Winemaker Notes
Beautiful notes of strawberry preserve, blackberries, cinnamon, cocoa powder, milk chocolate and hints of vanilla bean. A full-bodied wine with well-integrated tannins, complexity and balanced acidity.
Blend: 86% Cabernet Sauvignon, 14% Merlot
Professional Ratings
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Jeb Dunnuck
Incorporating 14% Merlot, the 2019 Cabernet Sauvignon offers more chocolate and spicy oak as well as darker fruit notes in a forward, delicious, impeccably made style. It's another juicy, front end-loaded beauty that has lots of character and represents a terrific value.
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James Suckling
Aromas of dark chocolate, blackberry and cured meat. Medium-bodied with integrated tannins. Tobacco, sweet spice and tar on the palate. 86% cabernet sauvignon and 14% merlot
Washington produces so many exciting wines, and that definitely includes Columbia Valley Cabernet Sauvignon. With over 10,000 acres under vine, Cabernet Sauvignon is now the most widely-grown varietal in the state. Terrific examples hail from sub-appellations like Red Mountain, Wahluke Slope, Horse Heaven Hills and Walla Walla Valley. One of the fascinations of these Columbia Valley Cabs is that they so often seem to have one foot in the New World and one in the Old. Representing the former are characteristics like the ripe, forward fruit that results from long sunny days during the growing season (up to two hours longer than in much of California). Old World similarities include an undeniable brightness from acidity, as well as notes of herbs, graphite and a dusty, sometimes gravelly minerality.
Whether you’re looking for a budget bottle for everyday enjoyment, or a stellar, world-class wine with tremendous aging potential, Columbia Valley Cabernet Sauvignon wines can deliver the goods! Among the many fine options are bottles from Columbia Crest, Chateau Ste. Michelle, L’ecole #41, Quilceda Creek and Leonetti.