Over Labor Day weekend I joined my best friend from undergrad for a weekend of wine touring. I imagined vines dripping with grapes...the musky smell of earth. For some reason it didn't occur to me that wine touring in Eastern Washington is not at all the same as wine touring in Oregon. I repeat: NOT THE SAME AT ALL.
Despite my brief mourning of OR wine country, the trip was really great because of the people we had along. We hung out at Daven Lore for a long while and made buddies with the 2 ranch dogs on the property. The wine maker is Canadian and was super friendly. Also, he had Chuckar Cherries to pair with the wine, so clearly, he's an okay dude.
The Daven Lore logo is pretty clever: coyotes with bellies full of wine and the image of wine bottles between their long legs. Apparently coyotes love to eat grapes. Who knew.
We also went to Airfield Estates, where our friend's conveniently have a membership. This meant discounted wine, so despite thinking that I wouldn't pick any up this trip I ended up bringing home 8 bottles from various tasting rooms. Compared to the $400+ that the other 2 couples dropped on wine, this was nothing.
By the end of the day, my fiance and I had decided that wine touring was a lot like driving. He doesn't drink at all, and despite what my friends may think, I am not accustomed to drinking before 4:00 p.m. Consequently, my stomach revolted after only 4-5 tasting rooms. We decided to skip out on the next day of wine touring and hang out with my fiance's adorable niece and nephew. It was a great decision. I missed having the extra time with my alcoholic friends (kidding) but my fiance's family made us eggs and chorizo and then bounced us around in front of the Kinect where I proceeded to give my fiance a virtual beat-down.
Overall: Time well spent. All of it. Even the driving.
