Winemaker Notes
Professional Ratings
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Wine Spectator
Velvety, round and dense, with licorice accents to the smoky black currant and dried plum flavors, picking up floral notes as the finish pushes against a light veil of firm tannins.
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Robert Parker's Wine Advocate
The 2011 Cabernet Sauvignon Reserve is a stunner that comes from one of the more difficult vintages in the last decade. It has remarkable purity in its black and blue fruits, graphite, smoked herbs and licorice-scented aromas and flavors, and this beauty hits the palate with medium to full-bodied richness, a great texture and sweet, slightly rustic tannin. Drink it anytime over the coming decade. The blend here is 95% Cabernet Sauvignon and 5% Merlot that saw 26 months new French oak. Rating: 90+
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.