Grape Spirit

Wine isn’t the only elixir blessed by the grape in our state. Distilled grape liquor comes in many styles, such as grape brandy, made from distilled wine, and pomace brandy, or marc, made from grape skins and seeds.

Soft Tail Spirits is making grappa, an Italian-style pomace brandy, which is rapidly gaining fans in the Northwest. Traditional grappas are clear and unaged. A more recent trend is to age the brandy, which acquires yellowish and brownish tints from the barrels where it’s stored.

East of the Cascades, another spirits producer, the Ellensburg Distillery, was actually the first to release a brandy in Washington. Its El Chalán pisco reposado, a Peruvian-style aged (or “rested”) brandy, is made from premium Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot, Syrah and Pinot Gris wine rather than from pomace.

Ellensburg distiller Berle “Rusty” Figgins Jr. says, “Pisco style is everywhere in Peru, but it is new to Americans.” His El Chalán—named for a cultural icon in Peru, a cowboy who rounds up wild horses—won a gold medal in the brandy category and was named Best Spirit at the Northwest Wine and Spirits Summit last year.

Tasting Notes

Washington grappa and spirits provide

a variety of palate-pleasing flavors. 

Soft Tail 2008 Grappa Blanco ($34)

Eighty-four proof grappa (about 42 percent alcohol) made from Merlot, Cabernet Sauvignon and Syrah grape pomace. Full of pear-skin and white-flower aromas. Develops white chocolate and cherry chocolate on the palate.

 Soft Tail 2008 Grappa Gialo ($34)

Soft, gold color. Has spent six months in French oak. Aromas of straw and hay, with soft pear and apple flavors similar to a light, lowland Scotch whisky.

Soft Tail 2009 Grappa Sangiovese ($38)

Made exclusively from Sangiovese pomace. Fresh aromas of strawberry and hay. A pleasant, grainy mouthfeel that warms the throat. A remarkably good match with white-chocolate-covered espresso beans.

Soft Tail 2008 Grappa Reserve ($44)

Complex aromas of lilac, huckleberry, fresh cream and yeast. Develops a heat that fills the palate. Soft, blackberry fruit flavors. At 100 proof, it has a kick. A nice digestivo.

The Ellensburg Distillery El Chalán Pisco ($60)

A distinctive “cask-strength” brandy sold as 105 proof. Should have a splash of water added when it’s consumed to help open up aromas of caramel and spiced apple. A little goes a long way. Luxurious, warm drink for sipping by the fire—or bonfire.

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