On the above date, a small group of Hawaii Wine Lovers mobilized at Uncle Bo's restaurant on Kapahulu Ave. A thirst for new wines from California, Oregon, and Washington driving everyone, the seats were eagerly filled.

First on the list was a Sauvignon Blanc from Arbor Crest Winery, in Spokane, Washington. It was actually a wine that got delivered on mistake, but it turned out to be quite tasty with the Dynamite shrimp dish. Wines like this one with higher acidity, tend to make your mouth water and want to eat something. This was a great "accidental" pairing.

Arbor Crest Winery is a winery that utilizes grapes from the Columbia River Valley. Wimemaker: Kristina Mielke-Van Loben and husband: James Van Loben Sels, make the team that churns out the selections from this winery. For more information on their wine or to try some, contact us at: Hawaii Wine Lover

The next wine that was enjoyed, hailed from Oregon. It was a 2005, Domaine Serene, "Jerusalem Hill Vineyard" Pinot Noir, from the infamous northern Willamette valley. Grace and Ken Evenstad have been the estate owners since 1989, and produce mostly Pinot Noir and Chardonnay from their vineyards that total 150 acres.

This wine was very elegant in its texture, and had a light, pleasing nose. Fresh, yet floral. The flavor was great, and the cacophony of different flavors drove us all to empty the bottle quickly. This Pinot came from yields just under 2 tons, and was aged in primarily new French oak barrels for 16 months.

The fruit was expressed very well through the work of the winemaker-Eleni Papadakis. Domaine Serene is one of the many Oregon winemakers that employs biodynamic farming method for sustainability in the field of winemaking.

This bottle is available at Wine By Numbers for those interested.

Finally, we tasted a wine from California. Madrona Vineyards, from El Dorado county, California was the final winemaker represented here. I have tasted their wines before, and I was very happy with them. The selection I made for this tasting is called: "El TInto". It is a blend of 7 different varietals! Winemaker, Ed Bush explained that he uses the remainder from all the other varietals at the end of each season and marrys them into one, wonderful blend. Even though the name remains the same, the yields are different than every year and it slightly changes.

I have always like wine from this region. The El Dorado county growing area is at a much higher elevation than that of Napa or Paso Robles, and therefor gives the grapes a higher acidity level at maturation. Truly, "mountain wine" compared to the 100-1400 ft. elevations of coastal growing regions.

The "El TInto" is a very smooth and inviting wine. With a rich nose of earth and cherry, it has an ever so slight sweetness to the first touch on the tastebuds. It then transfers into a smooth, relaxing flavor of fruit and oak. Many a wine-lover has been fooled by this wine. The reason being that it is also at 14.6% alcohol! It will sneak up on you very stealthily.

If you are interested in trying any of Madrona's wine, please contact us here at: Hawaii Wine Lover