Winemaker Notes
The 2019 blend is sourced from the famed Horse Heaven Hills appellation of Washington State. Round and plush with a spicy, black cherry driven core of fruit. It is a very versatile wine that can accompany most menu items. It is a real "crowd pleaser”.
Professional Ratings
-
Wine Enthusiast
All of the fruit for this wine comes from the Horse Heaven Hills. Blended with 25% Malbec, Cabernet's more savory side is on display initially, with notes of savory herb, green pepper, blood orange and plum. Plum and blue fruit flavors follow. There is great stuffing, but it needs some additional time to settle into the bottle. Best after 2021.
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.