Letter from Portteus Vineyards rcvd 12-Nov-1998 ---------------------- Portteus Vineyards and Winery Harvest, 1998 Amigos, That's all the Spanish for now! With the picking of our Zinfandel on Oct. 29 harvest is finally over. The vineyard is back to normal two years now after the big freeze. We were able to pick nearly four tons to the acre this fall exceeding our expectations for this year. We are now crushing about 70 tons, half of that production is Cabernet Sauvignon and the balance is made up of Merlot, Syrah, Zinfandel and Cabernet Franc. About three tons of the Cabernet Sauvignon will be used to make a Port. Due to a very HOT summer this year, the wine media in late summer proclaimed the 1998 vintage to be the vintage of the decade, or so I've heard. A record crop for WA was also forecast. Well, here is the real scoop! Harvest of reds at some vineyards began in early September and reports of less than expected yields began to circulate along with frantic calls from winemakers attempting to secure additional grapes. Many of the "primo" vineyards were harvesting reds only three weeks after veraison (color change from green to purple) which is not a good thing! Quality is attained in grapes through a long, slow ripening process lasting well into October or November, warm days, cool nights. Six weeks after veraison is the normal minimum time to produce quality wine. Time will tell! WINE AWARDS The 1995 Reserve Cabernet (92 pts.), the 1995 Merlot (90 pts.) and the 1995 Reserve Merlot (91 pts) have all won GOLD MEDALS at the WORLD WINE CHAMPIONSHIPS in Chicago this year! With ten vintages of Cabernet produced to date, eight vintages were awarded GOLD MEDALS or BEST OF SHOW. OUR ANNUAL PRE-RELEASE SALE Each Fall we offer our just bottled reserve wines to our winery direct customers [tell 'em MikeL sentcha] at an unbelievable discount (yeah right!). This year we offer the 1996 Cabernet Reserve and the 1997 Merlot Reserve in case quantities @ $280 per case. This is a savings of at least $80/case and no increase over last year (a real novelty these days). Both wines are fabulous, of course, and available for tasting on weekends only. Sale ends 30-Nov-1998. HOW TO ORDER 1. Just come on over and pick it up, perhaps during Thanksgiving In The Wine Country, the annual event in the Yakima Valley where all the wineries feature a food goodie the weekend after Thanksgiving. 2. Have the wine shipped via UPS to your door. 3. Pay for it now, we store it in our set aside area and you pick it up at the winery next year. Please call or fax us at the numbers below, or email us at port4you@aol.com. Also just bottled and available are the 1997 Zinfandel and the 1997 Syrah @ $21/btl or $18 in case quantities and the 1996 Cabernet (regular) @ $22/btl or $19 in case quantities. THEY'RE NOT BASEBALL CARDS The most often asked question in the tasting room is "When should I drink this wine"? To answer this question you need to know what the winemaker knows. That is; 90% of wine is consumed within 72 hours of purchase. And most of the wine that we sell restaurants will be consumed 1 to 2 years after bottling. If you want to be a player in this market you better make wines that are delicious young. How is this done? By picking the fruit at higher sugar levels. You give up acids and tannins and most important, pH, which are necessary for long term aging. What you get is more fruit, and a softer, more lush wine. Therefore, I would recommend drinking most Cabernets 5 to 8 years from the vintage date. Our mid eighties Cabernets are still drinking well but they were better a few years ago. If you insist on aging your Cabernet 10 or 15 years make sure that your cellar is not over 52 degrees year round. All other reds should be consumed within five years of vintage date. Temperature is the key, wines age twice as fast at 62 than at 52 degrees! 5201 Highland Drive Zillah, WA 98953 509-829-6970, fax 509-829-5683 ----------------------