2009 Fall Release
Josh McDaniels and his New Wines
Sweet Valley winemaker Josh McDaniels reflects back to the beginning of Sweet Valley Wines and his winemaking
“Since our first release in the Spring of 2007, we have sold over 20,000 bottles of wine to restaurants, retail wine shops, grocery stores, and most of all, to people like you. That being said, I would like to say thank you, as we would not be here today without you.
I did not grow up in a large city and move here from a great corporate job to “live the dream”. I did not retire with more money than I know what to do with either. I have had amazing mentors, the luck to be born and raised in a small rural town that has grown to greatness in the wine industry, awesome friends and family, and the honor to have grown up with and learned from a few of the best winemakers and wine grape growers in the state. As I remember the 2007 vintage, it really takes me back, more than some might be able to go, and I reflect through the last few years of my life. The vines for these wines were blooming when I was 18 years old and taking my final exams in my Senior year at Walla Walla High School. I soon turned 19, and was harvesting the fruit from one of the best vintages Washington State has ever seen. We crushed 28 tons of grapes that year and it was my first harvest totally on my own as a winemaker and boy did I learn a lot! Eventually, the new wines were in barrels, preparing to age for two years or longer. In due course, 20 years old passed, and at last, I turned 21. It was the day after Spring Release Weekend, and still I had even more time to go before I could legally pour my own wine at a release party!
Now the time has come and Fall Release weekend is upon us. These three wines, 2007 Syrah, Merlot, and our inaugural Cabernet Sauvignon, are the ending of an era (my teenage winemaking years), and the beginning of a new one. It is a time to showcase my potential, my winemaking skills and my ability to create some of the best wines in the world (my high, but not impossible, goal). That potential is what has kept me going and as one of my favorite singers said; the best is yet to come (Frank Sinatra). Every year and with every vintage, I build upon the wines of the past. I hope that you enjoy these wines, and that while drinking them you can relive portions of your youth and learn a little bit about my first few years of winemaking here in the Walla Walla Valley. I am very excited to pour our wines for you, finally, and to enjoy the fruits of our labor, pun fully intended.”
Josh McDaniels
“It’s not too often we get the chance to see an up and coming winemaker from his/her humble beginnings – on the path to “wine rock-stardom” – this is the case with Sweet Valley Wines’ own Josh McDaniels…”
Duane Pemberton – Founder, Winefoot.com
“I'm so impressed with the young winemaker of Sweet Valley Wines. He's one to watch for sure!”
Becky Tyner – Founder, Small Lots Big Wines (Small Lot Wine Tours)
Stop by our "new" tasting room this fall to taste our 2009 fall releases in addition to our Sweet Valley Double Barrel Red and Righteous Wines Red Wine.
Cheers from the Sweet Valley Family to you and yours!!!!