Speaking Of Divas

Speaking of divas, more and more women are involved in the wine industry. Now don't get me wrong, I'm not implying that women in wine are a bunch of drama queens. Quite the opposite, while we may not have a woman president yet, more women are taking center stage in the wine world. I counted several women winemakers to say nothing of the dozens of women who partner with their husbands and dozens who work behind the scenes. Judith Papesh, winemaker at Falling Rain Cellars, is making wine at 85 Atlantic Artisan Vintners. They are open Saturdays from 1-5 p.m. Better call ahead, since only one of four of these new vintners have actually released any wine so far. Judy's first wines will be released mid-summer this year. "Falling Rain" how apropos and unfortunate a name. How about Stop The Rain Cellars, Sunshine Winery, 70 Degrees And Above or Sundance. Well, let's not rain on Judy's parade - best wishes. Ashley Trout has a knack with words as well as wine. She was one of the winners of "Best Winery Name" with Flying Trout in my post on Bests of Taste Washington. Ashley grew up on the East Coast and was determined to go to school on the West Coast. She attended Whitman College which plunked her down right in the middle of Washington wine country. She worked in the Washington wine industry for nine years before setting out on her own. Ashley could have named her NV Deep River Red, "Amazing Grapes" for it's interesting melange of grapes, vineyards and vintages. This blend of Pepper Bridge Cab, Bacchus Cab, Stillwater Merlot, Stillwater Sangiovese and Phinney Hill Syrah is excellent. Definitely a food wine, Ashley even has a great recipe to pair Dates with Goat Cheese Wrapped in Prosciutto. Look for Amazing Wine from Ashley in the future. Lori Miller is Marketing Director of Airfield Estates. They offer a huge range of wines from Sauv Blanc to Mustang red, but I only got to taste the Merlot, Cab Sauv, and Reserve Syrah all good values at $22. Ali Boyle Director of Marketing at Heaven's Cave Cellars which can be thought of as the winemaking arm of Destiny Ridge Estate Vineyards. In an interesting business model twist, they also produce the Dash Collection where all the profit goes to the Make The Dash Count Foundation. Whatever happened to rapacious capitalism? Check it out at: www.makethedashcount.com Oh, yeah, the wine! It's pretty good. The 2005 Dweller Syrah was medium bodied, soft and fruity. You knew from the style that it was a Horse Heaven Hills wine. The 2004 Angel's Blend was good, but only worth it at $45 if you have lots of discretionary cash. the 2006 Nobility Late Harvest Riesling had a great aroma, but was too soft and sweet for my taste. Before I became an enopsychologist and just practiced psychology, all the women told me I worked well with women, and all the men said I worked well with men. What can I say? People are people.