Dunham Cellars: The Passion is in the Bottle
By Jenise Stone

Eric Dunham grew up with wine on the dinner table, and by the time he reached adulthood the amenity had turned into a passion. So after college, he learned the ropes with stints at Hogue and then L’Ecole 41, then in 1995 he started making private label wines on the side to much critical acclaim. And so it was that in 1999, with his enthusiastic father Mike at his side, Dunham Cellars opened officially.

The winery is located in one of those hangars at the old Walla Walla airport, and is open for tasting daily from 11 to 4. There you can taste and buy Dunham’s ten current releases as well as the occasional single vineyard release or special bottling (the labels of which all carry an individual example of Eric’s original artwork). At the winery’s unusually thoughtful website at www.dunhamcellars.com, you can read about the winery, order wines, join the wine club, and read about upcoming events like winemaker dinners at the winery.

I had the pleasure of tasting five of Eric’s wines while seated at Eric’s table at a recent dinner benefiting the Culinary Arts program at Bellingham Technical College The wines reflect both Eric’s non-interventionist approach to wine making, a restrained sense of style, and the gamut of grapes that suit Washington’s climate and soils best. I should add that while I looked forward to meeting Eric, he didn't have to sell me on his ability: I’ve been cellaring his cabernets for a few years now.

Here are the wines he poured:

2005 “Charlotte Mays” Chardonnay: named for Eric’s beloved grandmother. Light green-gold color and apple strudel nose. Mostly neutral oak highlights the ripe fruit of baked apples and green gage plums. The hot vintage jacked alcohol up to 13.8%, but a little residual sugar in the finish helps carry it.

2005 Rose: from 100% cab franc, and Eric’s first rose. Exceptionally attractive color of creamy pink pearls. Fruity cranberry and rose flavors with a mild tarragon herb note dovetail into a sweet butter finish. Paired beautifully with a sturgeon, salmon and leek terrine doused with a citrus-caviar vinaigrette.

Dunham VIII Cabernet Sauvignon (2002): 100% cab sauv sourced from five vineyards. Aged about two years on 100% new oak, the wine is big but not obvious. Rather, it’s a Bordelaise style cabernet with berry fruit and plums, tobacco, mint, and French oak spice. Impressive, and impressively paired with peppercorn-coriander crusted duck breast, a pairing that could not have worked with an extracted, fruit bomb style of New World cabernet.

2003 Syrah: Another impressive effort. Sourced from three vineyards, this wine shows the ripe, sweet fruit of a warm vintage without getting goopy. Black cherries, raspberries and red plums with a spicy/sweet bit of Dad’s Root Beer in the finish. Deliciously matched with a chervil salad featuring grilled California nectarines and cambezola cheese—yes, you CAN have red wine with salad!

2005 Semillon Ice Wine: An ice wine is made from grapes that are picked and crushed while still frozen. They usually have to stay on the vines a lot longer than other grapes waiting for that freeze to come around. Sometimes, it doesn’t. These grapes were picked on December 8th, when the double whammy of late harvest ripeness and final water removal (the frozen crystals stay in the press) created a wine of incredibly nuanced sweetness. No wonder only 90 cases were made—that took a LOT of shriveled, shivering, naked little grapes. Which also means these wines are not inexpensive, but in fact they are, believe me, excellent value. Elegant and full-bodied, Eric’s ice wine is rich with honeysuckle, tangy apricot, candied tangerine, lavender, and a dash of allspice and clove. The finish goes on for, like, forever. A real stunner.

Dunham Cellars can be reached at:
Dunham Cellars
150 E. Boeing Avenue
Walla Walla, WA 99362
(590) 529-4685
http://www.dunhamcellars.com

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(7-24-2006)

Jenise Stone is a wine enthusiast and avid foodie who lives in Birch Bay, Washington. She can be reached by emailing jenise@tasteofwhatcom.com.

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