Happy Birthday Ryan!!! 

Hello Everyone,

Today is a wonderful day here in Walla Walla and not just because of the beautiful blue skies; it’s my Birthday! I am finally out of my tweens and turning 30; or I could look at it as the first anniversary of turning 29.

Last week I attended my first winemaker’s dinner in Seattle. Smash wine Bar and Bistro in Wallingford put on a great event and I saw many familiar faces there while meeting some new friends. It was great fun with wonderful food and wine pairings. I especially enjoyed the Les Collines Syrah with the lamb tenderloin. For those of you who know my taste in food, lamb is my favorite!
 

I was happy to show a sneak peek of our Semillon Ice Wine, which we just finished bottling. It went beautifully with the Amaretto Cannoli for dessert. I want to thank everyone who attended for making my very first winemaker’s dinner such a wonderful experience. 

 I also want to thank Brooke and Dave for taking pictures for our website blog.

I also had a great time pouring at Village Wines near my old stomping grounds in Woodinville. Village Wines is a wine shop and wine bar with a great selection of fine wines. I even picked up a bottle of something for my Birthday, but I won’t say what it is!
 

In the Vineyards

Harvest is quickly approaching. I am excited in particular about this vintage. Berry size looks to be small and that is a good thing. With smaller berries we typically get a little more concentration and tannin in the wines. We also have a few new pieces of equipment, which means I have more toys to play with.

In the Winery

As I previously mentioned we just finished bottling the 2006 Rose Bud Ranch Semillon Ice wine from the Waluke Slope. This should go out to the club members the 4^th of September with the Red Table Wine. For those of you who are not already club members, this is the perfect time to sign up since the ice wine will be released to club members first. With only 40 cases of ice wine produced I expect this wine to disappear quickly. In other news, we have been very impressed with the reaction to our Walla Walla and Columbia Valley Syrahs. We have just a few cases left of our Columbia Valley Syrah and our reserves of Les Collines Syrah are quickly being depleted.

At the end of the month we will be bottling our 2006 Les Collines Syrah and our 2006 Tempranillo. We are looking for a few volunteers to help us bottle. If you are interested please let us know. As is the tradition here at Tertulia Cellars, we BBQ after the bottling and enjoy a little vino! Speaking of volunteers if any of you are in the area between mid September and the end of October, I always welcome a helping hand sorting fruit and punching down the wines.

Cheers!

Ryan Raber

Winemaker