Some Wine
This past weekend I spent my time in Walla Walla, Washington's Wine Country, with my Kappa Kappa Gamma sorority sisters (and a few AGD's, a Pi Phi and a DG!) The celebatory element: the beautiful bride-to-be, Courtney.
We spent all say Saturday exploring just a few of the hundreds of wineries located in and around Walla Walla.
Our first stop was Tamarack Cellars, which is housed in an old firehouse. This is also their signature wine, Firehouse Red, which is a blend of Cabernet, Merlot and Syrah (and some others). I enjoyed their DuBrul Vineyard Reserve but a little out of my price range :) For more info, click here: http://www.tamarackcellars.com/
Next we headed to Dunham Cellars. They had quite the dog theme! Four Legged Whit, is the name of one of their signature wines.
They had what looked like an old beautiful farmhouse, with crates and crates of wine, where we tested their favorites. The first wine I tasted had a pickle flavor, which I think then ruined my tasting of the others :) For more info, click here: http://www.dunhamcellars.com/
Our third stop was Glen Fiona http://glenfiona.com/. This location reminded me of something from the French countryside. I love there packaging because it is green, which is my favorite color. Their wine was very good, but they need to invest in a wine pourer.
Fourth stop was Saviah Cellars. It felt more like a brewery but I loved all the barrells of wine on show. The operations team was so friendly and so excited to have a group of young ladies stroll through. We were also lucky enough to taste the Grappa...well, not so lucky I should say! 140 proof wine definitely has a kick to it! For more info, click here: http://www.saviahcellars.com/
What we thought would be our last stop, Tertulia Cellars http://www.tertuliacellars.com/, was most appropriate - the label of their wine has a circle of friends :) This little winery is very modern in design. I purchased their Viognier-Columbia Valley white and I cant wait to enjoy it!
Our final two stops were at smaller wineries located in the heart of downtown Walla Walla. Waterbrook http://waterbrook.com/tasting_room/default.htm, which I have had previsouly, and Preston http://www.prestonwines.com/index.php?ID=30. We enjoyed tasters at both and then headed to Sweet Basil Pizzeria for a late lunch.
When you have beein drinking wine for four hours, a few crackers just arent going to cut it! So, knowing we had an 8pm dinner reservation, we didnt hesitate stopping for a slice of Wall Walla pizza... or two (because they are thin :)). I enjoyed the Itialiano and the Pesto. They are thin crusted pizza; easy to fold New York style if you like that. I did however, come away smelling of garlic, but I suppose that is to be expected. http://www.sweetbasilpizzeria.com/
Our Luscious Dinner
After an hour break, we were off to our dinner at Luscious By Nature http://www.lusciousww.com/. We had the corner room all to our selves, all 13 of us!
The first thing I noticed of course was the water, which was in a glass wine craft with floating cucumber peices (somewhat resembling snakes). The cucumber adds a mild flavor to the water which actually seemed to cut the wine flavor stain I had in my mouth from a day of sipping.
We started off with potato pancakes with creme fresh, and decorated flat bread (meats, cheeses and arugula), along with the classic french bread accompanied by olive oil and balsamic.Our dear friend who just became a new mommy provided the table with a wonderful Boom Town Syrah.
I decided on the Ceil's Famous Goat Cheese Rellenos for my main course. I rarely pass up goat cheese, so it was a no-brainer. It arrived about 15 minutes later with a lightly tossed salad. The sauce was made of mild green chilis, which complimented the goat cheese. Different types of olives were used in this dish as well, which made it a bit more hearty since this is a vegetarian dish. They were a bit rich, but I enjoyed every bite and probably would have licked the plate if I had the chance.
And of course, in true Marge fashion, there had to be a desert (without chocolate for Lent). We ordered the cheesecake. As with goat cheese, I have never met a cheesecake I dont like.
This one came with a minty topping and what appeared to be chocolate sprinkles, but they didnt taste like chocolate (lets hope they werent, so I dont fail Lent again). It was heavenly....
I loved the ambiance of this place... very qauint, but lively. Low lit and easy to find the ladies room and even a band playing just loud enough so that we could still hear over one another. The waiter looked like Bradley Cooper at first glance, so that also made for a nice setting. And finally, these place is VERY reasonably priced. We split the bill by 12 and only paid $25 each. We enjoyed an awesome dinner that should have cost more like $50/person.
I loved the ambiance of this place... very qauint, but lively. Low lit and easy to find the ladies room and even a band playing just loud enough so that we could still hear over one another. The waiter looked like Bradley Cooper at first glance, so that also made for a nice setting. And finally, these place is VERY reasonably priced. We split the bill by 12 and only paid $25 each. We enjoyed an awesome dinner that should have cost more like $50/person.
Overall I would rate this with 4 stars and would recommend it to anyone heading east of the mountains!
P.S. Watch out for those pesky windmills!
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