Winemaker Notes
Professional Ratings
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Robert Parker's Wine Advocate
Showing well for its age, the 2004 DuBrul Vineyard begins with a beautiful nose that balances earth, fruit and oak tones. Medium to full-bodied, the wine possesses a delightful mineral tension and offers flavors of black cherry, dusty plum and soft baking spices and a balanced structure with succulent tannins. The wine concludes with notions of fruit preserves and dusty cherry blossoms over the long, smooth finish. It's nearing the end and should be consumed over the next five years.
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Wine Spectator
Lithe, supple, refined and focused, playing its mocha-accented blackberry and cherry fruit against silky tannins. The finish rolls on and on without losing its graceful sense of elegance. Cabernet Sauvignon and Merlot.
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.
As the first recognized wine-growing region in the Pacific Northwest, Yakima Valley is centrally located within Washington’s vast Columbia Valley. The region also includes Washington’s oldest Cabernet Sauvignon vines, Otis Vineyard, planted in 1957, and Harrison Hill Vineyard, planted in 1963. Yakima Valley contains three smaller sub-regions: Rattlesnake Hills, Red Mountain, and Snipes Mountain and is ideal for both red and white wine production. In fact, Yakima Valley is Washington’s most diverse region, boasting more than 40 different grape varieties over about one hundred miles.
The cooler parts of the valley are home to almost half of the Chardonnay and Riesling produced in the state! Both are made in a wide range of styles depending on the conditions of the vineyard site.
But its warmer locations yield a large proportion of Washington’s best Merlot, Syrah and Cabernet Sauvignon. The finest Yakima Valley reds are jam-packed full of red cherry, currant, raspberry or blackberry fruit, as well as cocoa, herb, spice and savory notes, and exhibit a supple texture, great body, focus and length.