by Jenise » Sat Apr 17, 2010 8:36 pm
Buty's wines are hard to come by up here as I guess demand is greater than the supply, but each of the two bottles I've already had impressed me hugely so even though I'm not in the habit of paying $36 for domestic wines, I couldn't pass up an opportunity to try this white Bordeaux blend. The grapes for this one come from various parts of the Columbia Valley, and the constituency is 69% semillon, 26% sauvignon blanc and 5% muscadelle which adds some interesting florals to the nose. Some of the blend is fermented in mature oak, the rest goes to stainless steel. Pretty bright yellow color suggests a bit of extract, but there's nothing overdone about the nose or the palate: the nose is highly aromatic honeysuckle without the sugar, and on the palate there's lemon, melon, flint, peas and green tea. Minerality adds some heft, and the finish is long-lasting. Acid balance is good and the overall impression is at once both serious and elegant--it may cost a bit, but it tastes expensive. In fact, it's the best Washington semillon I've had (there's a lot of it grown up here).
My wine shopping and I have never had a problem. Just a perpetual race between the bankruptcy court and Hell.--Rogov
