Winemaker Notes
Professional Ratings
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Robert Parker's Wine Advocate
Almost opaque in the glass, the 2019 Cabernet Sauvignon Canoe Ridge Estate Vineyard boasts a firm, dense and juicy nose with notes of mocha, dark berries and dusty, resinous purple flowers. Medium to full-bodied, the Cabernet compresses on the palate, revealing a firm tannic edge with fine mineral tension before offering oak, brown baking spices and vanilla flavors. It concludes with a long, spiky, tannic finish. I recommend drinking it over the next six to eight years. Aged for 18 months, the oak profile includes 50% new French oak, 4% new American oak and 46% neutral French oak.
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Wine Enthusiast
The aromas show some reduction out of the gate. Beyond that are notes of coffee, char, berry and herb. Pleasing, well-balanced dark fruit and barrel flavors follow, backed by lightly grainy tannins. Decant.
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Wine Spectator
Structured and full of tension, this Cabernet features snappy blackberry, dusty mocha and spice flavors that build toward medium-grained tannins.
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.