Upcoming Event: 5th Annual WSU Wine Symposium - 7/25/13 - Palace Ballroom - Seattle

Tis the season for wine and COUGS! Every year, I help organize the Washington State University Wine Symposium, put on through the King County Cougs chapter of the WSU Alumni Association. We're back this year on July 25th and in the same venue, Tom Douglas' Palace Ballroom, which was an excellent space for our event last year. I really love this event because it not only combines two of my passions (wine and WSU), it also showcases some of the amazing talent that produces wine in our great state. Cougs love supporting other Cougs and this is one of my favorite ways to make that happen on an annual basis.

The details:

The What: The 5th Annual WSU Wine Symposium
The When: Thursday, July 25th, 2013, 7-10pm
The Where: Palace Ballroom - 2100 5th Ave, Seattle, WA 98121
The Who: WSU owned or affiliated wineries pouring the goods for alumni & other wine lovers
The Why: Because Cougs love Cougs. Enough said. Also, we love wine.

This year's winery line-up is sure to please, with some familiar faces from past years back at it again (we just can't get enough of them!) and some new wineries joining the line-up. We will be showcasing 8-10 Cougar affiliated wineries at this year's event, as well as some other Cougar vendors that will be on hand to sell their goods onsite as well.

As is the case every year, this event WILL SELL OUT. While we are a fun and delightful bunch, the Cougs are year after year proving to be procrastinators as well. Do yourself a favor and don't be the one emailing me asking why you can't get a ticket 2 days before because it's sold out. Visit the registration page now and secure your spot at the Coug wine event of the summer! Cheers and GO COUGS!

Upcoming Event: 6th Annual Wine Rocks - July 11th, 2013 - Elliott Hall at Pier 66

One of the most rockin' wine events of the year is back in just a few short weeks. This year's 6th annual Wine Rocks event being held on Thursday July 11th, 2013 at the waterfront Elliott Hall at Pier 66 from 6-10pm. Last year's event was held in the same spot and it was a sunny and warm evening on the waterfront sipping some vino and listening to the jams of some of Washington wine's most musically talented winemakers. This event has grown bigger and bigger every year and has turned into a not to miss outdoor party on the Pier!

Wine not for you? There's a little something for everyone. More than 35 Washington wineries, breweries and distilleries will be pouring the goods at the event. All that sippin' and jamming out make you hungry? A handful of local food trucks, including Jemil’s Big Easy, Lumpia World, Marination Mobile, Monte Cristo and Sweet Wheels, will be serving guests right on the pier.

Throughout the event some musically inclined Washington winemakers and friends will take the stage to share their passion for music. This year’s featured winemakers/musicians include:

• Jamie Brown (Walla Walla Valley Winemaker)
  
• Darren Des Voigne (Des Voigne Cellars)
• Chip McLaughlin (Vinyl Wines)
• Rob Newsom (Boudreaux Cellars)
• Victor Palencia (Jones of Washington)
• Gordy Rawson (Chatter Creek Winery)

Tickets to Wine Rocks are $35 and can be purchased at BrownPaperTickets.com. This year’s Wine Rocks event benefits Food Lifeline, a nonprofit organization dedicated to ending hunger in Western Washington.

So get your tickets and get ready to rock out with a glass in your hand in the sunshine on the pier! See you on July 11th!

Sips on the Road: Nani Moon Mead - Kapa'a, Kaua'i, Hawai'i

For the most exotic edition yet of “Sips on the Road”, I visited Nani Moon Mead (@nanimoon) located in Kapa'a on the beautiful island of Kaua'i, Hawai'i during a vacation back in February. Now mead hasn’t always been a go-to for me, the varieties of it that I’ve tried in WA have been too sweet for my taste. Well I will shun it no more! At this visit, I learned a great deal about mead and Nani Moon’s dedication to being a locally sourced operation. Owner and “Queen Bee” Nina Krieger took us through her operation, the meads, and the history of mead during our wonderful visit to the tasting room.

Reverend Nat's Cider conquers Portland looks to Seattle

Wedding bells and “highly quaffable” ciders…not likely something many people would pair together, but with Reverend Nat’s hard cider that’s the point.

Eight years ago Nat started making cider in his basement with the help of a friend’s apple tree which at the time produced as much as they needed for their hobby.  Skip ahead to just two and a half years ago and that hobby has found a new production home, success around Portland, OR and now in 2013 Nat hopes to find success with his passion in Seattle.  Using a handshake to obtain his apples from PNW growers Nat has moved to a 3,500 square foot production facility where he can produce 24,000 cases a year of their dry to off-dry ciders.  Additionally as the cidery name might indicate Nat is an ordained minister and will be able to perform weddings in his new facility.