It’s a new year and with that comes new wine! This is an out-of-the-box week with a white wine from the new wine club my husband joined, Chateau Ste. Michelle. My husband is a HUGE fan of sparkling wines. He really loves the Luxe Brut they make at Chateau Ste. Michelle. It’s the wine that sold him on joining his first wine club. He has also made a resolution this year to try a new sparkling wine every week. That’s right! That means I get to try 52 sparkling wines this year! Needless to say, I’m super pumped!
Chateau Ste. Michelle is the original Seattle winery. The winery dates itself all the way back to 1912, but the tasting room and grounds that all Seattleites know and love wasn’t built until 1972 in Woodinville, Washington. Chateau Ste. Michelle runs two different wineries. One is for white and one is for red. Since 2009, the wineries have earned the LIVE and Salmon Safe certifications for their sustainability efforts.* Their beautiful tasting room is open daily from 10am – 5pm, so if you are in or around the Seattle area, I highly recommend stopping by.
While this wine is labeled a Viognier, is actually a blend. It’s 94% Viognier, 5% Roussanne, and 1% Marsanne. In order to meet federal regulations, a bottle must contain at least 75% of one varietal in order to be named after it.* This may be something you want to keep an eye out for if you’re wanting to try something very particular.
This wine was from Yakima Valley, Washington and sampled on December 28, 2019. I was listening to “The Boy” by Shannon & The Clams. The coloring was that of medium straw. From the glass came scents of tropical white flowers and white peaches. The first taste brought mostly sweetness with just a tinge of acidity. The finish was fairly smooth. It tasted mostly of honeydew and tangelos.
I gave this wine a rating of 2.5. It felt more like summer or something worthy of thirst-quenching rather than a winter wine. Pairing with the holiday leftovers was a poor decision on my part.
Sources:
https://trade.oregonwine.org/resources/labeling-regulations/