Rio Jean Photography - Benton City, WA {Tapteil Winery}

You had me at hello, Argus!  Sorry Jane and Larry but, yes, one of the main reasons I came to visit was to see Argus!

Have you ever visited a winery and met the winery dog?  The dogs are one aspect I enjoy most about wineries, especially when the dogs are as awesome as Argus.  I love Argus! He is such a beautiful dog and now he has his friend Hugo, who is still a puppy, and seeing the two together is a riot! OH! And, Argus can count, he's one smart cookie.  :)

This is Hugo learning to shake, look at his cute little head. 

 

Back to the winery! Tapteil ( http://www.tapteil.com/tapteilEstateW.htm ) was named after a Sahaptin word meaning "narrow".  The river that is closest to Tapteil is "narrow" in comparison to the Columbia.  Tapteil was founded in 1984 with the first wine being produced in 1998.
  
Tapteil is an estate winery and produces about 750 cases a year.  The main wines Tapteil produces are Cabernet Sauvignon, Syrah, Merlot, and Cabernet Franc.  Tapteil will also be doing a harvest of Mourvedre this year and I can't wait to get my hands on it!

Have you seen Tapteil's labels? Jane is an amazing artist and her paintings have been turned into some of the wine labels. When you visit the tasting room, you can see Jane's paintings throughout the room and they are beautiful!  Jane's artwork first debuted as labels in 2005 when Tapteil released their first Syrah and Syrah/Cabernet Franc blend.


Grounds/Facility

Tapteil is a super cute boutique winery, filled with beautiful paintings, great wine, and of course laughter!  There is a little fountain when you first arrive and it's the perfect place to enjoy your wine and take in the beautiful view of Red Mountain.
Rating: 5

Service
Always a rating of 5 when the owner takes time out of her busy schedule to meet with me!


Food/Wine

What other winery dog has their own label?

Balsamic vinegar

I always love trying out the assortment of balsamic vinegar and imported olive oils.  They have several tables of samples where you can taste while you enjoy your wine.  Tapteil's wines are yummy! I have to say my favorite is the 2010 E&E Shaw Vineyard Blend, Red Mountain.  You have to order the wine online or just stop by and grab yourself a bottle!
Rating 5

Ok I am a little lame for having more pictures of the dogs than of the winery, but that gives you more reason to visit and see Tapteil for yourself!  It was such a pleasure to finally meet with Jane and tour the facilities, this place is full of character.

Are you ready to try these wines? You will not be disappointed and if you are able to stop by the winery, make sure you say hi to Argus and Hugo!

Cheers,
Melanie

Rio Jean Photography - Benton City, WA { Hightower Cellars}

I met with the owners of Hightower Cellars (http://www.hightowercellars.com/)  and out of all of the wineries I have reviewed so far I would have to say, the Hightower's are AWESOME!   Kelly and Tim seem to be super fun, laid back, and like a couple who just fit perfectly together.  Every year, Tim and Kelly invite their friends and family to help with the harvest and it sounds like they all have a wonderful time!  How cool is that?  And after a hard days work, the Hightowers are able to have a house full of laughter and good company,  truly a blessing!

Hightower Cellars was started in 1997 in Woodinville and relocated to Red Mountain Area in 2002.  In 1997, the very first wine that was released was a Cabernet Sauvignon, the winery harvested 4 tons of grapes, do you know how many cases of wine that makes?  240! 

Did you know that Hightower Cellars hand picks ALL of their grapes, and the only process that is done by a machine is the destemming and crushing?  I don't know if you know, but that's pretty amazing! Apparently, most of the wineries in Red Mountain still do most of the work by hand.  That really makes me appreciate these wines even more.

I have to say I was very intrigued by how the Hightowers decided on their brand.  Do ever wonder about how wineries come up with their brand (logo, labels, packaging etc)?  Branding is so important for a business, it is your promise to your customer. It tells them what they can expect from your products and services, and it differentiates your offering from your competitors'.

The Hightowers wanted their brand to say boutique, higher end, and modern. I love their labels, it was inspired by the 1920's Art Deco and glass designer Rene Lalique. Also the little curly design that is the center of the label was from the base of a lamp. Just goes to show you inspiration can be found anywhere, and it paid off as I really love everything about Hightower's brand.  And the bottle! You have got to get your hands on the bottle!  It is so sleek and very appropriate for Hightower Cellars. That right there, is the perfect branding package as every single detail was taken into consideration, down to the very bottle.

 I was looking through my old winery pictures, and I found these and Murray is in one of them, this is from 2007.

 

Ok,Ok, enough with the nostalgia and gushing!  I had a wonderful visit which helped to make short work of my review -  Easy breezy, short and simple!

Grounds/Facility
So Hightower has this GORGEOUS tasting room! I love the wall that is made of wood! When you are buying your bottle of wine, look at the picture behind the register! It's pretty epic as I think it matches the Hightower's personalities.  This winery is also the perfect place to grab some wine and enjoy it on the lanai over looking the vineyards.

Rating: 5

Service
It is always a 5 star rating when then the owner themselves take time out of their busy schedule to meet with me.  And, Riley has stepped up to take Murray's place (Riley, you have some BIG paw prints to fill!) and he is an excellent host, just be sure to open the door for him!

Food/Wine

I have always enjoyed Hightower wines, especially their Murray line!  I recommend the Out of Line and of course the Murray Syrah.  Those were my favorites, but as stated previously, all of their wines are yummy!

One item of food that was offered was bread that was made from the same yeast used in wines. I didn't have a chance to try it, but what a concept!

Rating: 5


Don't you love this place more now?  I know I do!  Now, go and grab yourself some Hightower wine! And if you are in the Red Mountain area, stop by and say hi!  

Cheers,
Melanie

Rio Jean Photography - Zillah, WA {Silver Lake Winery}

My first stop during this trip was to Silver Lake Winery.  When I first became a Wineaux years ago, Silver Lake was one of the first brands of wine I drank. I Loved their Riesling, especially their Roza Hills Riesling. It was delicious! Roza hills vineyard, Silver Lake’s primary source of grapes, is located in Zillah, Washington, in the heart of the rattlesnake hills AVA.  Ever wonder how Silver Lake got its name?  There is an actual Silver Lake in Mill Creek, WA...that's it! Nothing too complicated about it.

I had never been to this winery and I thought a visit was long overdue.  Did you know that Silver Lake is one of Washington's largest locally owned wineries?  It is owned by about 1,200 shareholders who have come together to make Silver Lake Winery what it is today.  I had no idea! In the past fifteen years the winery has grown from 2,000 cases to more than 50,000 cases of hand crafted wine annually.


I had the extraordinary opportunity to actually meet both wine makers! William (Bill) Ammons and James St. Clair. Ok, no offense to Bill but "St. Clair", what a cool last name! Bill was one of the most down to earth wine makers I have met to date. He is phenomenal and of course extremely knowledgeable and very accommodating.  Bill made me feel so welcome and took me up to the vineyards so I could see the facilities and the Harvester.  Have you ever seen a grape harvester?  It’s a pretty impressive beast of a machine. In short, a grape harvester is a tall machine that straddles the trellis and uses special fingers (or rods) to shake the grapes off the vine.

James St. Clair.  I know I said he had an awesome last name but HE is amazing! (Why isn't he on the website? I think he needs a presence on the website!) If James could be a teacher, he would rock at it!  James is so passionate and brilliant! As winemaker and viticulturist, I am sure he knows almost everything that has to do with grapes and the wine making process.  And guess what he did for me?  GUESS! He straight tapped the fermentation tanks and let me drink from it. Is that not the BEST thing you ever heard? That was pretty EPIC!  Last question for the guessing game, can you guess what the grand finale to my visit with James St. Clair? Off the clock of course . . . .cracking open some Coors!
   

This is how James rolls! LOL

Tapping the tanks!

Aw Snap! Things just got REAL check out James giving us the what for when asked about sugar and red wine

Thing one

Just a cool truck they had on their property

Grounds/Facility:
The Zillah tasting room is located in a building that used to house Covey Run winery.  Very beautiful, well manicured, and hint of rustic.  There is plenty of space for events and the tasting room manager, puts on a ton of events there.  The most recent one was eat, drink , and be girly!  I would have loved to attend the event as it sounded like fun! I love everything..well almost everything girly :)  So I was a little lame and was shirking my photographic duties as I didn't get pictures of the grounds or the tasting room! UGH! BUT! Meridith was kind enough to send me some, these are not my pictures
Rating: 5

Service
I had the opportunity to be waited on by the tasting room manager, Meridith Vinansky. She seemed to be very knowledgeable and professional.  All of the guests in the tasting room appeared to be having a wonderful time.  I said it before, and I'll say it again, smaller tasting rooms always offer a more personal and intimate experience.
Rating: 4


Food/Wine  
Silver Lake has four lines: Girly Girl, Glen Fiona, Leone (all Italian Varietal), and of course the Silver Lake line.  I have never seen the girl girl wines and I tried the Girl Girl Merlot and it was PHENOMENAL! LOVE!  If you have not had a chance to try it, go out and get a bottle right now! No joke!

Rating: 5

Previous Silver Lake Labels

The first Silver Lake Label

This this is my favorite label

This bottle is gorgeous and highly top secret wine! I can't wait to get my paws on some....ah hem..cough cough Bill, send over a bottle!

I love this winery even more now that I have met the wine makers and have learned more about how they make the wines.  Silver Lake is a definite must see on your wine tour!

Cheers,
Melanie