by Kyla Myers
If you’ve taken a couple of days off for Thanksgiving and you’re wondering what to do with yourself, consider heading to the Yakima Valley. I’ve just heard from Jim Russi at Piety Flats Winery with a reminder that Yakima Valley Wineries will be opening their doors the day after Thanksgiving for a special tasting event that’s becoming a Northwest tradition.
Jim assures me that they’ll have their famous meatballs. However, Jim also suggests getting tickets because a lot of the wineries will have some “goodies that are a lot fancier then meatballs and will require the tickets.”
Tickets are $20 each and include the following wineries:
Barnard Griffin Winery, 10% off on all wine purchases
Chandler Reach Vineyard, private tasting for ticket holders includes Italian wines paired with Antipasta salad and garlic bread. My mouth is watering already!
Chinook Winery, open only to ticket holders
Claar Cellars, Thanksgiving Wine collectors pin and a free tasting of Claar Cellars’ Corneauxcopia red table wine for ticket holders. Be sure to taste their Syrah, it’s heavenly! Turkey and cranberry soup is on their menu.
Cowan Vineyards, Warm up with a cup of homemade soup paired with Cowan Vineyards wines and don’t forget to try the WSU’s famous Cougar Gold cheese
Desert Hills Winery, enjoy a tour given by the winemaker himself. What a treat!
Desert Wind Windery, Ticket holders will be given an exclusive opportunity to taste soon-to-be-released 2004 La Puerta (port-style wine) straight from the barrel. Pumpkin risotto and live music top this menu.
Goose Ridge Estate Wineries, is pairing up with Craven Maven of Seattle for hors d’oeuvres paired with their Goose Ridge 2005 Reserve Malbec which is only available at their winery. 10% discount on all wines purchased by ticket holders.
Hogue Cellars, VIP tasting room for ticket holders. Chef Roger Hazzard of Bon Vinos will be at the winery with savory morsels specially matched to these wines. Take advantage of our case discounts of up to 50% on selected wines to stock your cellar for the holiday season.
Seth Ryan Winery, Pumpkin Chili and cheesecake. Live music. Final weekend of the $10 a bottle $100 a case red wine. Ticket holders will be able to sample and order the Syrah, the Late Havest Riesling, and the Chardonnay Ice Wine. Mmmm… I loves me some Ice wine!
Terra Blanca Estate Winery, guest chef Mike Riley from Smart FNB Catering will be preparing house-made flat breads and crepes paired with Terra Blanca Estate wines Friday and Saturday. Ticket holders
will receive a sample of our limited release 2005 Forte, a Red Mountain Cabernet Sauvignon port to pair with Crepes prepared with “Red Mountain” Port Macerated Dried Cherries in a Terra Blanca Ice Wine Syrup.
Steppe Cellars, ticket holders will be able to make grapevine wreaths while sampling wine. Enjoy salmon cheesecake on crackers, along with samples of Steppe Cellars Semillon, Dry Reisling, Gewurztraminer, Syrah, Merlot and Late Harvest Reisling.
Tapteil Vineyards, Ticket holders will enjoy a special vertical tasting of Tapteils 2002, 2003 and the newly released 2004 Estate Cabernet Sauvignon Red Mountain, plus 20% off any Tapteil case purchase.
Thurston Wolfe Winery, ticket holders will enjoy tastings out of the barrel. Wines will be paired with a caramelized onion and pear crostini topped with blue cheese.
Wilridge Vineyards, Celebrate the Grand Opening of Yakima’s Newest Winery. Early 1900s farmhouse. They will be serving Grilled Pork Loin on Rosemary Crocantini with Estate Granny Smith Apple Chutney along with a selection of complimentary wine tastings from Harlequin Wine Cellars, Naches Heights Vineyards and Wilridge Winery. Event ticket holders will be escorted to the Reserve Room where they will be served a reserve selection of wine with an artisan cheese pairing.
Windy Point Vineyards, award winning wines and various cheeses paired together by Big John Caudill. Beautiful vistas. $5 event fee for non-ticket holders.
Wineglass Cellars, event ticket holders at Wineglass Cellars will compare the different oak treatments of two vintage 2000 Reserve wines in a private tasting with winemaker David Lowe. You will also enjoy Biscotti and new releases including the 2005 Zinfandel.
Willow Crest Winery, ticket holders will receive a complimentary tasting of Willow Crest Millenium Port paired with spiced chocolate dessert in the barrel room and a 20% discount on wine purchases.
For a complete listing of participating wineries and what they’ll be offering, check out the website.
If you’d like some information on pairing wines with your Thanksgiving meal, check out Farley’s article over on Wine Outlook.
To learn more about Yakima Valley wineries and the Rattlesnake Hills Trail, check out my reviews.
Washington, Wineries, Wine, Events, Thanksgiving, Yakima, Valley, Pairing, Events, Food, Weekend Trips, Holiday
November 16th, 2007 at 1:23 pm
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