Townshend doesn’t rush wine
It is rare to have a Washington winemaker age his top red wines in barrel for 30 months, but Don Townshend, owner and winemaker for Townshend Cellars, wants age to be his mark of distinction.
Townshend has produced wines commercially since 1998 at his 5-acre winery atop Green Bluff north of Spokane. Realizing that wineries were popping up across the state as fast as they could be constructed, Townshend wanted his wines to pop out of the crowded field, especially his reserve reds such as cabernet sauvignon.
“I make wines that I love to drink, wines that don’t quit in the mouth,” said Townshend, who continues his day job selling commercial air conditioning systems for Trane. “My wines have long, huge finishes, so you can still taste what they offer long after the last swallow.”
It is a signature that people either like or don’t like, but certainly gets noticed. His reds are generally big wines with a cornucopia of aromas that include lots of vanilla and toast (from the oak). Yet, despite the fact that the wines will age in both new American oak and French oak barrels, the wines are not overly woody — the fruit is generous, in both the 1999 cabernet sauvignon and merlot, with scents of plum, black cherry, cigar box and roasted coffee on the nose.
Many winemakers will age red wines about 18 to 24 months, but most new wineries cannot wait nearly three years before making any money off one bottle of wine. Townshend has that luxury, for now, since he has a day job and his wife Michelle is a high school science teacher. The wait, he says, pays off in the end.
Last year, sommeliers in the Seattle area rated his 1999 cabernet sauvignons as one of the best available, and a great value around $30 — “one of the best kept wine secrets in Washington State.”
Because of his enormous curiosity about wines, Townshend has experimented with blending his red wines and released a more value-oriented series of red blends at about half the price of his reserve wines ($15-$18). The Vortex is aged 24 months in barrel and is a blend of 48 percent cabernet sauvignon, 42 percent merlot and 10 percent cabernet franc from previous vintages in 2000 to 2003.
He also produces a similar wine called T-3, for purchase in restaurants, with a bigger merlot base that ages a bit longer in barrel.
“I wanted to show non-vintage wines (a mix of wines from different years) can be just as tasty and classy as vintage wines,” Townshend said. “And, by blending older wine with younger wine, these are ready to drink now, but can still age tremendously. And, they have my signature in the bottle — they are big wines.”
In addition to his hearty red wines, Townshend produces a tasty Chenin Blanc ($15) — perfect for serving with seafood, an off-dry Riesling at less than $10 and one of the most popular huckleberry ports around. Other red wines include his reserve cabernet sauvignon and merlot ($30-$35), a sangiovese ($20) and a syrah ($20). These are definitely food wines, although the reserve wines are enjoyable with or without food.
The winery is open to the public on the weekends. It is a perfect opportunity to taste his selections, since there is something for nearly every palette. Don’t forget to look out the tasting room window, since the winery overlooks Spokane and boasts some spectacular sunsets.
New Coeur d’Alene Cellars Offers Old-Style Wines
If you like Northern Rhone wine varieties, such as syrah and viognier, Idaho’s newest winery, Coeur d’Alene Cellars, is producing a style consistent with the wines produced in the Rhone Valley of France.
Bob Harris, a former project manager in the software industry, and his wife Kimber, decided to get out of Seattle, out of the software industry, and head for a life pursuing their passion — producing wine. They teamed up with Kimber’s parents, Charlie and Sarah Gates, and put out a shingle as winemakers in Coeur d’Alene.
Harris currently has two wines on the market — a 2003 viognier ($18) and a 2002 syrah ($25).
“We wanted to raise a family and follow our dreams of making wine,” said Harris, who is the winemaker. “With so many wineries in Washington, we chose Coeur d’Alene to make the wines. There is a good tourism market here and it is a great place to live.”
Fruit for the winery is still grown in Washington State. Harris buys from eight different vineyards so he can have grapes from different soils and climates to make the wine more interesting. The goal, he says, is to make a balanced wine that leans more towards the French style of syrah and viognier.
The winery is producing other varietals, including small amounts of chardonnay, two Rhone blends (combining syrah and about 5 percent of viognier) a red table wine and a meritage (Bordeaux blend). However, those small lots are only sold at the winery, located at 3890 N. Schreiber Way in Coeur d’Alene.
The winery is currently producing about 3,000 cases per year and Harris has no plans to grow any bigger.
What he does plan to do is open a wine bar in June on Sherman Avenue near 5th Street, called “Coeur d’Alene Cellars Barrel Room No. 6.” The wine bar will serve Harris’ wines, in addition to a few rotating wines from colleagues in the wine industry.
The name stems from the fact that Harris has five barrel rooms in his production facility, so the wine bar becomes the sixth room.
For the immediate future, Harris plans to refine his wine practice, grow as a winemaker, and “let the fruit sing.” His wife Kimber is currently working with another project — their 8-month-old daughter, Scarlet. Their latest blend, available at the winery, is called Scarlet’s Cuvee.