Winemaker Notes
Inky plum in color. Brooding nose of Cuban cigar, sage, warm baking spices, grilled mushroom, ripe mountain fruits, and rose petals. Incredible palate of silky tannin and a core of bright acidity, with palate-enveloping notes of ripe berry pie and crème brûlée. The finish is spectacularly long and developed.
Blend: 83% Cabernet Sauvignon, 12% Malbec, 5% Petit Verdot
Professional Ratings
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Jeb Dunnuck
The flagship 2020 Reserve is based on 83% Cabernet Sauvignon, 12% Malbec, and 5% Petit Verdot. It strikes a good balance between all the single vineyards and is pure, classic Cabernet in its crème de cassis, ripe black cherries, smoky oak, graphite, and tobacco-driven aromas and flavors. Pure, concentrated, full-bodied, and beautifully elegant, it has fine tannins, perfect balance, and a great finish. This gorgeous 2020 is more finesse-driven and elegant compared to the Cabernet Sauvignon yet should evolve for just as long. Both the Reserve and Cabernet Sauvignon from Leonetti are incredible wines that transcend the vintage, and bravo to winemaker Chris Figgins. Don’t miss these wines.
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James Suckling
Attractive nose of blueberries, dark plums, dark chocolate, orange zest, cinnamon and violets. It’s full-bodied with delicious ripeness and plushness. Broad, muscular tannins. Pretty spice and chocolate character at the end. Long and caressing. 83% cabernet sauvignon, 12% malbec and 5% petit verdot. Drink from 2024.
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Wine Spectator
This dynamic red is powerfully built yet retains finesse and detail, with robust blackberry and red currant flavors laced with clove, espresso and pepper notes that fan out toward broad-shouldered yet polished tannins. Cabernet Sauvignon, Malbec and Petit Verdot. Drink now through 2035.
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Robert Parker's Wine Advocate
A blend of 83% Cabernet Sauvignon, 12% Malbec and 5% Petit Verdot, the 2020 Walla Walla Reserve is bright, fresh and expressive. Its juicy dark red and black berry essences are followed by notes of French oak and baking spices and seductive dusty floral notes that grasp your attention. Full-bodied, firm and tight, the mouthfeel is generous yet strict. The wine continues to evolve over the long, lingering finish that has me craving flame-kissed ribeyes. Only 978 cases were produced.
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Vinous
The 2020 Red Wine Reserve is remarkably pretty, with dusty rose, black raspberry and lavender. This is crystalline and built on purity, with crisp red fruits and sweet spice that cascade across the palate, perfectly guided by brisk acidity. It finishes with edgy tannins and is long, displaying a bitter tinge that lingers as hints of exotic spice taper off. Macerations were reduced to six days versus eight in the typical vintage, and barrels with low toast levels were selected as a way to counteract any contamination from smoke. As a result, the 2020 is a more forward interpretation of the Reserve, yet it still has the capacity to mature beautifully over the medium term.
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.
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.