2010 Dusted Valley Stained Tooth Syrah

The winemaker's notes begin with "Purple is our favorite color..." Everything this wine touches turns to purple - and it's great.

The wine is 91% Syrah, 5% Petite Sirah, 2% Mourvedre, and 2% Grenache and weighs in at 14.6%. The wine was aged 12 months in 20% New American and French Oak and 80% Neutral. The grapes hail from some of the top vineyards in Washington State's Columbia Valley.

Dark fruit and silky tannins provide a great finish. Now where did I lay down that whitening toothpaste?

Julie's take - "A great big syrah - tasty".

J. Bookwalter - Bookmark N.V.

If you are looking at one of the best QPR (Quality Price Ratio) this is it. This wine can often be found for less than $10 a bottle - but it's no wine in a box. The wine comes from J. Bookwalter which is one of Washington State's pioneering wineries - established in 1983. Bookmark is a blend but it doesn't just stop with blending varietals, it includes lots from multiple vintages - a processed referred to as vertical blending.

Bookmark is a blend of Merlot, Cabernet Sauvignon and Syrah and hails from vineyards throughout the Columbia Valley. The wine relies on the winemaker's taste and vision and blends young and mature fruit with fantastic results, especially at this price.

The wine is well balanced with dark fruit, cherry and chocolate.

Julie's Take : "This is very good"