Saturday, June 23, 2012

"The Way West"...Day 10...Friday, June 22, 2012

On my list of "Ten Places Where I'd Like to Live", there's a spot for Walla Walla. In many ways, it's the "anti-Napa Valley". There are no $8 million Renaissance mansions built by ex-Hollywood Producers turned amateur winemakers. Winemakers here are mostly locals...and many of them are making wine out of their garage. There's a cooperative spirit among winemakers here...if someone has a wine-making problem, the other vintners pitch in to help. They have a place here called the "Incubators"...small wine-making facilities that beginning winemakers can rent at a reasonable price while they perfect their techniques and ramp up production.
I don't know who creates these "polls", but Walla Walla was recently voted "Friendliest Town in America" The people here deserve that distinction. It's a small-town atmosphere with great wine and great restaurants. It's very much a "foodie" town...not just restaurants, but bakeries, artisan cured meat shops, gourmet coffee, etc. And the wines...Wow...I can't say enough about the wines. In two visits here and stops at, probably, thirty different wineries, I can state without hesitation that I've never tasted a wine here that wasn't outstanding. They're big, grapey, fruit-forward monsters of wine.
So...all that being said...you can probably guess what kind of day I had today.
I was up early and preparing to make coffee when I discovered that I had lost the filter basket to my coffee maker...it must have fallen out of the back of the Explorer somewhere along the way. Fortunately, I have a backup option...heat water on the Coleman stove and make coffee in the French press pot...so, after a brief delay, I'm in business. Breakfast consists of last night's leftover charcuterie...salamis, prosciutto, cheese and baguette slices...good!
It's a leisurely morning to post on the blog...shower and change clothes...and plan out my day of wine tasting. When last here in the fall of 2008, my friend, Shannon, and I met a young winemaker by the name of Spencer Seiver...he took us on a tour of the cellars at Reininger Winery which included some tastings right out of the barrel. Spencer's still in Walla Walla...and now he has his own winery, El Corazon. That's my first stop around noon, but the tasting room doesn't open until 2:00PM, so I'll have to come back.
In the meantime, I head over to Tacqueria Yungapeti which has been highly recommended by several bartenders and bar patrons. When I arrive, I can see why it's been recommended...there's a line out the door and the place is packed. The tacos here are simple and very authentic...it's not the cheesey, fat-laden "glop" that we're used to back in Michigan. Iget three tacos...al Pastor (which is like a Mexican "Schwarma"), carnitas and chorizo with egg...and...they have Coca-Cola from Mexico that's made with real cane sugar instead of high-fructose corn syrup. It's a hearty and very satisfying lunch.
There is a "cluster" of wineries outside of town, near the airport...so I head over there. I stop and taste at five different wineries...Buty, Syzygy, 5 Star, Dunham and Walla Walla Vintners. I taste the whole gamut...Cabs, Merlots, Syrahs, Petit Verdots, Cabernet Francs, Carmeneres...and every single one is a knock-out...big, fruity, deep, luscious wines that you want to just gulp down. The winemakers are friendly, and eager to explain why the soils and climate here are perfect for wine growing. It gets pretty hot inside the Explorer, so I don't want to be buying a lot of "high-end" stuff...just a few bottles of entry-level table wine. When all is said and done, I end up with ten bottles and five ball caps...two of which were gratis.
Around 3:00PM, I'm back at El Corazon's tasting room, and I have an opportunity to spend an hour tasting and talking with my friend, Spencer. Spencer doesn't have many wines for sale...and that's good for him. His first two bottlings of six different wines sold out in a day...very impressive. But he's able to find a few good bottles tucked away in the back. One of these is his "Pistolero Cuvee"...he and another winemaker selected their best barrel of Syrah and blended them...a great example of the cooperative spirit here.
I'm back at camp around 5:00PM for some camping "housekeeping"...clean out and re-ice the coolers, get rid of some trash, reorganize things in the back of the Explorer (I've got to make room for all of that wine that I bought today).
Around 6:00PM, I'm on the bus for town and dinner at a place called "Whitehouse-Crawford" which comes highly recommended. I'm lucky to get a seat on a busy Friday night at the counter looking into the kitchen. The wines by the glass list is extensive...and I have a few glasses of the excellent Seven Hills Cab. For an appetizer, I have a warm salad of asparagus with truffle butter and a poached duck egg...it goes great with the Cab. My only complaint is that I'm not getting any truffle flavor as advertised. For the main course, I get a grilled rib eye with a porcini mushroom sauce...good, but not great...lots of fat and gristle in the meat. A scoop of chocolate and a scoop of salted caramel ice cream close things out. When I head out the door, it's pouring rain. So...I am forced to go back inside to the bar and drink more Cab while chatting up a few folks from Seattle.
After an hour or so, the rain stops and I head up to the bar at the Marc Hotel...very nice. More great wines by the glass...friendly barkeep and nice patrons.
Around 11:00PM, it's a taxi back to camp and bedtime...the end of a great, great day.










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