Everett, Wash.
Published: Sunday, February 18, 2007

A really great winery is a really clean winery

By Jeff Wicklund / Special to The Herald

 There are many phrases, quips and old sayings used in the wine industry. One is, "truly great wine is made in the vineyards." This is an obvious reference to the primary requirement to begin the winemaking process with the best possible raw materials - the grapes.

Another adage says, "You can make bad wine from good grapes, but you can't make good wine from bad grapes." Then, of course, there is one of my favorite quips, "It takes a lot of beer to make great wine."

These and many other important rules of thumb have to be followed (well, maybe not all of them) for success in the fascinating alchemy called winemaking. But most winemakers would agree on one reality when it comes to the winemaking process - that it must be an "immaculate conception." The importance of cleanliness and sanitation can never be overlooked. In fact, I've had many a winemaker confess that they are at least 80 percent janitor.

So, whenever I tour a winery, I'm particularly aware of the facility's cleanliness, because that is one area where a winemaker has complete control.

My wife and I visited a winery recently in south Seattle where, after the first couple of minutes through the front door, I had a squeaky-clean epiphany called "vinous fastidious."

Fall Line Winery has been on my radar screen for quite some time, ever since I had heard that these wines were really worth seeking out. As one winemaker put it, "You gotta try these wines. It's some really good hooch!"

Tim Sorenson and his wife, Nancy Rivenburgh, launched Fall Line Winery in 2004 after Tim took his passion for the art of wine (and the science behind the art) through winemaking courses at the University of California at Davis, a part-time position at a retail shop in Seattle and a "vinternship" with Ben Smith of Cadence Winery.

The winery is in a rather nondescript warehouse space in Seattle's Georgetown district and is a working testament to the benefits of efficiency and total tidiness. I commented on the obvious fastidiousness, and Sorenson replied, "Did Rob (Rob Sullivan of OS Winery, a south end neighbor winery) put you up to say that?" I learned that after Sorenson had lamented to his peers about the lack of (duly deserved) awards to his winery, his fellow winery owners presented him one for "the most fastidious winery." I'm sure the award was given with an air of whimsy, but also out of admiration and a wee bit of jealousy.

I couldn't have been more impressed with the Fall Line Winery facility Sorenson has sculpted, but more importantly, the artisan wines produced there revealed the deft touch of a detail-oriented winemaker. Sorenson, a professor of economics at Seattle University (for his day job), impressed me right from the get-go as he guided us around his meticulously manicured winery with seasoned confidence and humility.

Fall Line is now in its third vintage, and total production has more than doubled since the inaugural harvest in 2004. The name of the winery and way it has been branded couldn't be more fitting. Fall line is a geological term referring to the natural line of descent between two points on a slope and is most commonly applied to the graceful line of an alpine skier, which Sorenson and his wife both are.

Sorenson and Fall Line Winery have successfully merged many of the tried-and-truisms of the world of wine. Indeed, great wine is made in the vineyards, and you need great fruit to make great wine, so Fall Line is sourcing fruit from some of the most celebrated vineyards in the state. But the winery also are practicing the art of winemaking through an immaculate conception.

Fall Line Winery produces three different Bordeaux-style wines that all capture the elegance, grace and depth of a correct fall line. Here is a current list of available wines, very limited and highly regarded (especially by this cork-dork):

Fall Line 2004 "Horse Heaven Hills" ($29) is a blend of 42 percent merlot, 34 percent cabernet franc and 24 percent cabernet sauvignon, all from the Destiny Ridge Vineyards. (398 cases produced.)

Fall Line 2004 "Red Mountain" ($29) is a blend of 45.5 percent merlot, 45.5 percent cabernet franc and 9 percent cabernet sauvignon, all from Artz Vineyards. (269 cases produced.)

Fall Line 2004 "Columbia Valley" ($29) cabernet sauvignon is 100 percent cabernet sauvignon from Destiny Ridge, Boushey and Artz Vineyards. (270 cases produced.)

Jeff Wicklund can be reached at 425-737-2600, 360-756-0422 or wick@purplesmilewines.com.

Fall Line

Wines may be ordered directly from the winery at www.falllinewinery.com.
© 2009The Daily Herald Co., Everett, WA