Along Idaho's Snake River Valley: Coiled Wines

From Chip McLaughlin

I've recently relocated back to Boise after seven years away and I was excited to see how things had changed in the local wine industry. The first place that I discovered was a little wine co-op called the 44^th Street Wineries Cooperative. Within the walls of this old warehouse reside three of Idaho’s newest and most exciting wineries: Coiled, Telaya and Cinder.

I know two of the tenants of the 44^th Street Wineries Cooperative as a good friend of mine used to be the assistant winemaker at Cinder and I had met the proprietor of Telaya about a year and a half ago at a wine event in Seattle, so I was definitely excited to catch up with them, and see what the deal was with Coiled.  As a graphic design artist, their labels immediately caught my attention.  To understand the snake’s scales design that adorns their bottles, maybe a little history lesson is in order.

Coiled is the most recent venture by winemaker Leslie Preston, named after the Snake River, which twists, turns and coils through the southwestern valley of Idaho.  Preston is a Boise native that first discovered a love for wine when she was studying abroad in France, and it was there that she began to experience the true joy that is food and wine pairings.  Leslie realized that French literature and academia wasn't her true calling while teaching French at UC Davis where she had several students that were enrolled in the oenology and viticulture program.  After a few more years in academia, Preston left UC Davis with her M.S. in oenology. Upon graduation Leslie worked for Clos Du Bois in Sonoma, and Saintsbury in Carneros before landing her dream job at Napa Valley staple, Stags’ Leap Winery as their oenologist with oversight of the white wine program.

It was at Stags’ Leap that Leslie was able to refine her skills in winemaking, though she never forgot about her Idaho roots.  During a Rhone Rangers tasting in San Francisco, Leslie had the opportunity to try what was then the most recent releases from Sawtooth Winery, as they were pouring just a few tables down from her.  She was really intrigued and impressed by the unique quality of the wines and above all else, the idea of wines expressing an Idaho terroir.  During one of her next visits back home, she met up with Sawtooth’s founder, Charles Pintler, to talk more about the resurgence of the Idaho wine industry and she also negotiated for some Syrah from Pintler’s estate vineyard, which she then took back with her to Napa for production.

This was in 2006, and for six years, after leaving Stags’ Leap to spend more time with her new family, Preston would commute back and forth between California and Idaho, shuttling grapes all due to her excitement for Idaho’s potential to make truly unique, terroir driven wines.  In 2012, after months of conversation and deliberation, Preston, her husband and their children made the move Boise.

Right now, Coiled offers three wines in their lineup: a dry Riesling and two proprietary red blends called Sidewinder and Black Mamba.  I swear that Leslie and I are kindred spirits as we both have an extensive love for Riesling.  Preston is spearheading a revolution in America, preaching the gospel of Riesling, so it’s no surprise that her 2012 Dry Riesling is stunning.  The glass is filled with every stone fruit known to man with rich minerality, fresh orange zest, blood oranges balanced with screaming acidity and a hint of residual sugar.  Viva la Riesling Revolution, baby! $17

Coiled’s 2010 Sidewinder is a blend of 96% Syrah and 4% Petite Sirah.  I expected a big and bold northwest Syrah with a boat load of blue fruits, but had to double check the blend after I first stuck my nose in the glass to find bright red fruits intertwined with mesquite notes, dried tobacco and white and pink peppercorn.  The Sidewinder is a super velvety Syrah that is medium bodied with more mesquite notes, cranberries, bing cherries and fresh white pepper. $25

The 2011 Black Mamba was probably the biggest and best surprise of the day.  It was no surprise that someone with Preston’s background could make a stunning Riesling, but I had no idea that Idaho had begun to embrace varietals like Tempranillo, Mourvedre and Barbera.  The Black Mamba is comprised of 67% Tempranillo and 33% Syrah and man is it great!  The nose is big and bold with mountain fruits, dark cocoa, black licorice and some earthy spice while the palate is full of brighter fruits like cranberries, red currants, super soft, velvety tannins and hints of white chocolate and baking spice. $28

If Coiled is just the beginning of the next generation for Idaho wines, we are all in for quite the treat!

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Friday Find, November 1st

Each Friday we highlight a wine from the Northwest that we think is a real "find." By find we might mean that it's a steal, as all of these wines we'll feature weekly are at or under $20. We might also mean "Hey, you really need to go find this" and it might be a wine that we feel not enough people know about. In any case, with the weekend pending we're hoping to help you "find" a wine to kickoff the weekend right. We'll tell you a little bit about the wine and try to help you track it down here in the Northwest.

Somewhere in between Neil Diamond's September Morn and Guns & Roses' November Rain lies the month of October. It's gone now, today being November 1st, but it appears it doesn't receive an awful lot of fanfare. Makes me sad really because it's the month my birthday is within, and frankly, there are a lot of great things that happen in October. Right?

Maybe not.

I mean, Oktoberfest in Germany, it doesn't even happen in October. I mean, it ends in October, but what the hell it's mostly in September. Explain that one. U2 called one of their most important albums October, but no songs about it. Seems like a cop out. Why the disrespect for this great month? Why couldn't October morn have been the time when Neil Diamond and that woman from the song danced until the night became a brand new day, two lovers playing scenes from some romantic play, couldn't October morning still have made him feel that way? And if not, why not? 

I know that it's hard to hold a candle, in the cold November rain but do you think it's much easier in October, Axl Rose? I don't think that it is. Someone, somewhere, show October some love.  Today's Friday Find may not help matters because it is afterall November 1st. But this wine would have been a good one to kick off last weekend too. The 2012 Three Rivers Red from Three Rivers Winery in Walla Walla is a real kitchen sink blend, with Merlot, Sangiovese, Syrah, Cabernet Sauvignon and Cabernet Franc and a little Lemberger.

The wine is easy drinking and shows a bit of dusty and baked cherries given it's time in oak. That oak treatment was mostly neutral and the prominent presence of brighter varieties like Sangiovese (1/3 of the blend) as well as Syrah and Lemberger we have a wine that isn't overtly oaky or velveteen so the fruit really is highlighted. Aromatics of cola and berry and flavors of strawberries and red plums. A nice wine at the $20 price-point to lead us into November, despite whatever kind of slight that might mean to October. 

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Carnivore's Delight with Chef Frank Magana & Alexandria Nicole Cellars

On November 1st in Seattle's Madrona neighborhood, look out for skyrockets in flight, a Carnivore's Delight.

Frank Magana has been the unofficial chef of Washington Wine Country for some time if you ask me. I know there are several culinary sharpshooters here in Washington, Seattle mostly, but what's different about Frank is that he went to Wine Country, as opposed to just serving Washington wines in a Seattle establishment. (Not that there's anything wrong with that.) Frank's former restaurant Picazo 717 was long the go-to establishment for wine country travelers and and wine industry folks around the Tri-Cities, Red Mountain and Prosser. Frank's efforts and investment in the has been acknowledged and awarded by both winemakers and the Washington Wine Commission. Frank is also a friend of mine, and one helluva guy, so go see him.

Really, my only issue with Frank is that he's over there, in Prosser, making it much tougher to eat his food than I'd like it to be, what with me being in Seattle and all. Frank is now the executive chef at Alexandria Nicole Cellars , and he's bringing his show on the road, here, to Seattle. He's throwing a party pairing the wines from Alexandria Nicole's Destiny Ridge vineyard with a meal that seems appropriate. The Alexandria Nicole wines tend towards masculine, dark and brooding, so in that spirit, Frank is cooking up four courses for meat lovers, vegetarians need not apply.

The Carnivore's Delight will be hosted at the Glassy Baby studio in Madrona. "I'd like to bring a little bit of wine country to my west-side friends who can't make it to the sunny side as much as they'd like to." In an effort to highlight the Alexandria Nicole winemaker Jarrod Boyle's wines and their estate vineyard Chef Frank has prepared a "feast highlighting some of my most favorite beasts." (Bonus points for the rhyme Frank.) I haven't seen the menu but the ad shows silhouettes of duck, lamb, pigs, and cows. Old MacDonald is going to be one sad dude come November 2nd.

The Carnivore's Delight will feature hedonism for a good cause, appetizers along with four courses, all meat, and ANC wines paired with each. Tickets are $85 for the event with proceeds going to benefit the Seattle Children's Hospital and you can purchase tickets here. (Prizes for best costume, but I wouldn't dress up like a farm animal if I were you.)

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Friday Find, October 25th

Each Friday we highlight a wine from the Northwest that we think is a real "find." By find we might mean that it's a steal, as all of these wines we'll feature weekly are at or under $20. We might also mean "Hey, you really need to go find this" and it might be a wine that we feel not enough people know about. In any case, with the weekend pending we're hoping to help you "find" a wine to kickoff the weekend right. We'll tell you a little bit about the wine and try to help you track it down here in the Northwest.

Like me you probably have a laundry list of things you wish you had done sooner. Buying a Sonicare toothbrush is on my list, taking hot yoga classes, and probably most glaringly working with a financial adviser. I have this tendency to do this thing that drives my wife crazy, it goes like this. She tells me something, either something I should try or something she heard about that she thinks is interesting.  A few months or more later I mention to her that "so and so said I should try this" and she stares at me and says "Are you serious?" This means that she had made that suggestion earlier and I blew it off.

Most recently I had been advised by a professional cyclocross racer that the "Scientific 7 Minute Workout" is great for relieving lower back pain from racing. I mentioned this to Gwynne and she told me that she had suggested that about 4 months ago and I scoffed at the idea. I don't remember that, but she also is not a professional cyclocross racer, in my defense.

A similar thing happened with the whole financial adviser idea. It had been something Gwynne had been suggesting for sometime but after we went out to dinner with a friend who explained some of the things that her financial adviser had helped her with, it became and idea I finally entertained. 

It's probably some of the best money we ever spent. While we pay an annual fee to our "guy" we have seen our net worth increase DRAMATICALLY. Really, really dramatically. I think by understanding how to approach debt, like say student loans aggressively, and how to manage our savings, coupled with completing a will, and purchasing additional life and disability insurance the whole process has been incredibly helpful. I had always thought of us as smart people and so the idea that we needed someone to tell us how to manage our finances sounded crazy to me. I was wrong, including the time I dialed the wrong number in 1997 and a wrong left turn I made in February of 2004, this makes three times now. I try not to make a habit of it.

First let me say that wine, as wonderful as it may be to drink and enjoy should not be seen as a financial investment. It's simply not a reliable return on investment and when it is, from a percentage standpoint it's nominal, perhaps enough to cover your next wine purchase but it's no way to live. Instead, buy nice wines and drink them with friends over dinner, now that is an admirable way to live. 

This week's Friday Find is not necessarily going to set you up for long term financial success but in terms of delivering a high return on investment it certainly will do that. The 2009 Pinot Noir Cuvee from Seufert Winery has us once again singing the praises of this tiny winery in Dayton, Oregon. Jim Seufert produces a number of single vineyard Pinot Noirs and we did a piece on them a couple years ago that you can read here.  

The 2009 Cuvee is a $20 Pinot Noir crafted from a variety of Willamette Valley sources that punches way above it's weight class. Great ripe berry aromatics, floral elements, with notes of clove and baking spice. The palate makes a case for a really pretty Pinot Noir with brightness and elegance from what has otherwise been noted as a ripe vintage. Flavors of ripe raspberry, Montmorency cherries and nutmeg finish out with a fresh acidity.  You can order the wine direct here. 

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Making Wine in the Vineyard

One of the first things a winemaker will tell you is that “great wine is made in the vineyard.” And while obviously, they’re not actually making wine there, rather, growing it, the utterance gives you a real sense of the undeniable importance that proper vineyard location and its subsequent management can have on the final product, the wine in the bottle.

There are things about a vineyard, its soil quality, slope, sun exposure and heat units that made it a good location to begin with. More often than not vineyard sites that are in use today passed muster on most of those criteria before they were even planted. Some of the oldest vineyards in the Northwest were chosen by wine whiz kids coming north from California with these things in mind. While others came into being as the wine industry grew, many were originally established as farms or orchards and as the farmers and land owners watched their neighbors find success in the wine industry they converted their property over. It was a case of making do with what they had.

Stoller Vineyards happens to be a case of the latter, one that worked out, really, really well. A long time family owned turkey farm (notice the little two legged bird on the label) Bill Stoller was convinced by Harry Nedry that his land would make a prime Pinot Noir location. Given its southern exposure, the signature Dundee Jory soils and the great drainage Rob Schultz, the vineyard manager at Stoller thinks it’s a sterling case of serendipity.

“This site is perfect really, so we should be able to get to a place where we’re making history with these grapes.” Rob points out that the Stoller vineyards are one of the warmest sites in what is a cool section of the Willamette Valley’s Dundee Hills. That southern exposure and the diversity of elevation that the vineyard is planted within not only means that ripeness is not an issue but that they can harvest the vineyard over a three week period as the various blocks of the vineyards will reach physiological ripeness at different times.

As Rob toured me through the Stoller vineyards a couple things stood out; by Willamette Valley standards it’s a large vineyard and the site’s contours and topography made for a lot of variance, in terms of elevation, slope, sun exposure, what have you. It’s also been planted over a course of a few years and so they’ve dabbled in different techniques. For example Block 96 is planted in a tight Burgundian spacing and further down the hill you’ll find wider spacing between the rows. Rob joined the team in 2011 and 2012 was his first vintage.

Melissa, the winemaker & Rob, 

For Rob to do his job well it’s about his collaboration and cooperation with the winemaker, Melissa Burr who’s taking those grapes that Rob so carefully tended and trying to make the best Pinot Noir they’ll give her. “We share the same goal of trying to grow & make 100 point wines, of trying to make wines that show the terroir of the site.” While they have different jobs they have a lot in common, whether that’s their taste in wine styles or their closeness in age. That translates to a complimentary philosophy. “I take a winemaker’s approach in the vineyard.  She tries to make the wines taste like the vineyard.”

This played out in the day that I spent with Rob, on our tour he pointed out the vineyard’s section 14. “The tannins are a bit out of hand in that block, it’s something I’m working on.” Later in a tasting with Melissa she said “We’re trying to figure out section 14, I’m trying to coax out more fruit, right now it’s lot’s of tannin, but we’re working on that.” These two are on the same page. 

Melissa ferments each section of the vineyard separately, that allows her and Rob to taste through them once the wine has gone through malolactic fermentation. “We discuss the relative merits of each section and discuss what’s lacking or not.  For instance, certain sections might be lacking in tannin structure.” (They’re probably not talking about section 14.)

In that instance Rob then might be able to do certain things with that block that's lacking in tannin. One common vineyard practice to raise the level of grape tannin is to pull leaves from the vines and allow for more sun exposure. There have been studies examining the effects light has on tannin development in the grapes.

Rob's also got his eye on managing vigor or vine growth. "Vigor is a real issue with Jory soils, and I believe if we can manage that well, get to the right place, we can really move towards perfection in the wines we produce."

You get a real sense of mutual respect from talking with Melissa and Rob, whether that’s in each other’s company or not. There’s a teamwork attitude and approach, and frankly it’s something that comes across from everyone at Stoller. Rob’s gratitude and appreciation for his vineyard workers also comes out almost immediately. He knows that both he and Melissa cannot meet their goals without everyone being on board.

Rob knows what he has to work with and part of his strategy is to take the long view with everything that he and Melissa do and ultimately the wines that result from their decisions and actions. "One thing I do, is to compile all the vineyard information, the fermentation notes, and the subsequent quality into a singular report, and over time, hope to be able to track what I do, what Melissa does, and how that results in subsequent wine quality."

-Photos courtesy Stoller Family Estate

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Friday Find October 11th

Each Friday we highlight a wine from the Northwest that we think is a real "find." By find we might mean that it's a steal, as all of these wines we'll feature weekly are at or under $20. We might also mean "Hey, you really need to go find this" and it might be a wine that we feel not enough people know about. In any case, with the weekend pending we're hoping to help you "find" a wine to kickoff the weekend right. We'll tell you a little bit about the wine and try to help you track it down here in the Northwest.

Shutdown got ya down? I have committed to keeping the pages of the Anthem free of politics but there's no denying that Shutdown 2013 is a real drag. Rather than point fingers at who's to blame let's look at some of the impacts.

There's no zoo for the kids in D.C. to visit, the same goes for the National Aquarium in Baltimore, and the National Aviary in Pittsburgh. This shutdown is for the birds.  Speaking of birds you might have heard that there was a salmonella scare lately. Here's the thing, the CDC was closed down by the government shutdown so there's really no one to track this to a potential source. The good news is that common sense has prevailed and the sleuths at the CDC are able to come back to work.

The National Parks are closed, and in some cases that's effective, while in others people are just jumping over barricades. Good news for those of you worried about your congressman or woman's fitness level, their gym and health club remains open during the government shutdown, for some reason. Interestingly enough there's a subway system that takes members of Congress from their offices to the Capitol Building, it's a short walk and only a 30 second train ride. That subway system is still opened, maintained and fully staffed. It's essential apparently. What's odd? Congress has deemed non-essential toxic waste clean-up. Clean up by the EPA has been suspended at over 500 locations.

Bizarro world.

This week's Friday Find is deemed essential in terms of delivering value and consistency, the 2011 Stateline Red from Walla Walla's Gifford Hirlinger winery. The State Line Red is named for the State Line Road that the winery is located on, This is their food in the door, kitchen sink red blend. The cool 2011 vintage shows up with lots of lighter red berries. You'll also pick up an oak influence, so make those dusty red berries. The wine is velveteen and finishes to a bit of spice. For $16 from a small family owned winery you can feel good supporting the local guy, the little guy and make this a go to weeknight wine to pair with your heartier meals. I picked mine up at the Magnolia Metropolitan Market.

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Hanging with Boudreaux

from Lucha Vino

Rob Newsom of Boudreaux Cellars is an adventurer, story teller, wine maker and nice guy.  You could put the phrase “hell of a…” in front of each one of those labels and still be telling the truth. 

Recently, I had the pleasure of spending some time with Rob exploring his winery and listening to stories of adventure, old buddies, and (of course) wine making.

Rob moved from Louisiana to the Pacific Northwest in the mid 1970s.  He hasn’t lost his Louisiana drawl or down South hospitality in the intervening years. Both welcome you into his world and make you feel like a long time friend from the first time you meet.  Whether he is regaling you with stories of mountain climbing, building his winery or making wine you will hang on every word.

Rob ultimately moved to his spot on Icicle Creek in the early eighties after discovering the location on a climbing adventure.  First, he built his cabin and then twenty years later built his winery on the same location.  He personally cut the timbers for his cabin and built it himself by hand.  He also hand built the bridge that crosses Icicle Creek (twice!).  Rob says that cutting the timbers for his cabin and building that bridge were two of the most dangerous things he has ever done in his life.  When you consider the fact that he has climbed mountains in the Himalayas, Denali in Alaska and our own Mt. Rainier (multiple times) you can begin to envision what cutting those trees and building that bridge must have been like!

The Boudreaux Winery is rustic and striking, rising up among ancient trees along Icicle Creek.  Rob and his assistant wine maker, Tyler Vickrey, handpicked and carried all the river rock that adorns the exterior walls of the Boudreaux winery.  They just placed the last rock this year and Rob likes to say they are stonemasons that make wine on the side.

It was during the 90’s that Rob was introduced to Washington wines through Leonetti and the Figgins family.  Between outdoor adventures and wine Rob built a lasting friendship with the Figgins family.  He immediately became known as “Boudreaux” (a famous Southern character known for adventure and story telling). 

As the story goes, Rob was complaining about the cost of wine to Gary Figgins.  So Figgins threw down the challenge “Why don’t you do it yourself.”  Naturally, that was all the encouragement a guy like Rob Newsom would need.  His retort “I think I will!”  The name for the winery was a natural fit with Gary Figgins’ son Chris naming Rob’s first wine the “cru Boudreaux.”  And that is how you start a winery that has become one of the most unique wineries in the state of Washington.

When we walked into the winery Rob got things started by pouring us a glass of the “Big Nasty”, an unfiltered chardonnay that hit the spot considering the mercury in the thermometer was already pushing 100 degrees.  Next, we took a stroll down into the barrel room where it was considerably more comfortable.  The barrel room is completely underground with ambient temperature control varying from 49 to 59 degrees.  With the cooler temperatures in his barrel room, Rob likes to age his wine in barrel for an extra year.  You will see that most of his wines spend up to 36 months chilling in barrel.

Rob intertwines his love of adventure with his winemaking.  While we were hanging out in the barrel room we tasted a “Frangio” – a blend of Cabernet Franc and Sangiovese.  The result of getting some Cab Franc from Den Hoed and then wondering “What the heck do I do with this?”  Frangio was the result, a co-ferment of Cab Franc and Sangiovese that melds the herbal spiciness of the Cab Franc and tart cherries and earth tones of the Sangiovese into a splendid slightly spicy medium bodied wine.  Rob sells most of the Frangio to his friend J-Bo in Lousianna. 

As the story goes, J-Bo tried the wine and wanted to know how much it would cost.  When Rob replied with the price of a bottle, J-Bo said, “not for a bottle, for all of it!”  And the rest is history as J-Bo bought the whole lot for $12,000!  And that is how you get a wine named after you…

After we tasted the J-Bo Rob told us about a little Cab, Syrah, Sangiovese, Petite Verdot he had just whipped up.  And the adventure continues.

Back up to the tasting room and Rob opened a 2007 Cabernet and 2008 Cabernet Reserve for us.  The stories were already blowing my mind and now these two cabs finished the job.  Boom!

Rob’s first reserve cab was 100% Champoux fruit.  Today it is a blend of Loes Leonetti estate vineyard fruit and Champoux. The Boudreaux Reserve Cabernet is a one of a kind combination of Walla Walla and Horse Heaven Hills AVA grapes from two of the highest quality vineyards in Washington.

The 2007 Cabernet Sauvignon showed dusty dark cherry, clove and menthol spice with a dry cedar spice and slight cocoa finish.

The 2008 Cabernet Sauvignon reserve features bold rich dark fruit with some slightly herbal overtones and a big spicy tannin fueled chocolate finish.

Both of these wines are big, bold , rich and sassy.  You can enjoy them now or lay them down in your cellar for the future.

You can taste the Boudreaux wines at their tasting room in Leavenworth, the Wine Library in Woodinville and by appointment at the winery just off Icicle Creek outside of Leavenworth.  Rob’s wines are dynamite captured in a bottle. Get on out and taste them for yourself.  If you are fortunate enough to book a visit to the winery you will get the double pleasure of tasting the Boudreaux wines and listening to Rob’s stories of life and adventure.

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