2017 Vacation to Walla Walla Wine Country - Day 3

Well my third day of vacation presented the opportunity to accomplish some of the things I failed to get to the day before.  I started the day going back out to the west side to visit the two wineries that started may affinity for Walla Walla nearly two decades ago.

The school bell that you can ring at the entrance to L'Ecole No. 41.

My first stop was to the old school house on U.S. 12, the home of L'Ecole No. 41.  I had the chance to meet with Jaime, the wine club manager (though I''m not sure what her current title is), and she's always a pleasure to spend time with.  We had a nice conversation over some wonderful 2014 Perigee and 2014 Ferguson as well as the new vintage of Candy Mountain red wine, all wonderfully delicious!

The Woodward Canyon Tasting Room.

Next it was off to Woodward Canyon which it right next door.  I felt bad as I'd met Cory, the tasting room manager at the pre-harvest dinner a few nights before and said I'd visit the next day but I failed!  So I made up for it as we tasted through some wonderful wines, including the 2010 Estate Reserve, a classic Bordeaux style blend of Merlot, Petite Verdot, Cabernet Franc and Cabernet Sauvignon.  Now the 2010 and 2011 vintages were very cool, and although they were somewhat disappointing when younger, they are really starting to shine now.

The Maison Bleue tasting room in Walla Walla.

After Woodward Canyon, I went back downtown where I first stopped at Maison Bleue where I tasted through some of their wonderful Rhone blends.  They have one of the most beautifully decorated tasting rooms in Walla Walla, and Cynthia handles the tastings so well.  I am not a huge Pinot Noir fan, but I have to admit I thoroughly enjoyed their new Pinot under the J. Meuret label.

The newly re-branded Bledsoe Family Winery tasting room.

Next I stopped at Graze for lunch and then to the Bledsoe Family Winery tasting room.  Bledsoe has undergone some changes recently as they established the Bledsoe Family Wines label to be a somewhat more approachable family of wines while retaining the Doubleback label positioned at the premium end.

Photo of the "Cadaretta" in the Cadaretta Winery tasting room.

After Bledsoe, I went across the tracks to visit Cadaretta to taste some wonderful Cabernet Sauvignon and blends.  They have also gone through some changes as they sold the Buried Cane and their other secondary labels.

The DaMa tasting room on Main Street, be sure to taste the Tempranillo!

I went to the DaMa Wines tasting room next, which is always a pleasure.  I was fortunate that Mary, the proprietor and winemaker was there, so I had a chance to chat with her a bit and taste some of the new 2014 vintage Cabernet Sauvignon which will be released this fall (and I'm really looking forward to that release!).

Pepper Bridge Winemaker Jean-Francois Pellet and Ox & Cart Executive Chef
Jacob Crenshaw provided for a wonderfully tasteful evening.

I ended my day at the Ox & Cart for a winemaker dinner featuring Jean Francois Pellet, the partner and winemaker at Pepper Bridge.  He's been doing this since 1999, and interestingly enough I remember having dinner with a good friend and mentor when I lived in Seattle in 2003 and he brought a bottle of JF's first vintage of Cabernet Sauvignon to dinner!

Caramelized Wagyu beef, chanterelle mushrooms and butter braised potato puree
paired with 2014 Pepper Bridge Winery Trine.

Ox & Cart is a wonderful farm-to-table restaurant in Walla Walla that exemplifies the wonderful array of produce available throughout the Walla Walla Valley.  We had a wonderful four course dinner with pairings at each course, but by far may favorite was the caramelized Wagyu beef with chanterelle mushrooms and butter braised potato puree paired with 2014 Pepper Bridge Winery Trine.  Of course we were invited to come out to Pepper Bridge for a tasting, but you'll have to wait for a future post to hear about that!