11 Sep Please The Palate Wine of the Week: Wautoma Springs 2022 Albariño, JMST Vineyard, Columbia Valley, Washington

Last week, I traveled to Yakima Valley in Washington state. One of my first stops was to Wautoma Springs in Prosser, the city that is considered the birthplace of Washington wine. With the excessive heat and temperatures in the high 90s, I could only imagine drinking a fresh white wine. And I got just that with the Wautoma Springs Albariño. The wine was refreshing and crisp but also textured and that is why the  Wautoma Springs 2022 Albariño, JMST Vineyard, Columbia Valley, Washington is the Please The Palate wine of the week.

About

Wautoma Springs is a partnership between grape grower Tom Merkle and winemaker Jessica Munnell. Jessica began her career as a viticulturist, but transitioned to winemaking in 2003, beginning with an internship in Australia. She returned to Washington and worked at Snoqualmie, Chateau Ste Michelle, Canoe Ridge, Mercer Wine Estates and Vintage Wine Estates. In 2008, Jessica and Tom started Wautoma Springs. Jessica makes wines from Tom’s Wautoma Springs vineyard which is home to 50 acres of Cabernet Sauvignon. Tom also manages other top-ranked vineyards in the Wahluke Slope in Columbia Valley. One of these vineyards is the JMST Vineyard, located just west of Wautoma Springs vineyard. Planted to Chardonnay and Grenache Blanc, Tom grafted some Chardonnay over to Albariño and 2021 was the first vintage.

The white wines of Wautoma Springs have beautiful hand-drawn images of the native plants from eastern Washington. The artist for the white wine labels is Leigh Ann Torres, an Austin, Texas-based artist working in a variety of media. The Albariño label is shades of greens and blues with a drawing of the Mock Orange flower, a fragrant native plant with intense aromas of orange blossom and jasmine. It is a drought tolerant and tough plant that was selected to represent the Albariño.

Tasting Notes

The 2022 Albariño has a bright and inviting nose with aromas of citrus, green melon, and stone fruits with floral and saline notes. On the first sip, acidity coats the palate. The wine is bright, fresh, and crisp with a lingering mid-palate texture that goes on and on. There is a lovely salinity on the finish.

Food Pairing

I enjoyed the wine so much that I brought a bottle back home with me and enjoyed it with dinner. A medium-bodied, highly acidic white wine, Albariño is a great wine to pair with a variety of foods. It is a great wine with all types of seafood dishes, from raw fish and smoked fish to fish tacos and grilled fish. It also pairs with vegetable dishes and meat dishes, such as roasted chicken, crispy pork belly, and veal scallopini. And I enjoyed the wine with a poke bowl and shrimp tempura. The texture of the wine was a match to the poke bowl and the acidity of the wine was perfect with the crispy tempura.

Where To Purchase

The Wautoma Springs 2022 Albariño, JMST Vineyard, Columbia Valley retails for $25 and can be purchased directly from the Wautoma Springs website. Wautoma Springs ships wine across the country.