Morgan’s mouthwatering Syrahs and his excellent Grenache Blanc, along with John’s stellar (and unreleased) Founder’s Reserve, and his amazing Grenache, Malbec, and two styles of Chardonnay. Read on for details.
Category Archives: Cabernet Franc
L’Ecole 2023
L’Ecole 41 is a third-generation, family-owned artisan winery. Most importantly, it is one of the most honored wineries in Washington state, and has generated national and international accolades over the years for producing superior quality wines. We’ve been fans of L’Ecole since we moved to Washington in 1999. As a result, we frequently visit their historic schoolhouse in Walla Walla, and know their talented winemakers Marty Clubb and Marcus Rafanelli, and their amazing wines. So, we were delighted to sample six L’Ecole 2023 releases. Once again, L’Ecole scored. These are the impressive wines we tasted: 2020 Ferguson Estate, 40th Anniversary Red, Cabernet Sauvignon, and Cabernet Franc-Merlot; 2021 Sémillon, and 2022 Grenache Rosé.
Grand Tasting
For two decades, we have called Taste Washington “the Super Bowl of Wine Events.” It’s the country’s largest single-region wine and food extravaganza, and returned March 6-13 in Seattle after a three-year break because of the pandemic. We went to the Grand Tasting, and had an epic time connecting with some incredible winemakers, and tasting their new releases.
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Favorite Wines in 2022 – Part 4
Here are our favorite wines in 2022 – Part 4. You might recall that in early January we revealed our favorite 20 wines last year. We compiled the list after tasting hundreds of wines in 2022. These 20 wines made a lasting impression. However, at that time, we only published a list of the wines, with links to their wineries. Now we are sharing more details. Read on for Part 4.