Bonair WINERY NEWS Volume XII No 3 Fall 1997 Boanir Around the world Visit our web site at http://members.aol.com/bonairwine and sign up for a free T-shirt. While you are there, visit the Bonair Around the World site. All the crazy pictures taken in exotic places by our loyal friends are posted. If we missed yours, let us know, we'll find it on the tasting room wall and get it posted. [editor's note: I'm there; click on "Europe", then "Istanbul, Turkey" -- MikeL.] We Need Shippers! We give credit for returning shippers to us - even ones from California. Current recycling allowances are: 1 and 2 pack $0.50 3 and 4 pack $1.00 6 pack $2.00 12 pack $3.00 You may apply your credit to your wine purchase. New Releases Galore Since our last mailing, we have just about changed the whole wine list. We ran out of almost everything from the current vintage. Fortunately, we had more wine in the Bonnie Bonair Building aging nicely and waiting to be released. The 1995 Yakima Valley Chardonnay is wonderful. It has a very fruity nose with lots of vanilla and oak and is the first chardonnay we barrel fermented with Innerstave French Oak. It is just a little crisper and, at a young age, does not linger on the palate like the Reserve, but a great buy at $10.50. The 1995 Chateau Puryear Vineyard Estate Bottled Reserve Chardonnay has a more complex nose from the new French oak barrels that are used to ferment it. The wonderful thing about our reserve is the viscous mouth feel it has with lingering aftertaste. Same old price, just $18.95. The 1995 Columbia Valley Merlot has been released since August. It is everything a merlot should be: soft tannins, bright fruit, and nice color. Drinkable now, but I would wait a couple of years. It could be great. $14.95. I have been hitting the 1994 Morrison Vineyard Cabernet ever since it was bottled. Now that it is labelled and released, I have to stop. (Ma says I have to leave the good stuff for the customers!) 1994 is the year you have been hearing about. Rich blackberry and cassis fruit, moderate tannins, and some bottle age. Lose this one in the cellar for about 5 years. Introduced at $14.95 but not guaranteed to stay at that price beyond Christmas. And now some good news and bad news. There is still some Sunset ($6.50) left as I write this - probably enough to make it through the solstice. The J. Riesling ($6.50) is hanging by a thread. The bad news is the Bonnie Bonair and the BFD are gone. (Don't panic - we will make them again next year.) In the Vineyard with Bonnie Help! Rain in the vineyard in September and October is not a fun thing. We are in the middle of harvest. Rain is not our friend. But the grapes still look good this year. For Sale Corgi puppies $400. Call Ken at 509-854-2169. Two Winemaker Dinners (Actually, One Winemaker and Two Dinners) 6 years of Morrison Vineyard Cabernet Sauvignon Enjoy a vertical tasting of the Morrison Vineyard Cabernet Sauvignon accompanied by a multi-course Prime Rib dinner. Following tradition, we will start off with the new release, the 1994. We will painfully work our way back in history to 1988, the first year we vineyard designated the wine. The only wine missing in the marvelous line up will be the 1990. That year the vineyard was lost to powdery mildew. To ensure the enjoyment of all attending, we must limit the number of guests to 36. Some of the wines will be available for purchase (limit one bottle per person), but others are too limited to sell. We may want to do this again. The dinner will be held in the Bonair Winery Art Gallery, November 15, at 7:00pm. The cost will be $35.00 per person, advance payment. Call ASAP for reservations. Seven years of Chateau Puryear Vineyard Reserve Chardonnay We started the vineyard designation on the Chateau Puryear Chardonnay in 1985, but it wasn't until 1987 that we seperated out the reserve from the Yakima Valley. From 1987 through 1989 all wines were vineyard designated. Then in 1990, we had to add more grapes to meet demand, and the vineyard designation was dropped from the non-reserve wine. If that all makes sense. Starting with the 1995, we will suffer our way back to 1987, missing only the 1993 (the vineyard was over-cropped), and the 1991 (lost to powdery mildew) while enjoying an excellent seafood dinner for 36. As with the Cab. dinner, some wines will be available for purchase on a limited basis. The dinner will be held in the Bonair Winery Art Gallery, November 22, at 7:00pm. The cost will be $35.00 per person, advance payment. Call ASAP for reservations. Bonair Calendar of Events 11/15 Winemaker's Prime Rib Dinner 11/22 Winemaker's Seafood Dinner 11/28-30 Thanksgiving in the Wine Country 12/6-7 Puget Sound Holiday Delivery Bonair Releases Three New Meads On September 20, we released our new Dry Mead and our new Sweet Mead. Both were made with fireweed honey. The Dry Mead has the delicate nose of just fireweed honey and is a great accompaniment to pork dishes. The Sweet Mead was sweetened with clover honey and has characteristics of both honeys. It is a great sipping wine, but also goes well with sweeter dishes involving apples and plums (traditional Medievel dishes). On November 15 we plan to release our Winter Solstice Mead, sweet mead with cinnamon and clove. I plan to light a Yule Log and celebrate the longest night of the year with the Winter Solstice Mead. Christmas Is Coming! Christmas Is Coming! Each year we drive over to Bellevue the first weekend of December and drink wine with our friends the Logens while you pick up your pre-paid Holiday at their house. If you live in the Puget Sound area, just fill out the enclosed order form and fax or mail it to us. If you want wine sent directly as gifts or to yourself, call us for shipping details. 1-800-882-8939