William Pollard Jr | aka: Wild 4 Washington Wine

Some of you prefer organic food, but have you tried organic wine? I had a great experience at a red wine tasting at Badger Mountain Organic Vineyard and Powers Winery. Mickey Dunne, winery Owner and Sales Director, was my host. I was delighted by the Badger Mountain Organic NSA wines. It all made perfect sense. Rejoice because these are top-notch wines, big on flavor and modest on price.

Time in a Bottle. This weekend my wife and I made the most of the beautiful summer weather. Saturday began with an early trip to the Pasco Farmers Market. We purchased fresh produce from local farmers; onions, celery, garlic, cabbage, Bing cherries and strawberries. We took the fruit and vegetables home and headed off to a picnic in Kennewick at Columbia Park. We enjoyed classic picnic fare next to the Columbia River; potato salad, baked beans, chicken, beef brisket and fruit salad. After an afternoon siesta, we wrapped up our day in Richland, with live music and wine at Thomas O’Neil Cellars . Romagossa Blu playing at Thomas O'Neil Cellars (phone photo).

Coyote Canyon 2009 Viognier with cheese and fruit. My wife had a meeting last night at a local wine and cheese shop. She brought home with her the Coyote Canyon 2009 Viognier, along with a savory selection of cheeses. We added some fresh strawberries and crackers and made an evening treat for ourselves.

Architect Ed Luebben being poured 2010 Stella Blanca Semillon. Vintage Walla Walla Winemaker dinner. Last night my friend, Architect Ed Luebben, joined me at Northstar Winery for a winemaker dinner. My wife was unable to attend this dinner in Walla Walla, so I felt it was appropriate to invite the Architect who designed Northstar Winery , my friend Ed Luebben. Ed used to live in Walla Walla and he has been involved in numerous Walla Walla wine projects, including Northstar. I apologize for not having better photos of the facility; I was more interested in food, wine and conversation last night (I dug through my old files for construction photos of Northstar, but all I could find were project renderings and a short animated walk-through).  Assistant Winemaker Noah Reed guides us through the wines. We dined outside, enjoying an ideal view of vineyards and the Blue Mountains. Our delicious wines were provided by Northstar and our wonderful dinner was prepared by Chef...

When F2F Supersedes Social Media. Social media tools can help you communicate your message, connect you to your customers, expand your network and improve your image. Using social media tools I interact daily with wineries, winemakers, those involved with the selling and distribution of wine, as well as my fellow wine aficionados. We are using twitter, blogs, Facebook, video and a multitude of web 2.0 tools to share our wine experiences and to network with each other. iPad and twitter social media in action. But what good is all that effort and energy, in particular for a business, if they or their staff lacks F2F (face-to-face) skills? First impressions are lasting impressions. Of course I only share with you my positive wine experiences. But I feel it is time to remind wineries, winemakers and their staff that a rude or indifferent manner is not endearing. If you don't engage your customer you lose them. Certainly, some of you have lost me. How in today’s economy of inc...

Fourth Annual North American Wine Bloggers Conference. Last year I attended the third annual Wine Blogger’s Conference (WBC10) in Walla Walla, Washington. For me it was an inspiring and educational weekend. These Conferences are unique opportunities to learn about and discuss the intersection of wine with the world of new media, including blogging, social media, video and more. WBC10 is responsible for motivating me to engage better with my audience and to leverage the social media tools I already had, but under-utilized (there’s an article in there). Revitalized by WBC10, I began taking my wine blog writing more seriously. I now write more than ever, use twitter daily and continue to make new wine friends. This year, the 2011 Wine Bloggers Conference (WBC11) is on July 22-24, 2011 in Charlottesville, Virginia. This will be the fourth annual North American Wine Bloggers Conference. Going to WBC11 in Virginia was certainly on my todo list this year; with my wife’s support it...

An Outstanding $20 Reserve Cabernet Sauvignon from Powers Winery. Powers 2007 Reserve Cabernet Sauvignon Coyote Vineyard Wahluke Slope. Mickey Dunne of Powers Winery guided me through a delectable private tasting last week. While I'm still composing my review, I had to share with you today my thoughts on the Powers 2007 Reserve Cabernet Sauvignon Coyote Vineyard. Loved it. Delivering on Quality vs. Price There's been an ongoing conversation by wine bloggers and tweeters, about Washington State wines. Asking the question, “Can Washington State be defined by grape variety?” The spotlight often ends up focusing on Cabernet Sauvignon. Who doesn’t love a great Cabernet Sauvignon? And there are some truly stellar Washington State Cabernet Sauvignons. But how much should you have to pay for a great Cabernet? Hence, the dialogue is also about quality vs. price.

"Green are my grapes" - desktop wallpaper, one of many. I'm sharing some of my personal, mostly Washington, wine photos - click on the Wallpaper Tab above. I have cropped and re-sized the images to make them suitable for use as wallpaper  on most computers. Wallpaper image size is 1667 x 800. WARNING : These photos may cause hunger and thirst or an uncontrollable urge to visit Washington Wine Country. Cheers!

Guests arriving for Revelry on Red Mountain. My wife and I were at Col Solare Winery last Saturday for our first  Revelry on Red Mountain , a fund raising event for Seattle Children’s Hospital . In 2010, Seattle Children's provided a record $102 million to service nearly 100,000 patients in uncompensated care alone. The Auction of Washington Wines is responsible for organizing this fundraising event and several more later this year.  Wendi Warner - Col Solare Guest Services Manager. Wendi Warner of Col Solare Winery was the perfect hostess and choreographer. There was a stunning array of Washington wines and a procession of food from Chef Magaña’s kitchen . We were also blessed with perfect outdoor weather; this year has been much cooler and wetter than normal, sunny days have been few. A beautiful afternoon became a beautiful evening.

Video from the March 30th Taste and Tweet at Barnard GriffinWinery. Featuring: Scott Abernethy, Ben Simons and William Pollard Jr. We really should have decanted this wine earlier, or used an aerator as Scott suggested. The Ciel du Cheval is a huge wine, layered with succulent flavors, the wine was just beginning to open as we wrapped up. This bottle was provided courtesy of Barnard Griffin Winery. Cheers!