Winemaker Notes
Col Solare is the partnership between two influential wine producers who are recognized leaders in their respective regions: Tuscany's Marchesi Antinori and Washington State's Chateau Ste. Michelle. Col Solare, Italian for "shining hill," realizes the partners' mission to unite two unique viticultural and winemaking cultures to produce an ultra-luxury, limited production Cabernet Sauvignon-based wine.
Blend: 85% Cabernet Sauvignon, 9% Cabernet Franc, 4% Merlot, 2% Syrah
Professional Ratings
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Robert Parker's Wine Advocate
The 2014 Proprietary Red is 85% Cabernet Sauvignon, 9% Cabernet Franc, 4% Merlot and the balance Syrah. Notes of smoked tobacco, black currants, licorice and a gravelly minerality all flow to a rich, multi-dimensional and concentrated yet elegant Cabernet. It needs short term cellaring, but it's a beautiful wine that is going to have 15-20 years of overall longevity.
Rating: 94+
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Wine & Spirits
This wine blends estate fruit with grapes from Col Solare’s neighbors, including Klipsun and Shaw/Quintessence. It’s a brute when first poured, so obtuse it’s hard to know where it will go. But patience is rewarded as this wine unfurls to something vinous, powerful and complete, a cedar scent that brings to mind Bordeaux, a dark pool of plum flavor and tannins that are powerful and firm but not oppressively so. It needs time, but already has the stuffing for steak.
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James Suckling
A dense and rich red with blueberry, chocolate and coffee character. Full body, round and juicy tannins and a flavorful finish. Generous and fleshy style. Drink or hold.
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Wine Enthusiast
The aromas bring notes of plum, blue fruit and barrel spice. The palate comes off as considerably darker, with rich fruit flavors supported by firm tannins. There are lots of good things going on if the aromas and flavors sync up, though it doesn't seem much like Cabernet.
A noble variety bestowed with both power and concentration, Cabernet Sauvignon enjoys success all over the globe, its best examples showing potential to age beautifully for decades. Cabernet Sauvignon flourishes in Bordeaux's Medoc where it is often blended with Merlot and smaller amounts of some combination of Cabernet Franc, Malbecand Petit Verdot. In the Napa Valley, ‘Cab’ is responsible for some of the world’s most prestigious, age-worthy and sought-after “cult” wines. Somm Secret—DNA profiling in 1997 revealed that Cabernet Sauvignon was born from a spontaneous crossing of Cabernet Franc and Sauvignon Blanc in 17th century southwest France.
A coveted source of top quality red grapes among premier Washington producers, the Red Mountain AVA is actually the smallest appellation in the state. As its name might suggest, it is actually neither a mountain nor is it composed of red earth. Instead the appellation is an anticline of the Yakima fold belt, a series of geologic folds that define a number of viticultural regions in the surrounding area. It is on the eastern edge of Yakima Valley with slopes facing southwest towards the Yakima River, ideal for the ripening of grapes. The area’s springtime proliferation of cheatgrass, which has a reddish color, actually gives the area the name, "Red" Mountain.
Red Mountain produces some of the most mineral-driven, tannic and age-worthy red wines of Washington and there are a few reasons for this. It is just about the hottest appellation with normal growing season temperatures commonly reaching above 90F. The soil is particularly poor in nutrients and has a high pH, which results in significantly smaller berry sizes compared to varietal norms. The low juice to skin ratio in smaller berries combined with the strong, dry summer winds, leads to higher tannin levels in Red Mountain grapes.
The most common red grape varieties here are Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot, Cabernet Franc and Syrah, among others. Limited white varieties are grown, namely Sauvignon blanc.
The reds of the area tend to express dark black and blue fruit, deep concentration, complex textures, high levels of tannins and as previously noted, have good aging capabilities.