Winemaker Notes
This wine is crafted to highlight the Merlot and Cab Franc from Champoux Vineyard that tend to get overlooked in comparison to the Cabernet Sauvignons. Blend: 58% Merlot, 31% Cabernet Sauvignon, 11% Cabernet Franc
Professional Ratings
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Jeb Dunnuck
From a top site located in the Horse Heaven Hills, the 2018 Champoux Vineyard checks in as 58% Merlot. 31% Cabernet Sauvignon, and 11% Cabernet Franc that spent 22 months in 35% new French oak. A beautiful bouquet of red and black currants, chocolate, cedary spice, and dried herbs gives way to a medium to full-bodied, rich, concentrated yet flawlessly balanced 2018. With ripe, velvety tannins, a round, layered texture, and a great finish, it can be enjoyed any time over the coming 15 years.
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Robert Parker's Wine Advocate
A blend of 58% Merlot, 31% Cabernet Sauvignon and 11% Cabernet Franc, the 2018 Champoux Vineyard has already captured my heart with its delightful and lovely aromatics. It offers dusty plum, black cherry skin, blackberry essence and elements of dusty red and purple flowers along with hints of cinnamon, vanilla, nutmeg and the floral element of potpourri. Medium to full-bodied, the palate is packed with fruit, earth and subtle oak spice before displaying an impeccably balanced structure with buttressing tannins and juicy acidity. The red blend continues to evolve and unwind on the palate with a thoughtful and complex finish. Just under 7,000 bottles were made after the wine aged for 22 months in 35% new French oak barrels. It’s gorgeous, and I’m going back for another sip...you’ll want to add this to your cellar.
One of the world’s most classic and popular styles of red wine, Bordeaux-inspired blends have spread from their homeland in France to nearly every corner of the New World. Typically based on either Cabernet Sauvignon or Merlot and supported by Cabernet Franc, Malbec and Petit Verdot, the best of these are densely hued, fragrant, full of fruit and boast a structure that begs for cellar time. Somm Secret—Blends from Bordeaux are generally earthier compared to those from the New World, which tend to be fruit-dominant.
"Surely this is Horse Heaven!”
Its wide prairies and rolling expanses led an early pioneer to proclaim that the region looked like “horse heaven,” and as a result, the area was appropriately named. Horse Heaven Hills is in south central Washington state, geographically bound on its northern border by the Yakima River and in the south, by the larger Columbia River.
Its proximity to the Columbia River contributes to a variety of climactic factors that dramatically affect its grapes. In particular, an increase in wind from changes in pressure along the river, which flows from the cool and wet Pacific Ocean, inland to Washington’s hot and arid plains, creates 30% more wind than there would be otherwise. These winds moderate temperatures, protect against mold and rot, reduce the risk of early and late season frosts, diminish canopy size and toughen grape skins.
The vineyards bordering the river are on steep, south-facing, well-exposed slopes, with well-drained, sandy-loam soils. But the soils of the appellation are diverse throughout, ranging from wind-blown sand and loess, Missoula Flood sediment, and rocky basalt. Horse Heaven Hills has an arid continental climate with elevations ranging from 200 to 1,800 feet.
The first vines of the appellation were planted in 1972 in an optimal spot now referred to as the Champoux Vineyard. Today it remains the source of some of Washington’s most desirable and expensive Cabernet Sauvignons. In fact, the appellation as a whole boasts many of Washington’s top scoring wines. Its primary grape varieties are Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot, Syrah, Chardonnay and Riesling.