2008 Don Carlo Chardonnay

From Washington? From Oregon? From The Columbia Valley

On the second day of the 2010 Wine Bloggers’ Conference in Walla Walla, WA, we got a bit of a geography lesson.

The local AVA, the Walla Walla Valley, crosses borders.

See, I’d always thought of the Walla Walla Valley AVA as “Washington wine.” Ditto for its parent region, the Columbia Valley AVA. Problem is, some of the grapes grown in the AVA are grown in Oregon.

As a Californian, this idea is wholly foreign. It’s like when an east coaster talks about driving for five hours and passing through a half-dozen (or more!) states. I live a 7-8 hour drive to Arizona, a 3+ hour drive to Nevada, and a 5-ish hour drive to Oregon. I wouldn’t even know how to get to Idaho from here.

But there it is, an AVA associated primarily with one state, that is nonetheless geographically part of a second.

We took a bus from the Marcus Whitman Hotel into the Land Of No Sales Tax, where I spent about 11 weeks of my collegiate career, and met Lori and Tim Kennedy, proprietors/vintners/viticulturists/etc. for Don Carlo Vineyards, named after Lori’s Italian immigrant grandfather.

These Oregonians are making some fine, fine wine in the name of one of Washington State’s largest AVAs.

The 2008 Don Carlo Chardonnay is a bright golden-yellow in the glass. It’s doesn’t look too heavy or dark, but certainly shows off more color than, say, a sauvignon blanc. The nose is bright and crisp, featuring primarily an apple note, along with a hint of green grass.

The wine is light-bodied and smooth, with enough buttery/oaky character to slake the thirst of those who love the more “traditional” New World chard, but also featuring the apple from the nose and a pleasant cantaloupe note for those who like something a bit crisper and more fruit-forward.

The wine feels just slightly kissed by oak, and should please fans of either style. A fine example of Oregon Chardonnay.

Verdict: B+

2008 Don Carlo Chardonnay

2008 Don Carlo Chardonnay

2008 L’Ecole No 41 Columbia Valley Semillon

School’s In Session

Semillon grapes

On the first full day of the Wine Bloggers’ Conference, the assembled wine blog whateverspherites were—well, treated, I suppose—to a white wine “speed-tasting” round. 12 white wines in the course of 1 hour is a marathon that I’m not sure I’d want to do again. It was a huge crowded room, 30-or-so tables of 6-8 bloggers each, and the winery representatives had five minutes to give us their spiel.

One wine—and I think the fact that it was the first that I tasted cannot go unmentioned—truly stood out for me. In fact, this classic Bordeaux-style blend of 89% semillon and 11% sauvignon blanc was among the best Washingtonian whites that I tasted over the long weekend.

L’Ecole No 41 is a winery located in Frenchtown, WA, just outside of Walla Walla, named after the schoolhouse the winery now occupies (“l’ecole” is French for “the school”) and the Washington school district number that the schoolhouse once belonged to.

Founded in 1983, L’Ecole No 41 is one of the original wineries in the Walla Walla area, having opened for business before the Walla Walla Valley AVA was even officially codified.

But enough of the winery; what of the wine? The winery’s historical place in the Walla Walla Valley AVA notwithstanding, this particular wine is made from grapes grown in the Columbia Valley AVA.

The wine is a very light straw yellow in the glass, and the nose features notes of melon and of a light—faint, even—honey sweetness. The wine is medium-bodied and tastes fresh and bright. Melon and pair dance on the palate, and a pleasant minerality keeps everything in check.

The wine would be an A-, but there is one problem: it’s hot. The 2008 L’Ecole No 41 Semillon clocks in at 14.2% ABV, very high for a white wine in general, and not balanced very well. It drinks hot, and while I would love to recommend it with food like seafood pasta, the alcohol level makes that difficult.

Still, it’s a very good wine on its own merits. Well recommended.

Verdict: B+