2020 Seven Hills Dry Rose

Happy Sunday!  It's been somewhat quiet here today, as I had the chance to do some chores around the house and just returned from a bike ride, but now it's time for a glass of wine.  Tonight I've opened a bottle of wine from one of my favorite Washington wine makers, that I brought back from my vacation to Walla Walla, the 2020 Seven Hills Dry Rose from the Columbia Valley of Washington.  It certainly is rose season, so let's see what this wine has to offer!

The wine is a lovely peach color in the glass, with a hint of pink at the edges, just what you might expect from a nice rose.  A quick swirl in the glass releases aromas of honeysuckle, soft citrus notes, and some nice mineral notes.  Take a sip and you are greeted with a taste of summer, with wonderful strawberry notes intermingled with grapefruit and watermelon, that will have you pining for the days of your childhood enjoying sweet, juicy fruits of summer in the back yard.  The tannins are soft and well structured for the crisp, dry finish.

Overall, I would rate this wine a solid 9, as it just speaks to me as an ideal summer rose all around, and at $20 it's a terrific value as well.  This wine would pair well with a variety of summer dishes, from burgers and hot dogs, to classic barbecue, to light summer salads.  Tonight I am taking a different approach and enjoying this wine with another dinner on the patio, a creole spiced veal loin chop, along with some blistered Campari tomatoes and linguine tossed with asparagus and garlic scapes sautéed in olive oil and topped with shaved parmesan.  Cheers!

2015 Helix Columbia Valley Rose

Happy Sunday!  It's been unbelievably hot and humid here, today it's 91 and 69% humidity which makes it feel like 104!  I had to laugh last week when I was in California and a couple at the hotel were complaining about how humid it was that day and the humidity was only 31%!  They had no idea what heat and humidity were!  Although I immediately start sweating when I go outside, the only good thing is that we are smack dab in the heart of rose season, and tonight I've opened a bottle that's been sitting here for a couple months - I promised not to open it since it was shipped to me so close to bottling and it needed to settle, so I couldn't open it until at least the 4th of July, but you know how patient I can be!  This latest wine for the Summer of Rose is the 2015 Helix Columbia Valley Rose from the Reininger Winery in Walla Walla.

The wine is a deep pink color in the glass that makes it almost look like a red wine.  The nose presents aromas of watermelon, strawberry and cut grass, with just a hint of citrus along with some floral notes of rose petals.  The taste is lovely, with some fresh fruit notes up front, strawberry and some bright citrus that transitions to some wonderful mineral notes midpalate.  The finish is crisp and very dry, perfect for a warm summer evening on the patio.

Overall, I would rate this wine a solid 8, it's a great summer rose with a lot of complexity and a great value at under $20!  This would be a great summer salad wine, perfect for fresh greens or a nice caprese salad with heirloom tomatoes and fresh basil.  But tonight I'm going a more traditional Pacific Northwest route and am enjoying this wine with an alder planked wild Alaska coho salmon filet with lemon and fresh dill along with some steamed basmati rice and oven roasted Brussels sprouts.  The crispness of the wine is a perfect accent to the richness of the salmon.  Cheers!

2015 Seven Hills Dry Rose of Cabernet Franc

Happy St. Patrick's Day!  I know this is traditionally a holiday marked by corned beef and cabbage and green beer, but I'm not much of a beer drinker, so what to pair with my lovely dinner that's been simmering all day long?  Thankfully I received a case of 2015 Seven Hills Dry Rose of Cabernet Franc with my wine club shipment last week and that should be perfect!

The wine is a lovely, light peach color in the glass, and at certain angles it almost appears to be a white wine.  The nose presents aromas of peach, mango and a hint of orange blossom.  The taste is just wonderful, with a blast of floral notes up front that transition nicely to some flavors of grapefruit, watermelon and a hint of spice midpalate.  The finish is crisp and refreshing as I am not imagining how this wine will be on the patio during a pleasant July evening.

Overall, I would rate this wine a solid 8, it one of the nicest roses I've had from Washington, and they keep getting better every year.  As mentioned earlier, I am enjoying this wine with my traditional corned beef and cabbage with red potatoes and cabbage, as the fresh fruit and acidity cuts nicely through the richness of the corned beef.  Cheers!