Trey Busch is leaving Basel Cellars in Walla Walla

I happened to spot this short piece of news in a Wine Press Northwest blog: http://community.winepressnw.com/node/365

Trey Busch, the winemaker at Basel Cellars, is leaving to launch his own winery, called Sleight of Hand Cellars, which will also be located in Walla Walla. This is a bummer for my wife and I, who met him last summer and fell in love with the wines he made at Basel. Heck, we even joined their wine club.

-- Clark

Pretty pathetic name for a winery IMO... He is a nice guy and I wish him the best.

[Jenise]

Interesting news, thanks.

Good winemaker, good guy. I agree with Bucko - name seems odd, but Trey explains below. I do think his claret was his best wine at Basel.

The article says:

He will launch with three wines:

-- A 2006 Gewurztraminer called "The Magician."

-- A nonvintage blend called "The Spellbinder" that will include Cab Franc, Cabernet Sauvignon and Sangiovese.

-- A high-end blend called "The Archimage" that will include Merlot, Cab Franc, Cabernet Sauvignon and Petit Verdot.

His tasting room will be in downtown Walla Walla, at 16 N. 2nd Ave., next to the tasting rooms for Ash Hollow and Spring Valley.

Busch says the winery's name, Sleight of Hand, references a Pearl Jam album.

Good winemaker, good guy. I agree with Bucko - name seems odd, but Trey explains below. I do think his claret was his best wine at Basel.

We met Trey at Basel Cellars in late August last year. We walked into the place cold, yet he spent two hours with us that morning. We sampled everything they had, and then some, as he offered tastes of some unreleased wines. He was very generous of his time, and a real joy to talk with ... and he really makes wonderful wines.

To be honest, we really liked all of his wines, including two different releases of the Claret. (According to my notes, we preferred the '03 to the '04.) However, we left that day with bottles of the Cellars Red, Merriment and the Lewis Vineyard Reserve Syrah.

-- Clark