Celebrating the harvest in Scottsdale
September and October are known by wine drinkers to be ‘crush season’. The grapes are harvested and the next year’s vintages begin their process to becoming great wines (hopefully). We were fortunate to attend a local harvest festival at Lawrence Dunham Vineyards Winery in Old Town Scottsdale. With a front and back courtyard, LDV is a great place to enjoy an afternoon of wine tasting, food, and music. Not only were we able to taste the current releases ranging from a 2011 Petite Sirah to a 2013 Viognier, but we were treated to barrel tasting with Curt, the owner and winemaker. He and his wife Peggy are gracious hosts who love to share their passion for their wines with every tasting guest. Here are two of my favorite wines we tasted:
2012 Viognier: This is aged 16 months in oak barrels and you can definitely tell from the moment it hits your palate. The grapes are from 5000 feet in the Chiricahua Mountain foothills where LDV has their vineyards producing both white and red varietals. Light but with a slight vanilla note, this is a refreshing wine to have on a hot afternoon. We could imagine this wine with many types of food including mac and cheese or any chicken dish.
2012 Syrah: Being primarily a white wine drinker, I was pleasantly surprised by how much I enjoyed this syrah. There are definitely berry flavors in the forefront, and the mocha on the back end is a treat. This is a bold, bright wine that can easily be consumed with or without food.