The earnestly kind folks over at DeLille invited Salty Seattle to come out and experience the oenological delights featured in their winter release yesterday.  We eagerly accepted the invitation, thrilled to be a part of what promised to be a superlative tasting.  The release featured five wines in total, one white and four reds.  We started with a crisp and healthy pour of the Chaleur Estate 2008 Blanc. It is 62% sauvignon blanc and 38% Semillon.  BIG DISCLAIMER: I typically loathe white wines. I don’t know what it is- I love reds, champagne is my very best friend, and a crisp rosé on a spring or summer day does me right nice. I’ve yet to wrap my palate around a bottle of white, but not for lack of trying. That being said, the Chaleur Estate Blanc was a refreshing lightly fruited nutty glass of rich smooth flavor.  I was very impressed with its ability to keep me drinking despite my prejudice. 

Next up- Harrison Hill 2007. This classic Bordeaux-style blend is predominantly cabernet sauvignon and all I have to say is LOCK UP YOUR DAUGHTERS! After a couple meaty pours of this big, dark old-vine wine I coined it “Dirty Harry” and all hell broke loose from there.  People were clamoring to purchase Dirty Harry- lined up 10 deep to take case after case off the DeLille boys’ hands.  Bewitching, silky and in need of a cellar age or a good long steep in the decanter, this wine is the stuff of legend.  Read more

Chris Upchurch, winemaker, talks wine

If I told you that one of the most esteemed wineries in Washington state, rather the United States, was an idea hatched on a cocktail napkin many years ago, wouldn’t that make you love it all the more?  Many accolades have been bestowed upon DeLille’s wines, and while I’ve certainly been known to wax verbose about a big red or two in my day, for the purposes of this entry I’m going to leave that to Robert Parker and the rest of the big boys.  Instead, I’m going to give you a little insight into the history of this award-winning wine Chateau situated on a humble hill in the heart of Woodinville wine country. 

DeLille Estate

The great success story that is DeLille winery mirrors that of the life of Charles Lill, the beloved granddaddy co-founder of DeLille who passed away in 2008.  By all accounts, Charles Lill was a real gentleman and a hard worker throughout his topsy turvy life.  A descendant of Huguenots who fled persecution in France during the 17th Century, Lill ended up in a then-German controlled region of what is now called the Czech Republic.  During World War II, Lill became a Luftwaffe pilot, and ended up in the hands of the Soviets, confined to a Russian prison camp. 

He was treated with slightly more deference than his compatriots since he wore the Luftwaffe uniform, thus he enjoyed the special privilege of cooking for the Russian officers.  This position gave him the freedom to recognize an opportunity to flee the camp when he boarded a passing Swiss train one day while harvesting potatoes for the officers’ meals.  He escaped to Switzerland, and post-war, found himself in Munich where we worked as a statistician for the US government.  He was able to save just enough money to secure passage to Vancouver BC and eventually Seattle, albeit with only $20 in his pocket. 

He began rebuilding the great legacy bestowed upon him as a descendant of the DeLille family the second his feet hit the Seattle pavement as an insurance salesman.  Over the centuries, his DeLille family ancestors were hit with a series of life-shattering hardships, including losing land that was once a winery in a territorial dispute. They are obviously of hearty stock; Charles Lill proved yet again that a DeLille phoenix can rise from the ashes of war and strife, and in this case make some damn fine wine.  Lill’s hard work for decades allowed him to retire from business in the early 1990’s, however his son and a couple of friends had grand plans for Lill’s golden years. 

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