Winemaker Notes
Klipsun Cabernet Sauvignon is a dark garnet, ruby color. On the nose, blackberry, mulberry and olallieberry with a spicy oak note. As the wine ages, the aromas will meld into a medley of fruit, spice and aromatic dry herbs. Rich blackberry and a hint of wild sage. Pleasant acidity and a rich, balanced mouthfeel followed by a well-developed mid palate. The result is a tannin structure that is evident but seamless. The finish is smooth and lingering.
Blend: 96% Cabernet Sauvignon, 4% Merlot
Professional Ratings
-
Robert Parker's Wine Advocate
With 4% Merlot added to the 2020 Cabernet Sauvignon Red Mountain, the nose is big and juicy, erupting from the glass with a hedonistic profile. Hints of coconut macaroon and crème brûlée linger over the robust fruit-forward finish, accompanied by lasting flavors of black raspberry and blueberry tartlet with an intense vanilla expression. Give it time; your patience will be rewarded. The wine aged for 20 months in 100% new oak and spent an additional 14 months in the bottle.
-
Wine Spectator
This powerfully built version offers deep and intense flavors of currant, cedar and dusty herbs that are framed by muscular tannins. Needs time in the cellar. Best from 2025 through 2032.
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.