Jan. 31-Feb 29 2008
"Ultimate Buying Guide: Washington Highlights"
Bunnell
When Ron Bunnell left his job as red-winemaker for Chateau Ste. Michelle, he retreated to his family’s farm in Yakima Valley. Known for growing lavender and herbs, the farm does not grow the grapes for Bunnell’s distinctive Rhône blends—those come from purchased fruit. Bunnell started off with a bang, rating outstanding in his debut vintage of 2004 and continuing in 2005.
November 11, 2007
To begin, there is a case list of winery clubs, rather than individual wines. It’s the “teach a person to fish” philosophy applied to the wine industry. Here are 12 outstanding Washington winery clubs to join right now, before their enrollment closes.
"Wine Adviser"
August 1, 2007
You think your summer’s been busy?
Winemaker Ron Bunnell released the second vintage of his Bunnell Family Cellar wines, introduced an appealing lineup of lower-priced wines under the new RiverAerie brand, did the usual work in the vineyard and winery and, at 57, became a brand-new dad. Shortly after Mrs. G. and I stopped by Ron and Susan Bunnell’s tidy winery, overlooking a cozy bend in the Yakima River just north of Prosser, a happy note came via e-mail announcing their son’s arrival – and wishing us a Happy Fourth of July. I think you all will be happy as well when you sample Bunnell’s latest project, RiverAerie. “I’m consulting winemaker at Milbrandt Vineyards,” he explained, “so I’ve got ‘cherry picking rights’ on the inventory. It’s a great opportunity to pick little jewels out”
Pick of the Week
2005 River Aerie Sangiovese, $15
October 4, 2006
“If wine makers are going to create great wines in the Rhône manner, they have to recognize that “Rhône” and “syrah” are not synonyms. McCrea and Bunnell are busily experimenting not only with blends of Rhône varietals-Viognier, carignane, roussanne, marsanne, mourvèdre, counoise, cinsault - but also with pure bottlings of these ancient grape strains. Both approaches can produce wonders.
With only his first independent release just now on the market, Bunnell, a veteran corporate and contract winemaker, follows a somewhat more playful but still strict approach, dividing his releases into “vins de l’endroit” (crafted to express the essence of fruit from individual growers like Dick Boushey, Paul Champoux, and the Milbrandt family) and “vins de l’esprit” (blends created more by intuition than formula, but no less prepossessing). With investigators like these, the often strange case of Washington Rhône reds may soon be closed.
Fall 2006
"Bunnell Family Cellar Scoring two “Outstanding” ratings"
This summer, we gathered northwest Syrahs again and judged 129. The results showed the quality continues to rise with the numbers. Our panel awarded 17 “Outstanding” awards. Additionally, we awarded 67 “Excellent” ratings, nearly twice as many as those receiving “Recommended”.
June 14, 2006
"Paul Gregutt Special to The Seattle Times"
Bunnell Family Cellar
Ron Bunnell, whose winemaking career has taken him to Beringer, Chateau Souverain, Kendall-Jackson and most recently Chateau Ste. Michelle, has introduced the first releases from his own winery, Bunnell Family Cellar. Based in Prosser, Benton County, the winery is dedicated to producing syrah and other Rhône varietals. The vineyard and appellation wines Bunnell calls vins de l’endroit (wines of a place); the blended wines are vins de l’esprit (wines of the creative spirit).
The Horse Heaven Hills Syrah ($40) was more round and forward, a pleasing mix of citrus, berry and plum. Its smooth, ripe tannins left just a hint of black olive and fresh herb in the finish. The Clifton Hill (Wahluke Slope) Syrah ($37), from the warmest site, is the most forward and dense of all, with rich scents of mixed berries, spice, fresh herbs and toast.
Wine Spectator
July 31, 2007
"Among the new labels worth knowing for Syrah are Five Star, Chatter Creek, Sequel, Sheridan, Mark Ryan and Bunnell Family Cellar. The last is a new winery from Ron Bunnell, Chateau Ste. Michelle's chief winemaker until 2004. His new Syrahs show vivd, juicy flavors and exemplary textures; Vif Columbia Valley NV (91, $25), a blend of Syrah, Mouvedre and Viognier, is also a plush mouthful".
Seattle Times
"Paul Gregutt's 100 Best Washington State Wines for 2006"
#46 Bunnell Family Cellar 2004 Boushey-McPherson Vineyard Syrah, $38
Seattle Times
December 19, 2007
"Paul Gregutt's Top 100 Washington State Wines for 2007"
#21. Bunnell Family Cellar 2005 Boushey-McPherson Vineyard Syrah, $38
Seattle Times
December 19, 2008
"Paul Gregutt's Top 100 Washington Wines for 2008"
#31. Bunnell Family 2006 Clifton Hill Syrah, $42
Wine Spectator
5/15/2007
Bunnell VIF Columbia Valley NV $25
Uncorked
Wine Enthusiast
"The Rhone Rangers of Washington"
By Paul Gregutt
April 2009
BUNNELL FAMILY CELLAR
RIVERAERIE.COM
FOUNDED: 2004
WINEMAKER: Ron Bunnell
KNOWN FOR: Supple, silky, pure varietal wines
Ron Bunnell’s winemaking career has taken him
to Beringer, Chateau Souverain, Kendall-Jackson
and Chateau Ste. Michelle, but his dream winery is
his own Bunnell Family Cellar. Bunnell divides his
wines into those that feature specific vineyards and appellations,
which he calls vins de l’endroit (wines of a place) and blended wines
he calls vins de l’esprit (wines of the creative spirit).
“When I came to Washington [10 years ago] I was impressed that
Syrah up here was a different animal entirely,” Bunnell explains.
“California Syrah has more in common with Australian Shiraz than
with Rhône Valley Syrah; part is the tannin structure; part is the flavor
profile. I started to realize that Washington could really be a
world-class growing region for Syrah.”
Apart from Bunnell’s excellent Syrahs—notably the Clifton Hill
and Boushey-McPherson Vineyard bottlings—he makes an exceptional
single-vineyard Mourvèdre. “Yes, it’s a great blender, but I love
it as a stand-alone varietal,” he says. “That white pepper quality
speaks to me of Bandol and Provence.”
In 2006 he also introduced his first varietal Grenache, which joins
his two blends, à pic and vif.
Wine Spectator
Web only- 2009
"Wineries for Value"
Dynamic lists of the wineries that have produced the most value wines in the past year
"Washington, 87 points and up, $20 and under"
#4. RiverAerie (9 wines)
"Washington, 87 points and up, $30 and under"
#5. RiverAerie (10 wines)
"Washington, 90 points and up, $30 and under"
#5. RiverAerie (3 wines)
"Washington, 90 points and up, $40 and under"
#11. Bunnell Family Cellar (3 wines)
#15. RiverAerie (3 wines)
Wine Spectator
July 31, 2009
"Exploring the Pacific Northwest; From the desert to the coast, a six-day road trip reveals what makes the region's wines and cuisine unique" By Harvey Steiman
Day Two: Yakima Valley and Red Mountain
"... Even with a winery stop or two, you should get to Prosser, in Yakima Valley, in time for lunch at Wine O'Clock, the new wine bar and pizzeria owned by Ron and Susan Bunnell of Bunnell Cellars. It is in the Prosser Vintner's Village, a cluster of small to medium-sized outfits that includes up-and-comers Airfield, Milbrandt, and Thurston Wolfe.
Once the red wine maker for Chateau Ste. Michelle, Bunnell now producers a raft of outstanding wines under his own name and his family's RiverAerie label. He sources grapes in response to what their terroir gives him; he turns to Wahluke Slope, a warmer region in the Columbia Valley, for his best Cabernets and Merlots, but bottles some special Syrahs and whites from Yakima vineyards.
The wine bar strives to showcase the Bunnells' more that two dozen different wines. Susan designs her pizzas to frame specific ones. And improbable topping of fresh pear slices, lardons and white Cheddar aims to show off the Gewurztaminer, but it tastes great with the Viognier too. The Syrah from Boushey Vineyard does well with the onion soup pizza, which relies on all the ingredients of French onion soup minus the broth. Even better these creative pies are only $12 each..."
Wine Spectator
June 12, 2009
"Washington Wines Alphabetical Listing"
These wines were tasted for the Washington report in the July 31, 2009, issue of Wine Spectator magazine.
| BUNNELL | ||
| à pic Stonetree Vineyard Wahluke Slope 2006 | 86 | $32 |
| Mourvèdre Wahluke Slope Northridge Vineyard 2006 | 89 | $38 |
| Syrah Horse Heaven Hills 2006 | 91 | $38 |
| Syrah Wahluke Slope Clifton Hill Vineyard 2006 | 92 | $42 |
| Syrah Yakima Valley Boushey-McPherson Vineyard 2006 | 91 | $42 |
| Vif Columbia Valley 2006 | 90 | $32 |
| Viognier Wahluke Slope Talcott Vineyard 2007 | 91 | $18 |
Wine Spectator
harvey steiman at large
 |
What Time Is It? Wine O'Clock
Posted: Apr 10, 2009 9:42am ET
Ron and Susan Bunnell not only have one of the hottest new wineries in Washington (check out the raft of great ratings for their Bunnell Family Cellars and value-oriented RiverAerie Vineyards), they may have come up with a destination for pizza lovers, too.
They installed Wine o’Clock, their new wine bar, instead of a tasting room, amidst a cluster of wineries in Prosser called Vintner’s Village. The cast there includes Airfield, Thurston-Wolfe, Millbrandt, Olsen and Apex. Desert Wind is across the street. But the Bunnells have a wood-fired pizza oven.
Susan is the pizza chef. In a previous life, she worked with Gary Danko in the 1980s when he opened the Souverain restaurant in California, and later she managed the dining room at the Chandon winery restaurant in Yountville, Calif. She takes a creative approach to pizza. Instead of making classics, she has created several $12 pies designed to go with the Bunnell and RiverAerie wines. "The idea is to help people have a nice snack and set off the wines," she explained.
She made four pizzas for me to taste. The thin crust is crisp in the middle and only makes a slight rise around the edge. The wood smoke gives it a distinct character.
Mascarpone, lemon zest, shiso leaf and leeks topped the first one, aimed at white wines, specifically Gewürztraminer. It tasted fine on its own and I liked it best with Bunnell Viognier 2007.
Sliced Bosc pears, bacon and white cheddar gave the second pizza a richly layered flavor profile that I preferred with the Bunnell Syrah Boushey Vineyard 2006, emphasizing the Yakima Valley wine’s generosity and open texture.
A smear of pesto, with eggplant and portobello mushroom slices, topped with herbs and fresh mozzarella, got closest to a classic Italian pizza, and brought out extra fruit nuances in the RiverAerie Mourvèdre 2006.
She saved the best for last, though. An onion pizza sported all the ingredients in French onion soup except the broth: caramelized onions, a sprinkle of caraway and fresh thyme, with both gruyère and comté cheeses. It’s magic, and the pizza popped out the fruit in Bunnell à Pic 2006, a lively blend of Rhône varieties from Stonetree Vineyard high on Wahluke Slope.
Bunnell made wine at Chateau Ste. Michelle, Beringer and Kendall-Jackson before he and Susan started their own Yakima Valley winery beginning with the 2004 vintage. They bottle Rhône varieties—various blends of Syrah, Mourvèdre, Cinsault, Grenache and Viognier—under their Bunnell label. Other varieties travel under RiverAerie. Though made in relatively small quantities, the often-outstanding RiverAerie wines carry mostly sub-$20 price tags. Total production is around 4,000 cases.
Bunnell’s latest wine project involves grower Steve Newhouse, who has some of the oldest vines on Snipes Mountain, Washington's newest AVA. On the south side of Yakima Valley, just west of Sunnyside, the appellation looks most promising for Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot and Malbec. I tasted components for the 2008 vintage, and found lots of meaty character in the Cabernet, generosity and plum flavors in the Malbec, and supple texture and sweet berry notes in the Merlot.
"I’m still deciding whether to make one blend or bottle separate varietals," Bunnell said. He's leaning toward making a single wine from Snipes Mountain because he has so many different wines under RiverAerie. "I got entranced with so many of these sport varieties, which were just coming into production. So we have a lot of [different bottlings]."
But he'll continue to make small lots of interesting wines that don't fit in the blend, he added. "That’s the joy of having the wine bar," he said. "I can still bottle up 50 cases of something and sell it there."
For now, Wine o’Clock is only open weekends from noon to 5 p.m. Starting May 1, it will be open Fridays to Mondays.
Originally published Saturday, January 23, 2010 at 7:00 PM
With chardonnay as plentiful as it gets, consumers can have a tough time distinguishing those that are worth their time and money. Here is a list of some that stand out, including those from Barefoot Cellars, RiverAerie and Phelps Creek Vineyards. Special to the Seattle Times CHARDONNAY HAS been — and still is — the leading white-wine varietal in this country, both in terms of vineyard acreage (vast!) and sales (humongous). It's a worldwide superstar, too. The grape thrives in just about every country where wine grapes are grown. It is so ubiquitous as to be almost invisible to many wine writers. Personally, I enjoy chardonnays, but confess I rarely get excited about them. Like many consumers, I find it hard to know what's going to be in the bottle labeled chardonnay. Will it be steely and crisp, tasting of green apples and lemon juice? Will it be fleshy and fruity — a bowl of stone fruits, tropical fruits, bubble gum? Will it be buttered popcorn in a bottle? Toast and coffee? Ancient sea life soaked in chalk? Chardonnay can be any and all of the above. No unknown label is going to give you much of a clue about what's inside, beyond simple (or silly) terms such as "naked" or "unwooded." So you have to do some scouting to find producers who make the style of chardonnay you enjoy, at a price you are willing to pay. Here are some good options at a variety of price points: Barefoot Cellars is one of the dozens of Gallo brands, this one specializing in a broad range of inexpensive wines that can at times over-deliver. The cheapest Barefoot wines sell for around $7 and are nonvintage. I have nothing against nonvintage wines, but that labeling does present a challenge to consumers, because you don't know just how long that bottle has been sitting on the retailer's shelf. I would suggest you purchase only from someone you know, who can assure you that the wine was recently acquired. The Barefoot chardonnay I tasted recently carried an impression of slight sweetness and crisp fruit, with a hint of toast. Though labeled chardonnay, the wine is actually a blend with chenin blanc, viognier and gewürztraminer in the mix. Good bottle for seven bucks. RiverAerie is the less-expensive "value" lineup from Bunnell Family winery in Prosser, Benton County. I consistently find that RiverAerie wines offer great flavor. The 2008 chardonnay ($14) is crisp and delicious, and absolutely loaded with stone fruits, fresh-cut pineapple and juicy citrus. Thistle, a tiny Oregon boutique, recently caught my attention. It makes three white wines and a pinot noir, and all perform well beyond their modest prices. The Thistle 2007 chardonnay ($18) comes from organically farmed, estate-grown, Dundee Hills fruit. Clean and bracing, it brings a tasty mix of tangerine, Meyer lemon, lime, green apple and tonic. You'll need to purchase directly from the winery by visitingwww.thistlewines.com. I find that almost without exception, cheap chardonnays that try to emulate pricier, oak-aged wines are overloaded with artificial flavors of vanilla and tobacco, an attempt to conceal the lack of good, ripe fruit. Chardonnays that use real barrels to generate barrel flavors will cost you a bit more. Over the course of his first four or five vintages, winemaker Chris Sparkman has made a superb chardonnay called Lumière. The 2008 release ($25), sourced from Stillwater Creek vineyard, is his best yet. Yeasty and young, dense and loaded with fresh pear, toasted nuts and butter, this is for those who love their chardonnay with plenty of new oak. On the Oregon side of the Columbia Gorge, Phelps Creek Vineyards is showing a marvelous touch with chardonnay. Its two newest releases showcase grapes from both sides of the river. The Phelps Creek Vineyards 2008 Estate Reserve chardonnay ($26) is a luscious mix of apple, pear and melon fruit, buoyed by perfect acidity. The Phelps Creek Vineyards 2008 Celilo Vineyard chardonnay ($24) provides a lovely counterpoint — peach and melon and lemon-drop fruit, with plenty of pleasing barrel toast and spice. Paul Gregutt is the author of "Washington Wines & Wineries." Find him at www.paulgregutt.com or write topaulgwine@me.com.Some chardonnays stand out from the herd
Try a Taste for Yourself
All of us would like to invite you to come visit us at our wine o'clock wine bar. There you can taste some of our showcased wines and eat outstanding artisans pizzas. You can visit our wine bar website at: www.wineoclockwinebar.com. If you are a "Friend of the Winery" member or would like to arrange a special tasting for your party, please call us in advance at 509-786-2197 or email us. We also participate in many Seattle area wine tasting events.
- General Bunnell Family Cellar Acclaim
- Viognier, Talcott Vyd., 2007
- Viognier, Talcott Vyd., 2006 - SOLD OUT
- Syrah, Horse Heaven Hills, 2007 - NOT YET RELEASED
- Syrah, Horse Heaven Hills, 2006
- Syrah, Clifton Hill Vyd., 2007
- Syrah, Clifton Hill Vyd., 2006
- Syrah, Clifton Hill Vyd., 2005 - SOLD OUT
- Syrah, Clifton Hill Vyd., 2004 - SOLD OUT
- Syrah, Boushey-McPherson Vyd., 2007
- Syrah, Boushey-McPherson Vyd., 2006
- Syrah, Boushey-McPherson Vyd., 2005 - SOLD OUT
- Syrah, Boushey-McPherson Vyd., 2004
- Rhone Blend, “a pic”, Stonetree Vyd., 2005 - SOLD OUT
- Rhone Blend, "vif", 2007
- Rhone Blend, "vif", 2006 - SOLD OUT
- Rhone Blend, "a pic", Stonetree Vyd., 2007
- Rhone Blend, "a pic", Stonetree Vyd., 2006 - SOLD OUT
- Mourvedre, Northridge Vyd., 2006 - SOLD OUT
- Grenache, Yakima Valley, 2006 - SOLD OUT
