February 2017 The Y.E.S. Newsletter A monthly publication for members of the Yakima Enological Society THE DETAILS Date: Wednesday, February 8 Time: Doors open and registration begins at 6:30 p.m. Where: The Vine Venue 2506 Old Town Road, Union Gap (Northwest corner of Skateland) Cost: Members $45; Non-members $55 Notes: Bring two wine glasses; one for white and one for red Registration deadlines: Mail in: Postmarked by Friday, February 3 Online: Brown Paper Tickets by 11:59 p.m. Sunday, February 5 (http://www.brownpapertickets.co m/event/2829860) Phone: Call Marie Clark at 697-3364 until 8 p.m. Sunday, February 5. (Earlier than usual.) Plan Ahead... Y.E.S. Calendar of Upcoming Events Julie Johnson March 8 Annual Meeting/Potluck Yakima Valley Museum April 8 Platinum Event Yakima Country Club May 10 Details to follow
Page 2 Yakima Enological Society February 2017 This month: Ray s Boathouse Crab and Spinach Dip paired with J. Christopher Willamette Valley 2015 Sauvignon Blanc. Regular price: $20.00; Y.E.S. member price $16.00 at Stems in downtown Yakima. Ray s Boathouse Crab and Spinach Dip Recipe by Wayne Johnson Makes about four cups Ingredients: 1½ cups softened cream cheese 1½ cups mayonnaise 2 cloves minced garlic 12 oz. Dungeness crab meat 1 cup chopped spinach 1 cup chopped artichoke hearts ½ cup piquillo or diced roasted red peppers 1 cup grated Parmesan cheese ¾ cup breadcrumbs, preferably panko ¼ cup chopped chives Directions: Eat This, Drink That Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. In mixer, blend cream cheese, mayo and garlic until well blended and smooth. Stir in the crab, spinach, artichoke, peppers and cheese; stir until all ingredients are incorporated. Place mixture into a casserole dish and top with breadcrumbs. Bake the crab dip in the oven 25-30 minutes until hot and bubbly with the breadcrumbs being golden brown. Remove from oven and top with chives. Serve with pita bread or crackers. Recipe submitted by Julie Johnson Wine suggested by Brad Baldwin Perfect for that Super Bowl party! March Teaser: Annual Meeting One of our favorite Y.E.S. events is coming up March 8, 2017, THE Y.E.S. ANNUAL MEETING! We have good wine paired with favorite potluck recipes to go with a short and informal business meeting. Our main event will be the election of new board members but we will also have a short preview of the upcoming April Platinum tasting and, we hope, some student scholarship recipients to talk about their future career plans. See you there! Julie Johnson Membership Update No new members this month membership is at 96 members. Mark your calendar for March 8, 2017 for the Y.E.S. Annual Membership Meeting and potluck at the Museum. More details in next month s newsletter. Current membership expires March 1, 2017. Dues are still the same: $40/couple and $25/single. Check with friends and family who may want to learn more about wines and wineries in the Yakima area. Y.E.S. monthly tastings are a great way to taste different wines, enjoy food that is paired with the wine and learn from area winemakers talking about their wines and vineyards. A word of caution: we had a recent incident at one of the Y.E.S. tastings a vehicle was broken into and personal belongings were stolen. Remember to lock your car, place your valuables out-of-sight (or remove them) and just be aware of your surroundings. Thank you to the Y.E.S. Membership! Marietta Barr
Yakima Enological Society February 2017 Page 3 January Tasting Recap: Crimson and Gray Forty-five intrepid wine enthusiasts braved a snowstorm and joined us at the Yakima Valley Museum to hear about the Ste Michelle WSU Wine Science Center; the WSU Prosser Irrigated Agriculture Research & Extension Center and to taste the Blended Learning Wines being produced by Washington State University students in Viticulture and Enology. Our speakers were snowed-in and unable to attend, though they emailed some of their presentations to be shared. Attendees heard about needs at Washington State University Research Centers to assist financially with equipment or student scholarship opportunities. We welcomed prospective new members and enjoyed the five wines created by WSU students which were poured by Chuck Johnson, Jack Topper, and Johnny Warren. Thanks also to Julie and Chuck Johnson and Susan McPhee who were behind-the-scenes helpers. Guests Shirley and Gail Puryear from Bonair Winery joined us as we served their Bonair Chardonnay to the participants who preferred white wine. An additional highlight was the cute and engaging story Shirley graciously shared about the history of their meeting at WSU and eventually starting their winery. Our five wines were paired with an outstanding five course dinner created by Staci s Catering which included a Cougar Gold Cheese soup course! Three pages of Cougar Gold recipes can be found on-line. As Enology Societies are about the education of wine, we hope you learned that you can help support, influence, and build our wine industry through involvement with the Washington State University Wine Science Center. Sandy Saffell PLATINUM XV The Y.E.S. Platinum committee has started working on our Fifteenth Annual Platinum Dinner which will be held on April 8th, 2017 at the Yakima Country Club. Last year s event was truly special and we are trying to make this year s event even better. This year we have twenty wines, fifteen wines that won a Double Platinum award and five wines that won Platinum. Some of the highlights this year will be: Reustle-Prayer Rock Vineyards from Oregon won a total of ten Platinum awards this year and we will be presenting, with one of the food courses, three of their Gruner Veltliner wines. It is the first time only one winery will be featured for the entire wine flight. It was a good year for Petite Sirah wines and one of our wine courses for the evening will be three Petite Sirahs. This will be the first time for this varietal at our dinner. Wine rivia Test your wine knowledge each month with a new wine term and definition. Cork hasn t always been used to seal wine containers. Greeks and Romans used a layer of olive oil. As late as the mid-17th century, French wine makers generally used oil-soaked rags stuffed into the necks of bottles to seal them. It wasn t until the 1780s that corks came into common use to seal wine bottles. This made bottle aging possible. This year we also have two wines from Idaho, which did very well in this year s judging. For the first time, winery personnel from Idaho are planning to attend our dinner. We have included a reservation form since previous Platinum dinners have sold out by the end of March. Call your friends and start putting your table together. Also, remember that all the money raised at this event goes to scholarships for Pacific Northwest students studying Enology or Viticulture. It is our only fundraiser, so your attendance will support the wine industry, wineries and winemakers of the Pacific Northwest. Please join us for the celebration. --Chuck Johnson
President s Corner February 2017 It s almost February and time for Red Wine and Chocolate. Winemakers will be pairing red wines with delicious confections on the weekend of February 18-20. If you love to pair wine with chocolate (and who doesn t), be sure to purchase high-grade milk, dark, or white chocolate. Then choose a wine that is sweeter than the chocolate. An event not to be missed is the February 8, Y.E.S. tasting at the Vine Venue. Always a special Valentine delight! Cheryl Probasco, Y.E.S. President Don t miss the fun with your Secret Crush Your Y.E.S. board, in its continuing effort to let its members know of special wine events in the region, is including this information about the annual Red Wine and Chocolate event, always held Presidents Day weekend this year February 18th 20th. Kicking off this event is a separate special evening event titled Secret Crush occurring on Friday the 17th from 6:00 9:00 p.m. at the Yakima Country Club. Secret Crush will feature award-winning, 90+ and gold medal wines from Yakima Valley winemakers and growers. Attendees will have the opportunity to taste the difference between wines from vineyards grown in the western boundary of the Yakima Valley compared to those grown on the eastern side of the AVA. The cost for this event is $75. As part of this Yakima Valley festival, wineries from Yakima, Zillah, Prosser and Red Mountain will be offering a weekend of divine decadence with the Premier Pass. Pass holders receive access to exclusive pairings, library tastings and tours not available to the public. Purchase your Premier Pass and Secret Crush tickets at www.wineyakimavalley.org or Secret Crush tickets at Stems in downtown Yakima. Brad Baldwin Yakima Enological Society PO Box 2395, Yakima WA 98907 Email: contact@yakimawine.org Web: www.yakimawine.org Yakima Enological Society Board President... Cheryl Probasco 1st Vice President... Marietta Barr 2nd Vice President... Vacant Treasurer... Terese Abreu Secretary... Dorene Boyle Registration Chair... Marie Clark Board Members:... Gerry Amos... Brad Baldwin... Connie Jo Eisenzimmer... Pam Friedt... Julie Johnson... Susan McPhee... Sandy Saffell This newsletter is published by Jonelle Foutz, Write Mind, PO Box 1194, Yakima WA 98907 We re on the Web www.yakimawine.org What... Valentine Celebration When... Wednesday, February 8 Doors open and registration begins at 6:30 p.m. Where... The Vine Venue 2506 Old Town Road, Union Gap Yes, we ll be there... Name(s) Name(s) Phone: Email: REGISTRATION DEADLINE Postmarked by February 3, 2017 Or pay online at the Y.E.S. website by 11:59 PM FEBRUARY 5, 2017 www.yakimawine.org Number of Members... @ $45 = $ Number of Guests... @ $55 = $ ------------------------ Total Enclosed: $ Important: Please include your phone number AND email in case we need to reach you. Please note any dietary restrictions: Please note if you are bringing a guest who does not drink alcohol YES NO Please clip and mail this form with your check to: Yakima Enological Society, PO Box 2395, Yakima WA 98907 All reservations must be paid for in advance and are NON REFUNDABLE
Platinum XV Dinner Registration Saturday, April 8th, 2017 ~ Yakima Country Club 6:00 pm ~ Winemaker s Reception & Greeting Wines 7:00 pm ~ Dinner featuring five courses and Platinum Wines You may purchase tickets individually or purchase a table of ten. If you are buying a whole table, please send in the money for all of your table along with a list of the people at your table. In that way you will be guaranteed to sit together! If you are not buying a table but would like to be seated with friends, please write their names below and we will make an effort to seat you accordingly. 1. Name: Phone or email: 2. Name: Phone or email: 3. Name: Phone or email: 4. Name: Phone or email: 5. Name: Phone or email: 6. Name: Phone or email: 7. Name: Phone or email: 8. Name: Phone or email: 9. Name: Phone or email: 10. Name: Phone or email: Early Bird (must be postmarked by Wednesday, March 29th) Regular seating - $150/person: Number of Attendees: @ $150 = After March 29th Regular seating - $165/person: Number of Attendees: @ $165 = Total Enclosed: $ We would like to be seated with: If no seating preference is made, your seating will be assigned for you. Please mail this form along with your check to: Yakima Enological Society - P.O. Box 2395, Yakima, WA 98907 Or, pay online with a credit card at Brown Paper Tickets. Go to the Y.E.S. website at www.yakimawine.org and click on the Platinum XV link under Upcoming Events. All reservations must be paid in advance and are non-refundable.