At Snoqualmie, they have geared up for the start of harvest, and are celebrating the new releases from the Naked line of organically produced wines. Peachy Deegan and the Champagne Wishes panel just had to try them! These wines are made from certified organically grown grapes and produced in their certified organic winery in Prosser, WA.
The beginning of harvest in Washington state always means a flurry of activity as grapes are harvested in the vineyard and brought to the winery for the initial winemaking steps - sorting, crushing, primary fermentation – that lead to finished wines. At Snoqualmie, they take some extra steps during harvest to ensure the quality of the sustainably farmed and organically produced wines. These steps include differential harvesting (the selection and hand picking of specific areas within our organic vineyard blocks), organic cleaning of all harvest and receiving equipment prior to each use, and ensuring that the fruit from our organic vineyard blocks is delivered to the cellar within a few hours of picking for maximum freshness.
In addition, winemaker Joy Andersen picks the fruit for Naked wines at a slightly higher acidity level than standard to aid in naturally preserving the flavors and fruit characteristics of the resulting wines. Picking at these levels also means the brix, or sugar levels, in the grapes are lower, leading to lower alcohol content in the finished wines.
These additional efforts at harvest ensure that the fruit for Naked wines is of consistent high quality, allowing Andersen to create wines that capture the natural essence of each varietal with minimal intervention during the winemaking process. This winemaking philosophy results in bright, fruit-forward, food-friendly wines that are also great for drinking on their own or as an aperitif.
Whom You Know's Champagne Wishes Panel began with the Snoqualmie Naked 2009 Gewurztraminer Columbia Valley-Washington State and our panelists state:
If you like wines a little bit on the sweet side then you will like this Snoqualmie Gewurztraminer. This pale yellow wine with its highly aromatic qualities opens with a light green apple and peach like bouquet, with a hint of cinnamon making it one of the more interesting varietals. On the palate, this wine is balanced with nicely integrated acidity. It has moderately sweet light lime flavors with hints of spice. The finish is pleasantly refreshing and fades away nicely. This wine would pair well with rich, fatty dishes like pork and goose, as well as with ripe cherries. Gewurztraminer or "Gewurtz" as it is sometimes referred to pairs well with alsatian munster cheese. It also works well with otherwise hard-to-pair spicy cuisines like Indian and Chinese food, thanks to its strongly aromatic flavor. We had ours with Chicken Picata and this worked exceptionally, and surprisingly well. I was first exposed to the wines of Columbia Valley on a trip to visit a friend who lives in Washington State in 2001. My wife and I were to conclude our visit the next day when the twin towers were hit "9/11" all flights were cancelled for several days. To make good use of our delay we began visiting the wineries in the Columbia Valley. We discovered many wines we enjoy today. We were told this area is on the same latitude as Bordeaux France! Washington state produces some very fine wines, and Snoqualmie "Naked" is among them. Years later, I was re-introduced to Washington state wines at a monthly session of my wine club, the wine budget for the month is placed in the hands of one of the members and it is up to them to bring in the assortment. At this "blind tasting" six wines were kept in paper bags until we all rated and made our own tasting notes for each one. Many new discoveries were made. The Washington State wines were a big hit. The Snoqualmie "Naked" Columbia Valley-Washington State will be in my cellar I recommend it for yours as well.
I cannot believe I've never tried this type of wine before. It is now my new favorite. I even went on the Snoqualmie website and found they have a store locator to find retailers. There is one just a few miles from my house that sells Snoqualmie wine. I couldn't be more excited! I also learned a lot about the winery and found the winery's history to be very interesting. I typically prefer the sweeter reds over whites because they aren't as overpoweringly sweet. Not this wine. I drank this as slowly as I could to savor each sip. I tried it at room temperature, as well as chilled. Each time, it was the perfect glass. I paired it with several different dishes and found that it complemented each one nicely. My favorite pairing was with some pasta and marinara sauce, Dell'Amore of course. I've been invited to several fall themed parties and I plan on bringing a bottle of the Naked Gewürztraminer with me. Now that the holiday season is upon us, I know I'll be invited to several holiday parties. I plan to have a bottle of the Naked Gewürztraminer in hand to bring to every one of them. Many of my friends enjoy wine on occasion and I think this would be a perfect gift for them. I am so grateful to have had the opportunity to try this wine. I tend to stay in my comfort zone and only drink the wine I know I like. I now have a new favorite to add to my list!
The Snoqualmie 2009 Naked Gewürztraminer is one of my favorite new wines. I have to start by saying that I'm normally not a big Gewürztraminer fan. Well that's not true until I tried this one. I've always found this type of wine to be a bit too sweet for my tongue. This one is definitely an exception. It's sweet but not too over the top. Just enough to be refreshing. It has an amazing taste of orange blossom, grapefruit and lychee aromas jumped up at me. I love the floral/fruit tastes. My husband and I had the opportunity to try this wine and paired it with a nice spicy chicken salad. To let you know - it was a perfect match. I highly recommend this lightly sweet wine with a nice spicy food. You can also pair it with a rich, fatty dish like pork. I can also say it's a great wine to have with a variety of cheeses. It's a good mix and match of flavor. Yum! You honestly can't ask for a better lightly sweet wine. I can't wait to bring a bottle to my next dinner party or my favorite BYOB. It's a great bottle to gift at a housewarming. Run out there and get a bottle of
Snoqualmie 2009 Naked Gewürztraminer wine trust me you will not regret it!
