Rasa

Got a lot of good info from everybody regarding Quivet. I’ve been seeing a lot of comments on Rasa. How do they stack up against some of the othe Washington guys?

We toured Walla Walla recently. Rasa was top to bottom the best we had tasted. Loved Doubleback, Figgins and Sleight of Hand as well.

Their QED which has now become their entry label replacing PB Wines has been some of the best in the sub $50 category. They do good things with grapes and have done a couple of CellarTacker custom crush for those in the know.

I’ll give some dissent. They make decent wine which is largely overpriced. Want proof? Come get back vintages in Seattle area Costcos when their stuff doesn’t move.

Like their Mourvedre and Bordeaux-grape wines quite a bit, even better when I can find a sale. The wines seem to occupy the ends of the bell curve in terms of delight for us.

They make the CT Barrel Project Syrahs. Nearly 16 pct ABV. Even so I think they might evelve into nice wines. We had one last week–still very grapey and primary

I generally agree with this. I have tried almost all their wines and have 1.5 cases of the various Syrah, GSM blends and Mourvedres. To me, there are a few really good wines given extended aging - namely the Principia Syrah and Mourvèdre - some good wines (although I’ve experienced bottle variation) - the Syrahs and QED - and the rest are decent. However, I do think almost all are vastly overpriced, some by a wide margin.

If you like their wines, but don’t like the tariff at the winery or retail, look for sales as Anthony noted (I think Garagiste and Full Pull have offered back vintages at a lower price point) or sign up for the Rasa mailing list and pre-order at a 20% discount or wait until December when they usually have a 20-40% off sale of remaining inventory.

For my palate the Rasa Bordeaux wines are a better fit, and I agree better QPR exists lots of other places, particularly in WA, but still Creative Impulse is a favorite and is still half the price of Cote Bonneville, ~ same as Owen Roe’s DuBrul

I like several of their wines, and yes, they have some very pricey bottles too. However, as others have stated, they usually have sales on their wines a few times a year and you can still pick up some 2009s off of Full Pull – but they are only roughly $10 off. Not a great discount really. Plus you have to wait for Full Pull wines to ship during their few shipping windows during the year.

k.

I have only consumed the '07 QED. Bought some of the higher priced during last year’s Holiday sale and '09 & '10 QED from StoryTeller and Full Pull for sub $50. I passed this year with many in the cellar waiting on time to drink. I’m liking GSM over Syrah and with my AFWE inclination concerned they may be too fruity for my current palate. So age is better if there is enough acid and tannin for the long haul after the fruit fades. My wife is starting to drink red as it is easier on her stomach than the high acid whites she has been drinking, she likes my fruity Syrah so there is a way out, and I can continue to play in the AFWE OR PN sandbox.

I like the fruit purity, polish, and lift found in most Rasa wines, but they are pricey. I have not drunk enough to say whether the various wines will reveal distinctive terroir notes over the course of several vintages. No duds here, and they generally drink well young. Better than any other Walla Walla producer tasted over a 2 day visit in 2011. Recommended, although my order may shrink in favor of better QPR and variety from the old world.

There’s talk of better QPR’s. Any suggestions?

For me, I find greater value at aMaurice, Kerloo, Maison Bleue, some of the Gramercys, Syncline, Kevin White, Proper and Tranche. I’m sure others have more suggestions.

Kerloo has impressed me as well as a Tranche cab franc that I liked quite well. I haven’t sampled enough of the others to form an opinion. A recent Waters Syrah was lovely.

If one likes the wine & it is worth around a hundred a bottle for most of their offerings, then they are I guess a great QPR.

They are using pretty much the same vineyard sources as most everyone else out there. Why is Kerloo’s Les Collines single vineyard Syrah only $40 compared to their blend? Their Bordeaux blends from Yakima & Columbia Valley are at times double the price of those made on Red Mountain. More than a few people would cite Red Mountain as a superior site for Bordeaux grapes. I would be one of them, but that is purely opinion. The wines from Cadence & Andrew Will for example can be had from single vineyards on Red Mountain for $45-$55.

Take this for what it is worth as I personally don’t like Cayuse wines & don’t get the hype. That said, Christophe Baron planted & farms his estate vineyards. He’s created something that while they may not be for me, I can understand why his wine costs a bit more than the average bottle.

The Rasa guys are using the same fruit that most of the state uses. They have just found a way to make it really expensive.

We can make lists of producers here & I think we’ve covered them pretty well. If you want to get to know a bit more about Washington producers, I highly recommend signing up for the Full Pull list as he does a better job than anyone in presenting all ends of Wa wine & gives a ton of detail on his offerings. He does offer Rasa, FYI.

Disclaimer- Paul from Full Pull is a friend, but I’d speak highly of his business even if I didn’t know him.

Also- I have nothing against Rasa except I don’t have any desire to see a Napa-style arms race where we convince ourselves that $300 is a “great price” for wine. I feel that Rasa’s relative newness & coming out of the gate with such high pricing contributes to this sort of thing.

Anthony,

I agree with your sentiment but think your ire is being misplaced at Rasa instead of the overall whole of the problem. I think the greater issue is that drinking local is more expensive than ever. Washington was at one time awash is Single vineyard small estate wines that were under $30 and we just won’t allow ourselves to see them any more expensive. The fact is, in order for the Washington wine industry to actually grow, it needs more $100 wines or it will never shake it’s ‘value’ label. An example of this is Chile and Argentina.

I have no problem with Rasa’s business model, I wish it were more in line with Bedrock’s or Carlisle’s but it’s not, oh well. I would argue that Rasa’s production doesn’t consist of mainly $100 wines, mainly $50 wines yes, but not a $100. A couple of their cabs are at $95, their reserve Syrah is $75 but almost everything else is under or at $50 and there are less than 100cs of each of those $95 wines, I think 75cs for the Principia. I just got their current offer and the Cab Franc is $28 (futures) and their Petit Verdot is $44 (futures). The PV and the Vox populi are their 2 best wines in my book.

When you compare those prices to say…Epoch, Sans Liege, Booker, Andermily, True believer (to name a few) out of California or Mark Ryan, Reynvaan, Garrison Creek, Gramercy (to name a few) out of Washington how does Rasa stick out from the bunch?
Now if you want to talk about Washington wineries and the race to Napa, lets talk about Doubleback and Figgins.

I answered the question in the thread as the context is Rasa. The other Washington producers you mention are doing the same thing. Don’t get me going on Reynvaan I don’t think Gramercy belongs in the group as their bottles are quite a bit less. Their CV Cab is $55.

I know of the California producers, but am highly in likely to buy any of those wines.

I don’t know that I’ve thought of the issue you raise about the outside perception of the state as an Argentina/Chile region. It’s an interesting concept though.