Winemaker Notes
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Professional Ratings
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Robert Parker's Wine Advocate
Andrew Wills' flagship wine is called Sorella; the 2007 Sorella, sourced entirely from the Champoux Vineyard, one of Washington's finest sites, is made up of 72% Cabernet Sauvignon, 15% Cabernet Franc, 10% Merlot, and 3% Petit Verdot. Aromas of toasty oak, espresso, Asian spices, incense, black currant, and blackberry lead to a firmly structured wine with impeccable balance and serious aging potential. This pleasure-bent offering will offer a drinking window extending from 2016 to 2032, perhaps longer.
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Wine Enthusiast
In this new vintage of Sorella, Cabernet Sauvignon is again right out front at 72% of the blend. Here the fruit seems more subdued, the wine tight, the dense tannins showing graphite and mineral more than new barrel flavors. It definitely needs decanting.
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Jeb Dunnuck
I was also able to taste a bottle of the 2007 Sorella, and this is clearly one of the finest vintages from this estate. Still youthful ruby-hued with no signs of bricking or evolution in its color, it has a gorgeous bouquet of red and black currants, smoked tobacco, lead pencil shavings, and flowery incense. Full-bodied, perfectly balanced, and seamless, it reminds me of a First Growth Bordeaux in its stature and balance. This riveting example of Washington State Cabernet Sauvignon is drinking perfectly today yet will evolve nicely for another decade and have a gradual decline after that. The 2007 is 72% Cabernet Sauvignon, 15% Cabernet Franc, 10% Merlot, and 3% Petit Verdot, all from the Champoux Vineyard in the Horse Heaven Hills.
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Wine & Spirits
Chris Camarda includes his oldest cabernet block from Champoux Vineyard in his Sorella blend. He's teased prettiness from the grapes in 2007, the aromas almost grenache-like, with hints of red raspberries, tar and mocha. The flavors are mouthcoating and considerably more savory, with chewy tannins and a mouthwatering acidity that has the cut to handle boar ragu.
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Wine Spectator
Lithe, focused and beautifully detailed, offering a gorgeous array of floral-accented blackberry, boysenberry and anise flavors, lingering easily on the deftly balanced finish. Cabernet Sauvignon, Cabernet Franc, Merlot and Petit Verdot.
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.
A large and geographically diverse AVA capable of producing a wide variety of wine styles, the Columbia Valley AVA is home to 99% of Washington state’s total vineyard area. A small section of the AVA even extends into northern Oregon!
Because of its size, it is necessarily divided into several distinctive sub-AVAs, including Walla Walla Valley and Yakima Valley—which are both further split into smaller, noteworthy appellations. A region this size will of course have varied microclimates, but on the whole it experiences extreme winters and long, hot, dry summers. Frost is a common risk during winter and spring. The towering Cascade mountain range creates a rain shadow, keeping the valley relatively rain-free throughout the entire year, necessitating irrigation from the Columbia River. The lack of humidity combined with sandy soils allows for vines to be grown on their own rootstock, as phylloxera is not a serious concern.
Red wines make up the majority of production in the Columbia Valley. Cabernet Sauvignon is the dominant variety here, where it produces wines with a pleasant balance of dark fruit and herbs. Wines made from Merlot are typically supple, with sweet red fruit and sometimes a hint of chocolate or mint. Syrah tends to be savory and Old-World-leaning, with a wide range of possible fruit flavors and plenty of spice. The most planted white varieties are Chardonnay and Riesling. These range in style from citrus and green apple dominant in cooler sites, to riper, fleshier wines with stone fruit flavors coming from the warmer vineyards.