October 7, 2007

Greetings from Ross Andrew Winery:

Vintage 2007 has arrived and along with it the understanding that in a few short days everything I have (car, keys, shoes, wallet, wife…) will be covered in sticky grape juice. With 35 tons on the docket this year, we’re ready to get the crush equipment fired up…

That said, it’s time to release some wine! We have two new releases this year: our 2005 Columbia Valley Red Table Wine and the inaugural release of our Celilo Vineyard Pinot Gris. Both wines are delicious and we’re thrilled to have you try them.

2005 Columbia Valley Red Table Wine:

This Bordeaux-style blend is made up of 55% Cabernet Sauvignon ( Boushey and Kiona Vineyards) and 45% Merlot (Ciel du Cheval and Alder Ridge Vineyards). The 2005 harvest gave us incredible concentration and flavor, while maintaining a great balance between power and finesse. The beautiful black garnet color supports the aromatic spiciness of black fruit and a hint of smoke. The merlot portion contributes some nice chocolate and orange notes, while the Kiona Cabernet portion gives the wine its black fruit core and spine. The palate has a smoothness and finesse that makes this great to drink now or over the next few years. While we increased production with the 2005 vintage, there still isn’t much of this wine to go around. Note: Our 2005 Cabernet Sauvignon is resting in bottle and will be released November 2008 with our 2006 Bordeaux Blend.

2006 Celilo Vineyard Pinot Gris, Columbia Gorge AVA:

2006 brought a new member to the RA family in the form of white grapes: Pinot Gris from the famed Celilo Vineyard in the Columbia Gorge AVA. Sitting high on the cliffs above the Columbia River this vineyard is perfect for cooler climate varieties, which is why Pinot Gris is so successful here. The climate allowed the grapes to hang until the 19 th of October, producing fruit with incredible flavor and acidity – two things very important to this typically lighter variety. The resulting wine has wonderfully bright (yet subtle) aromatics of bosc pear and ginger-topped white fruit. The acidity of this wine is balanced by the slightest hint of sweetness giving the wine great mouthfeel. Quaff this wine solo or with anything ranging from seafood to spicy Asian food. Extremely limited production. Note: We gave this wine a trial run at our wedding in July and it was a huge hit. Because of the response we’ll be kicking production up to a whopping 300 cases for the 2007 vintage.

We invite you to start the holiday season on the right foot at our release party for these two wines. We’ll have some great wine, music and food. Bring your friends; the more the merrier!

When: Saturday, November 3 rd, 2007 from 12pm to 4pm
Address: 18512 142 nd Ave NE, Bldg. G, Woodinville, WA 98072 Tel: 206.369.3615

See you on the 3rd!

Ross Andrew Mickel
Sheila and Ned Nelson