So the week after Easter wasn’t exactly the best week. A dear friend of mine lost her valiantly fought battle with cancer. A friend got reported to Facebook for the most bs reason…posting pictures of her kids. The stress that realizing “I have a paper due in 18 hours” and stressing out over it until it was emailed to the professor with 2 minutes to spare nearly brought me to my breaking point. Needless to say that I was ready for the week to be over.
As I was preparing for the virtual tasting on Thursday, 4/24 (review here), I went out on a limb and RT’d the following:
I honestly figured I wouldn’t win, because I have the devil’s luck when it comes to winning things like that. Much to my surprise, I actually *did* win.
So on Saturday morning, we piled into my car and headed east to Zillah, WA, where the heart of the Rattlesnake Hills Wine Trail is. The first winery we stopped at, which was the only “required” stop, since they had my swag, was Severino Cellars. This was a new winery to me and wow. It was a unanimous decision between my mother and I that when we come back to the Rattlesnake Hills area, we’re coming back here. I fell head over heels for their Rosé.
After picking up our delicious lunches, graciously provided by the Squeeze Inn, and tasting through what Severino had to offer (all of which are amazing!!), we headed on up the road to Maison de Padgett.
I wasn’t necessarily impressed with what I had while there, but I also know that I should give them another shot before discounting them completely. It was crazy in the tasting room and I hate to judge my first impression of *any* establishment based on one of the busiest weekends of the year.
After Maison de Padgett, we went to Two Mountain Winery. More craziness abounded here, but it wasn’t enough to drive me away. At Two Mountain, we had our choice of two barrel tastings, a Chardonnay and a Cabernet Sauvignon. Both were magnificent and when they are bottled, they will be beautiful wines. The tasting lineup beyond the barrel samples was their Riesling, Hidden Horse Red Blend (fantastic value at $18, FYI), Merlot, Syrah and Cabernet Sauvignon. All of the wines were well crafted.
Two Mountain is a must-stop, even if it’s see the chalkboard artwork that they have up behind the tasting bar!
Our final stop was Hyatt Vineyards. Hyatt holds a special place in my wine tasting repertoire, as their Black Muscat was the first Washington wine that I experienced after I had turned legal drinking age. Hyatt was established in 1983, with their first vintage in 1987. I tasted their Pinot Gris and their Syrah…both of which may have conveniently found their way into my collection…along with a bottle of the aforementioned Black Muscat.
Hyatt not only produces beautiful wines, but also has a beautiful lawn with a stunning view of the Cascade Range.
…now, to fill up my Rattlesnake Hills Wine Trail Passport so I can participate in their Passport Party this August!!
Disclaimer: This trip was provided by the Rattlesnake Hills Wine Trail. No other compensation, beyond the prize awarded, was given for this post.
