We drove to Gramercy Cellars, a couple of blocks from the center of Walla Walla, and were met by Steve Wells. Here are some brief notes on the wines we tasted:

2009 Tempranillo $42: This is a varietal that holds little charm for me except for some well-aged Spanish wines. I find many bottlings to have less than ideal balance, but I enjoyed this inacrnation. nose of malt, dark berries on the palate, nice, balanced, 90

2010 Walla Walla Syrah $55: barrel sample nose, some austerity and dark fruit flavors, 90

2009 Third Man $45: This is a GSM blend. nose a bit musty, balanced, very nice, 92-93+

2008 Columbia Valley Cabernet Sauvignon $45: Bordeaux-type blend, wet earth and stewed plums on the nose, smooth tannins and blackberries on the palate, 91+

2009 Walla Walla Cabernet Sauvignon $65: 100% Cabernet Sauvignon, deep fruit pie nose, moderate tannins, already complex with layers of deep fruit flavors, needs time, 92-94+

We were very impressed by Gramercy's wines on several levels. Being very partial to Rhone varietals I loved The Third Man. All of Gramercy's wines were excellent and the prices for the high quality of the wines were more than fair, especially for the region. I hope to share some of their wines at future offlines.

We had a bottle of the 2009 The Third Man last night. No mustiness on the nose with this one, just beautiful dark fruit aromas and flavors. This is a real winner. I love what Washington is doing with Rhone varietals. 93

More love from here too. Other than Bedrock's Hudson bottling, I think I'm going 100% Washington for syrahs and blends from now on. Did you make it over to Prosser to taste the Maison Bleue wines?

No. This was a national parks vacation and we spent a couple of days in the middle in Walla Walla, not really a winery visiting vacation. We visited Leonetti, Rasa, KVintners, Corliss, and Woodward Canyon. We were extremely impressed with Rasa's wines. Their Vox Populi is 100% Mourvedre and stunning! billhike is visiting Rasa today, I believe.

Notes from my visit on 11/10/12:

2009 Gramercy Cellars ‘Inigo Montoya’ Tempranillo Walla Walla Valley ($42)
(97% Tempranillo, 3% Syrah) Leather, briary raspberry and peppery red cherry. Extracted. Probably the best domestic Tempranillo I’ve ever had (though the sample size is small). 91 points

2010 Gramercy Cellars Syrah Walla Walla Valley ($55)
Great varietal character with smoked meat, black fruit. Pepper, spice and leather. Great depth. 90 points

2010 Gramercy Cellars ‘The Third Man’ Columbia Valley ($50)
(80% Grenache, 15% Mourvedre, 5% Syrah) Very juicy style, and absolutely delicious. Very well-fruited, and larger-scaled than some GSMs I’ve had. Long, bright finish. 93 points

2009 Gramercy Cellars Cabernet Sauvignon Columbia Valley ($50)
(77% Cabernet Sauvignon, 14% Cabernet Franc, 9% Merlot) Currant, mint, minerals, all with exceptional balance (and I looked, only 14.2% alcohol). Tobacco. Very good Cab. 92 points

I enjoyed your notes. Gramercy is one of only two wineries from which I receive automatic shipments.

You could tell the quality in each bottle. I would've liked to try some of their others, but I was the only guy there and I think they were still recovering from the release weekend just before. I'll be back!