Winemaker Notes
Professional Ratings
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Wine Enthusiast
This is two-thirds Cabernet Sauvignon and one-third Merlot, all sourced from the estate's DuBrul vineyard. It's drinking quite well, though clearly heading into secondary fruit flavors that reflect its ongoing maturation. Cherries, plums and cassis fruits mingle, along with silky, polished tannins. Though it can be cellared indefinitely, it may be at its most delicious drinking peak currently.
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Robert Parker's Wine Advocate
Next up in the vertical comes the 2006 DuBrul Vineyard with its balanced, layered and dusty floral essence that floats effortlessly from the glass with soft aromas of dark cherry skin and black plum with hints of sage. Full-bodied on the palate, the wine is precise and offers silky, fine-grained tannins and flavors of sweet dark cherry and dried herbs that dance across the mid-palate and continue to glide through the complex finish. I am struck by how elegantly these wines age.
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Wine Spectator
Polished, round and focused, with a vibrant feel to the ripe black cherry, cassis, peach, herb and tar flavors, hinting at cocoa and spice as it all lingers harmoniously against velvety tannins. This has power but also refinement. 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.