Lots of Great Things to Share from Palouse!

The 2011 Crush is Over!

Hello Everyone,

We're happy and very excited to report we just crushed our last grapes of the year! There is still plenty of work to do as we continue to ferment, press and barrel-age the wines, but we are done getting grapes. This year was a very trying year for most of the vineyards we work with as they had low yields on most things and we got less than expected of most grapes. The good news is the grapes we got are amazing, as the plants' energy was given to less fruit. So, being the intrepid winemakers we are, we ventured further out on a limb to try a few new varieties. We are very excited about doing a ton of Tempranillo and also a new Malbec from a different vineyard source! Just when we think we need to par down and pick one or two varieties, we get offered something new and it is so hard to resist. You can look forward to these new wines in 2013. Many will go only to the wine club so you better get on the list now…

Palouse Scored BIG with the Revered Experts!

Next, we just have to talk about the Robert Parker Advocate scores we just received: 91 points on our 2008 Dineen Vineyard Cabernet Sauvignon! If you have been to the tasting room you will recognize this as the one marked Linda’s favorite. If you haven’t been here, you'd better hightail it to us as we only sell this here at the winery and a few select places. We also received a 90 point score on the 2008 Dineen Syrah. We are so pumped and proud about this! We thought the Seattle Wine Awards is really something but The Advocate - this is the top honor for wines! We'll be sending in our wines to The Spectator next. One of our club members wrote us with the great news:

George & Linda,
In case you hadn’t heard, you made the big leagues. Three wines scored by the Wine Advocate, two of which scored 90 points or better. The scores only validate what we already knew; Palouse makes damn fine wine. The scores and notes are below:

eRobertParker.com #197
Oct 2011 Jay Miller 91 Drink: 2014 - 2023 $29 (29) The 2008 Cabernet Sauvignon Dineen Vineyard is a classy offering. Enticing aromas of sandalwood, Asian spices, violets, leather, and assorted black fruits set the stage for a ripe, layered, nicely proportioned wine that has several years of aging potential. Drink it from 2014 to 2023+.

eRobertParker.com #197
Oct 2011 Jay Miller 90 Drink: N/A $29 (29) Considerably more serious is the 2008 Syrah Rattlesnake Hills. Scents of grilled bacon, wood smoke, pepper, and blueberry inform the nose of a plush, spicy, full-flavored Syrah that has enough structure to evolve for 1-2 years but which can be approached now.

Palouse & Your Holidays

Finally, we have several events coming up to announce:

• Ladies Night at Vashon Island Lumber Monday/tonight November 7th from 5:30pm-9:00pm
• Palouse's Annual "Prisoner Release" New Wine Release Party Saturday November 19th from 4:00pm-9:00pm
• 24-Hour Black Friday Sales Event starting at midnight Friday November 25th: call or order online, or stop into the winery from 2:00pm-7:00pm to take advantage of great specials!
• First Friday Art Walk Wine Bar from 5:00pm-9:00pm

Plus, the winery we'll be open extended days and hours, Thursdays-Sundays from 2:00pm-7:00pm 11/25-12/24. You can come by for tastings, purchase wines and wine gift packages, join the Palate Club or give the gift of the Palouse Palate Club.

Please check our website for full details on upcoming events and sales specials as post them www.palousewinery.com

Cheers to all in the upcoming season and thank you all for loving our wines and supporting our winery,

George & Linda Kirkish
Palouse Winery

Hello and Happy New Year!
We are rolling right on past Christmas and it is already the new year. The grapes are all pressed and barreled; we have even gotten through the first racking. We bought a bigger tank this year for our Riesling since we ran out of the 2009 vintage in August and are squeaking by with a few cases left from 2007. Wine is such a personal thing for most of us, just when we think we know what we like or don’t like, we find something can come along and challenge us. Apparently this is what the Cloud Nine does for many people. They will tell you they don’t drink whites, especially Rieslings, and then someone else will tell them, "you gotta try this” - next thing they know they are buying 3 cabs, 4 Eclipse and 2 Riesling. There are no absolutes.

We are all on a wine journey, our own odyssey if you will, to find our perfect wine. This really never ends since you continue to grow along this trail. George and I love to try new things but like to come back to our own tried and true loves. With this in mind, we are sharing with you some of our newest creations and some of our tried and true loves. Our newest vintage of 2008 has been wonderful and they are all terrific, but for me the Merlot is just a standout. I don’t know if it is because this is the first year we have done a standalone Merlot or if it is just far more exquisite.

Next we are sharing what is left of the Golden Pearl, Viognier. This will be the end of the 2009 vintage but we will have the 2010 completed hopefully by mid-March. Our tried and true for this shipment will be the Cab from 2007 which is still my all-time favorite. This wine just gets smoother and smoother……………..

For all of you red fans we have the Petite Sirah as this one is my second favorite. We did not make a Petite Sirah in 2008 and I don’t remember why. Maybe because we wanted to try doing the Merlot instead. As you all know we sometimes have a hard time saying no to grapes which is why we have so many varietals. We love to experiment with all that is offered in Washington.

For all of you who have asked for more of the Petit Verdot, we are, sadly, out of this but will have more next year. This was dedicated to you, our devoted Palate Club members and supporters who make this all possible, so thank you!

So here's wishing you and yours a happy, healthy and wine-filled 2011!

Linda