Penner Ash Review and Kason Vineyards Quickie

After seeing a photograph of the view from Penner-Ash on the news one evening, we decided to pay them a visit on Saturday. Our first stop, however, was the farmer’s market. We saw some beautiful fall flower arrangements, but we were on a mission: picking up some cheese, meat, and bread for a fall wine tasting outing.

Here’s a brief review of the tasting at Penner-Ash:

 

2013 Oregon Viognier: Wonderful aroma, pale color. White peach, pear, and honeydew melon. Slightly sweet for my taste. At the recommendation of the server, we took our tasting outside and settled into one of their comfy Adirondack chairs. 

 

2013 Oregon Roséo: Pretty pink color, nice aroma. Strawberry, spiced tea, hibiscus, raspberry. Overall very nice and well balanced. On this pour, I got the remainder of the bottle, so a bit extra, and I savored it slowly over the fantastic view.  

2012 Shea Vineyard Pinot Noir: Beautiful color and great aroma. Cherry, bramble, green tea, vanilla. Soft palate, excellent balance, gentle sneak attack of dryness after swallowing, very nice complexity. My favorite in the tasting.  

2012 Estate Vineyard Pinot Noir: Nice color; plum, vanilla, blackberry, and rose petal. This pinot is more plummy and slightly sweeter than the Shea. Ever so slight hint of tobacco. Nice complexity.

2012 Willamette Valley Pinot Noir: Another one with good color and scent. Oak, dark cherries, Asian spice. Stronger tannins than the other two pinots, tasty, but less well balanced.

Since this visit put us in Yamhill County, we couldn’t go home without popping over to Kason. Steve was working the tractor, having just completed harvesting some chardonnay grapes. 

He had to run them over to Bald Peak, so we gave him a wave, and missed his charm while we sipped on pinot. Look at that winning smile!

We pulled out our Willamette Valley chive and pepper cheese, Olympic Provisions salami, and farmer’s market crusty wheat. Ah, a blissful Saturday indeed.

Vancouver in a Day

When we stayed up in Birch Bay for a week of walking, reading, hot tubbing and relaxing (will have to do a post about that place), we did do two daytrips. One of those was up to Vancouver, British Columbia. We first stopped for dim sum in Richmond.

Kacey enjoyed watching the strange morning aerobics on the TV behind us. Tak Heng was were we ended up and it was full of locals. OMG, so tasty, but we ordered too much food!

After that, we went to the aquarium. So terribly overrun with kids; wished we'd happened upon an "adults only" day. You'd think with kids back in school it wouldn't have been so bad. You'd be wrong.

Between the screaming kids and the small, sad tanks for the marine life, we cannot actually recommend a visit. However, the jellyfish sure were beautiful.

Afterward, we walked the length of the seawall. Yep, the whole thing (and then some).  

 Saw lots of birds and even a playful seal. Beautiful flowers in Stanley Park. All in all, a very nice day.

Whiskey Flowchart

Courtesy of BusinessInsider.com

Woodinville Whiskey

I love a good Rye but Woodinville Whiskey Rye is truly an artisan Rye.  The taste of cinnamon and pepper with notes of vanilla, make this Rye exceptional.  I truly enjoyed my tasting.

The Whiskey is very good a blend of corn, wheat and rye in the mash bill; it adds significant depth to this bourbon, and the Rye has a mash bill of 100% rye. 

Now apparently the Woodinville Whiskey Company has gotten into making Vodka, but I traded my taste of Vodka for an extra helping of Rye.  I am a purist with Vodka, so I passed on tasting it; probably should have tried the vodka. 

For those of you who have a sweet tooth, Woodinville Whiskey has something truly amazing for you: real Maple syrup aged in used whiskeybarrels.  This adds some outstanding flavors to their maple syrup. We have the sweet of maple syrup touched with vanilla, cinnamon, and that smoky taste of a great whiskey.  Goes great over vanilla ice cream!  When you heat this syrup, be prepared to have the flavors of that excellent Woodinville Whiskey added to your breakfast; much more pronounced when heated. They also do barrel aged Honey!

In short, Woodinville Whiskey is a stop well worth making if you are anywhere near Woodinville, Washington. Deciding on the designated driver can be tough. Woodinville also has several award-winning wineries.  

Back yard - part 2

This part we hired out to our neighbor Victor-e since we wanted to be sure it was done right, with drainage and the whole bit. Their crew worked quickly, in spite of puppy paws inspecting each evening. We chose a 2'x2' charcoal paver, which we thought would look good when wet (nine months of the year).


We thought the transition from patio to cobblestones (Victor's recommendation) to pavers worked well, and definitely like that we no longer have to step 'up' into the back yard.

Puppies don't seem to know what to do on the pavers. No more digging in the dirt. Time to invest in chew toys. 

We would like to get some Adirondack or lounge chairs for the new spot, but there doesn't seem to be much sense in buying furniture in September. 

In the meantime, the faded olive green chairs got some turquoise paint, and the vintage metal tables went from white to black. Puppies approve. L-to-R: Sparrow, Adam Levine, and Lulu.

24 Hours in Seattle

Ok, technically, we spent less than 24 hours in Seattle. Nonetheless, we had a blast and thought we should share some fun spots, some do's, and one don't.

Driving north from Portland, a good lunchtime town is Centralia, Washington. It offers a bit of wandering among antique stores to stretch your legs, as well as a worthy lunch spot: Berry Fields Cafe.

The sandwiches and salads are huge. You can definitely share one between two people. Tasty too. We were too full for dessert. Alas, next time!

After checking in at the W Seattle (centrally located, friendly staff), we wandered Pike's Place, because, well... you have to. Every time we come to Seattle, we visit Pike's Place. 

Now, for one of the "don't do" items... My mom opted to get a henna tattoo outside Pike's Place in the little greenspace overlooking the sound. Don't bother. While the design was cute, it wasn't at all dark after the henna was removed, and the sad/pale tattoo lasted all of a week. Luckily, it was only $5.



Late summer really is the best time to visit Seattle. Warm and sunny days, cool evenings. Happy vibe around town. We visited the Thursday before Labor Day, so it was definitely bustling and rooms were pricey (and even sold out in some hotels). 


As we wandered out of Pike Place, looking for a bite of dinner, the hubs noticed a sandwich board for Radiator Whiskey Bar. Sold! I know, he's an easy mark when it comes to whiskey and rye. 

Between my mom, the hubs, and I each ordering different things over the course of the evening, we were each able to try 6 whiskeys and cocktails. Yummo! Do order their Gold Rush: bourbon, lemon, honey, bitters! They also have a coffee drink that was tasty.

Radiator has an extensive booze menu. Whiskey lover's paradise. Since we were happily getting a snootful, we ordered a few eats off their happy hour menu and specials board. Everything was delicious, and it was no wonder the place was packed.

We toyed with the idea of a ride on the ferris wheel, but Mom wasn't up for it. We wandered about, found some good gelato, and settled in for the next day.

In the early morning, we hoofed it over to the Space Needle, arriving before it even opened for tours. (You gotta get up mighty early to walk 3 miles and arrive before 8am!) Oopsie.

We walked and walked, and intended to have breakfast at Lola but it was so darned packed with a 45-minute wait list, we passed. Instead, we went back to our standard Pike Place and noshed.

We also filled the cooler with myriad cheeses from Beechers, since we were about to spend the week up in Birch Bay, 20 minutes from foodie sources of civilization (e.g., Bellingham). Beechers was making cheese, which made for a nice source of morning, low-key entertainment.

After that, we packed up and headed for Woodinville, which will have to be the subject of another post. Whiskey and rye and wine, oh, my!