Winemaker Notes
Bright and mouth-filling, our Estate Luminesce displays expressive aromas of stone fruit, grapefruit blossom, key lime, and gooseberry accented by lanolin and a delicate spiciness. On the palate, flavors of fresh peach, honeydew melon, and lemon tart mingle with exotic jasmine and a saline minerality building to a fresh, persistent finish.
Blend: 70% Semillon, 30% Sauvignon Blanc
Professional Ratings
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Jeb Dunnuck
The 2021 Luminesce Estate Seven Hills Vineyard checks in as 70% Semillon and 30% Sauvignon Blanc, all from the Seven Hills Vineyard in the Walla Walla Valley. Ripe lemon, orange peel, and honeyed white flower notes all emerge on the nose, and the wine is medium-bodied, with a supple, layered, elegant mouthfeel, integrated acidity, and a great finish.
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James Suckling
Attractive stone-fruit character with bread crust, beeswax and wet stones on offer. Medium- to full-bodied with a sleek and waxy texture and a round mouth-feel. Creamy and weighty at the end, with some salinity. 70% semillon and 30% sauvignon blanc.
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Vinous
The 2021 Luminesce Estate Seven Hills Vineyard wafts up with prominence, sweetly smoky with candied citrus and crushed apples forming its bouquet. This coasts along the palate, silky and supple, with mineral-laced orchard fruits and lime. It leaves the palate stained in citrusy concentration while tapering off potent, with a salty tension that lingers. The warm temperatures of the vintage limited the growth of Sauvignon Blanc, and so, in 2021, the Luminesce boasts a much larger percentage of Sémillon (70%). The balance within is something to behold.
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Wine Enthusiast
The Luminesce’s kiwi and macadamia nut aromas are joined by funky-tangy notes of lemon kombucha and freshly cut grass. There’s some body here, with a smooth texture, crisp acidity and flavors like orange, coriander, flint and green tea. English pea risotto, the Luminesce calls your name.
Editors' Choice
Sometimes light and crisp, other times rich and creamy, Bordeaux White Blends typically consist of Sauvignon Blanc and Semillon. Often, a small amount of Muscadelle or Sauvignon Gris is included for added intrigue. Popularized in Bordeaux, the blend is often mimicked throughout the New World. Somm Secret—Sauternes and Barsac are usually reserved for dessert, but they can be served before, during or after a meal. Try these sweet wines as an aperitif with jamón ibérico, oysters with a spicy mignonette or during dinner alongside hearty Alsatian sausage.
Responsible for some of Washington’s most highly acclaimed wines, the Walla Walla Valley has experienced a surge in popularity in recent years and is home to both historic wineries and younger, up-and-coming producers.
The Walla Walla Valley, a Native American name meaning “many waters,” is located in southeastern Washington; part of the appellation actually extends into Oregon. Soils here are well-drained, sandy loess over Missoula Flood deposits and fractured basalt.
It is a region perfectly suited to Rhône-inspired Syrahs, distinguished by savory notes of red berry, black olive, smoke and fresh earth. Cabernet Sauvignon and Merlot create a range of styles from smooth and supple to robust and well-structured. White varieties are rare but some producers blend Sauvignon Blanc with Sémillon, resulting in a rich and round style, and plantings of Viognier, while minimal, are often quite successful.
Of note within Walla Walla, is one new and very peculiar appellation, called the Rocks District of Milton-Freewater. This is the only AVA in the U.S. whose boundaries are totally defined by the soil type. Soils here look a bit like those in the acclaimed Rhône region of Chateauneuf-du-Pape, but are large, ancient, basalt cobblestones. These stones work in the same way as they do in Chateauneuf, absorbing and then radiating the sun's heat up to enhance the ripening of grape clusters. The Rocks District is within the part of Walla Walla that spills over into Oregon and naturally excels in the production of Rhône varieties like Syrah, as well as the Bordeaux varieties.