Rob Entrekin outgrew his garage in the Finn Hill neighborhood of Kirkland, so the biomedical engineer from Duke University moved his wine production to Woodinville. (Richard Duval Images)

Rob Entrekin outgrew his garage in the Finn Hill neighborhood of Kirkland, so the biomedical engineer from Duke University moved his wine production to Woodinville. (Richard Duval Images)

Why tasting blind helps you to be honest about wines you like

As vino lovers like to say: The closer you are standing to the winemaker, the better the wine tastes.

One aspect of wine evaluation, and not one without controversy, is tasting blind. This means not knowing whose wine you are tasting until after you’re done with your assessment.

Why is this important? The natural tendency is to be swayed by knowledge. If you are tasting one of the world’s most famous wines — say, a First Growth Bordeaux — there’s an inclination to give it the benefit of the doubt because you’re supposed to like it based on your own experience or someone’s suggestion. Besides, if that is an expensive wine you are tasting, you don’t want to feel stupid for spending a lot for a bottle that you don’t like.

And then there’s one of our favorite bromides: “The closer you are standing to the winemaker the better the wine tastes.” Although, sometimes it can be difficult to mask your disappointment.

Objectivity is the primary reason for judging wine blind. It helps remove preconceived notions about a wine and leads to an honest assessment. This is the premise of major wine competitions, and our tasting panels also are conducted under blind conditions. We don’t know who made the wine or how much it retails for until we’re done evaluating, discussing, debating and voting. We know the type or style of a wine, for example, a cabernet sauvignon or a white blend that leads with sauvignon blanc, but that’s about it.

In order for a wine to receive our top rating, which we tag as “Outstanding!” — our equivalent of a gold medal — a majority of those on that tasting panel must agree it deserves that ranking.

It’s more convenient for an individual to sit down, open a bottle, swirl, sniff and sip, and develop their impressions of a wine. On the other hand, there’s time, effort and expense involved in gathering a group of taste testers to evaluate wine that’s been poured for them by a third party.

Tasting panels and wine competitions create a convivial experience, however, and the results help identify delicious efforts by Pacific Northwest grape growers and winemakers. There are discoveries. In our corner of the world, bargains often are unveiled. Sometimes, the most expensive wine doesn’t quite measure up to expectations. It’s all a part of wine education.

In a roundabout way, tasting wine as a group also allows us to celebrate life, something that we all should do more of. We encourage wine lovers to gather friends and create casual tasting groups.

These four wines below earned our top rating in recent blind tastings. Ask for them at your favorite wine shop or contact the winery directly.

Finn Hill Winery 2014 Le Beau Cabernet Sauvignon, Red Mountain, $30: This cab by Woodinville winemaker Rob Entrekin proved to be one of the most decorated in the state in 2018. There’s richness and concentration from start to finish, opening with aromas of cherry cola, cinnamon bark, dusty lavender and menthol. Beautifully resolved cherry-skin tannins allow for a long appreciation of marionberry and blueberry, which finishes with some boldness and green peppercorns. It’s not easy to find a cab from Red Mountain of such expression at this price.

TruthTeller Winery 2015 The Madman Red Wine, Columbia Valley, $35: In the Old World, a blend such as this would be in the shadows. In Woodinville’s Warehouse District, Chris Loeliger’s blend of syrah (60 percent), cabernet sauvignon and cabernet franc shows delicious brilliance, and it starts on Red Mountain, backed by cab franc from stellar Elephant Mountain Vineyard at the eastern end of the Yakima Valley. The complex theme centers on dark blue fruit, akin to plums and elderberry, with white pepper and nutmeg. Enjoyably crunchy blueberry seed tannins are balanced and finished by a dusting of cocoa powder.

Lopez Island Vineyards & Winery 2016 Malbec, Yakima Valley $26: Puget Sound producer Brent Charnley recently shifted his malbec program to family-farmed Crawford Vineyard near Prosser, and it continues to reap rewards. Gorgeous color extraction and the grape’s signature Jolly Rancher grape candy nose is joined by boysenberry and baking spice from the year spent in 30 percent new French oak. Lovely dark fruitiness of blackberry, blueberry and plum are met with a pleasing mouthfeel of well-presented tannins and boysenberry acidity, which comes with a touch of minerality.

Tenet Wines 2016 The Pundit, Columbia Valley $25: By the looks of it, Ste. Michelle Wine Estates can help do for syrah what it has done with riesling, which is world-class stuff. Tenet Wines represents another example of Chateau Ste. Michelle head winemaker Bob Bertheau collaborating with European experts to create a gateway example of a variety that the majority of American consumers aren’t overly familiar with, offer it at an affordable price and produce it on a large scale. The influence of new French oak over 13 months shows with the bittersweet chocolate and toast aromas, as well as blueberry cobbler and black cherry. There’s a payday on the palate from each of those notes as the dark fruit spills across with pleasing weight. A nice tug of tannin comes across as a nibble of blackcurrant skin with the juice to match, followed by the underlying and food-friendly gaminess that syrah often brings to the table. The Pundit is widely distributed and sometimes found for a few dollars less than the listed price.

Andy Perdue and Eric Degerman operate Great Northwest Wine, an award-winning media company. Learn more about wine at www.great northwestwine.com.

Talk to us

> Give us your news tips.

> Send us a letter to the editor.

> More Herald contact information.

More in Life

Photo courtesy of Graphite Arts Center
Amelia DiGiano’s photography is part of the “Seeing Our Planet” exhibit, which opens Friday and runs through Aug. 9 at the Graphite Arts Center in Edmonds.
A&E Calendar for July 10

Send calendar submissions for print and online to features@heraldnet.com. To ensure your… Continue reading

Snohomish County Dahlia Society members Doug Symonds and Alysia Obina on Monday, March 3, 2025 in Lake Stevens, Washington. (Olivia Vanni / The Herald)
How to grow for show: 10 tips for prize-winning dahlias

Snohomish County Dahlia Society members share how they tend to their gardens for the best blooms.

What’s Up columnist Andrea Brown with a selection of black and white glossy promotional photos on Wednesday, June 18, 2025 in Everett, Washington. (Olivia Vanni / The Herald)
Free celeb photos! Dig into The Herald’s Hollywood time capsule

John Wayne, Travolta, Golden Girls and hundreds more B&W glossies are up for grabs at August pop-up.

The 2025 Audi A3 premium compact sedan (Provided by Audi).
2025 Audi A3 upgradesdesign and performance

The premium compact sedan looks sportier, acts that way, too.

Edmonds announces summer concert lineup

The Edmonds Arts Commission is hosting 20 shows from July 8 to Aug. 24, featuring a range of music styles from across the Puget Sound region.

Big Bend Photo Provided By Ford Media
2025 Ford Bronco Sport Big Bend Increases Off-Road Capability

Mountain Loop Highway Was No Match For Bronco

Cascadia College Earth and Environmental Sciences Professor Midori Sakura looks in the surrounding trees for wildlife at the North Creek Wetlands on Wednesday, June 4, 2025 in Bothell, Washington. (Olivia Vanni / The Herald)
Cascadia College ecology students teach about the importance of wetlands

To wrap up the term, students took family and friends on a guided tour of the North Creek wetlands.

Mustang Convertible Photo Provided By Ford Media Center
Ford’s 2024 Ford Mustang Convertible Revives The Past

Iconic Sports Car Re-Introduced To Wow Masses

Kim Crane talks about a handful of origami items on display inside her showroom on Monday, Feb. 17, 2025, in Snohomish, Washington. (Olivia Vanni / The Herald)
Crease is the word: Origami fans flock to online paper store

Kim’s Crane in Snohomish has been supplying paper crafters with paper, books and kits since 1995.

The 2025 Nissan Murano midsize SUV has two rows of seats and a five-passenger capacity. (Photo provided by Nissan)
2025 Nissan Murano is a whole new machine

A total redesign introduces the fourth generation of this elegant midsize SUV.

A woman flips through a book at the Good Cheer Thrift Store in Langley. (Olivia Vanni / The Herald)
Pop some tags at Good Cheer Thrift Store in Langley

$20 buys an outfit, a unicycle — or a little Macklemore magic. Sales support the food bank.

The 2025 Volkswagen Golf GTI sport compact hatchback (Provided by Volkswagen).
2025 Volkswagen Golf GTI is a hot-hatch heartthrob

The manual gearbox is gone, but this sport compact’s spirit is alive and thriving.

Support local journalism

If you value local news, make a gift now to support the trusted journalism you get in The Daily Herald. Donations processed in this system are not tax deductible.