Yeast is our friend.

Visted two wineries and a brewery in Woodinville today. The first was the rather lush, green and picturesque Chateau Ste Michelle (http://www.ste-michelle.com/). My friend KC lists their Merlot as one of her favorites, but I can't say that I share her enthusiasm for it (Sorry K!).
We followed this up by visiting a winery on the opposite end of the distribution spectrum, Facelli Winery (http://facelliwinery.com/). I loved the understated feel of their location, an office park! A whole lot of wine and glasses with a tiny counter. The tasting included their '02 Late Harvest Syrah; the most memorable wine I tried today. It had the pleasing scent of honey and blackberries, balanced very nicely with tannins. Who knew that Syrah would make such a satisfying dessert wine? Founder Lou Facelli chatted with us and autographed our purchases which are now nicely tucked into my collection. Can't wait to serve it with something rich and chocolatey.
Last stop was the Redhook Brewery (http://www.redhook.com/). I'll never be a big beer drinker and have yet to finish a beer before it comes to room temperature, but I do enjoy sampling different things when the opportunity arises. Redhook's $1 tour was lively and fun and our tour guide's enthusiasm for his subject matter; namely malt, hops and yeast, was infectious. Imagine a frat boy who landed his dream job in beer heaven after acing his finals in yeast fermentation theory. The tasting included their Sunrye, ESB, Ballard Bitter (IPA), Blonde? and their Blackhook Porter. I was about to pass on my sampler glass of the last beer, but one sip of my friend TU's and I decided to hop back into line. The Porter had wonderful chocolate and coffee flavors. Yummy! I can't wait to try it with a scoop of vanilla ice cream as suggested by our guide.