Ste Chapelle Winery: Decisions, Decisions

Idaho skies are that blue 90% of the time
(per my estimate)

After picking up a bite to eat at the Orchard House we met up with Jenny (my sister) at Ste. Chapelle Winery in Caldwell, Idaho about 8 miles or 8 minutes from Sawtooth. Ste Chapelle is up on a hill so it really stands out against its vines. There was much more glamour going on in the tasting room at Ste. Chapelle than Sawtooth. They had a lot of nick-knacks, wine accessories and sell vinaigrettes made from their wines.  At the bar our friendly server explained that the tasting is $5 with a souvenir glass, your choice of stemless or stemmed and gave us a list of 20 wines that we had to pick 5 from. Picking 5 from a list of 20 is just crazy talk, let me pick 10 at least! The wines were broken up into the following 6 categories:

• Dry White Wines: 
• Chardonnay Winemaker series, Chardonnay Chateau series, Dry Guwurztraminer, Dry Riesling, Sauvignon Blanc
• Off-Dry & Sweet Wines: 
• Riesling, Special Harvest Riesling, Soft White, Soft Rose (Cab Sav), Soft Red, Soft Huckleberry (Riesling)
• Dry Red Wines: 
• Merlot Chateau series, Merlot Winemaker series, Cab Sav Chateau series, Cab Sav Winemaker series, Syrah
• Ice Wine:
• Ice Cabernet Franc
• Sparkling Wine:
• Brut
• Late Harvest Wines:
• Late Harvest Riesling, Late Harvest Cab Franc

Seriously?! I really wanted to try a variety, but I also wanted to try something I'd want to take home. I tasted the Winemaker Chardonnay, a Merlot, a Cab Sav, a Syrah and Ice Cab Franc. I really wanted to compare the two versions of the Merlot and Cab Sav, but alas I couldn't and like the Syrah the best of the bunch. The Ice Cabernet Franc was a decent ice wine too, it had 18% rs and tasted very much like raisins, so if you like raisins and sweet wines this is for you!

It would have been nice if the 3 of us all got different ones to taste and share, but Jen and Mom stuck with the whites as they love the Soft Rose and Huckleberry. Ste. Chapelle didn't list the types of grapes used in their "soft" wines which was somewhat annoying to have to shake down our cheery server for a description of each before choosing which to taste. I think I would have liked this stop much better if we got to sample more than 5 or if they only gave you a predetermined list of 5 and you could add on a few of your choice. I also didn't get a clear understanding of the difference between the winemaker and chateau series.

While it wasn't my favorite, it may have been a favorite for Mom & Jen as they stand strongly behind Ste. Chapelle's wines that are easily accessible around town. Its worth a visit if you are in Idaho and looking for something to explore, the winery is well known in the area and I'm sure the summer time views are great.

The tasting room over looks their vines

Which one to pick?