Winemaker Notes
As the flagship red blend for Matthews, the 2013 Columbia Valley Claret is an elegant blend of 57% Cabernet Sauvignon, 26% Cab Franc, 11% Merlot, 3% Malbec, and 3% Petit Verdot. Focused on elegance and drinkability with ripe fruit and less oak, the Claret has always been a tremendous value for our customers and leads a segment of every day wines.
Professional Ratings
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Wine Spectator
Firm and focused, with crinkly tannins around a sleek core of blackberry, currant and plum flavors that keep singing on the expressive finish. This has room to grow. Cabernet Sauvignon, Cabernet Franc, Merlot, Malbec and Petit Verdot. Drink now through 2022.
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Robert Parker's Wine Advocate
Readers looking for a longer term prospect should check out the 2013 Claret (57% Cabernet Sauvignon, 26% Cabernet Franc, 11% Merlot and the rest Malbec and Petit Verdot), which is firm, concentrated and structured; it has plenty of oak in its tobacco leaf, incense, and crème de cassis aromas and flavors. Give this full-bodied 2013 about 5-6 years of cellaring and drink over the following decade. Rating: 92+
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Wine Enthusiast
This wine is a blend of 57% Cabernet Sauvignon, 26% Cabernet Franc, 11% Merlot, 3% Malbec and 3% Petit Verdot. It opens with intriguing aromas of graphite, cherry, barrel spice, garden herbs, coffee grounds and dark fruit. The flavors are pitch black and generous, showing density and layering.
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.
A large and geographically diverse AVA capable of producing a wide variety of wine styles, the Columbia Valley AVA is home to 99% of Washington state’s total vineyard area. A small section of the AVA even extends into northern Oregon!
Because of its size, it is necessarily divided into several distinctive sub-AVAs, including Walla Walla Valley and Yakima Valley—which are both further split into smaller, noteworthy appellations. A region this size will of course have varied microclimates, but on the whole it experiences extreme winters and long, hot, dry summers. Frost is a common risk during winter and spring. The towering Cascade mountain range creates a rain shadow, keeping the valley relatively rain-free throughout the entire year, necessitating irrigation from the Columbia River. The lack of humidity combined with sandy soils allows for vines to be grown on their own rootstock, as phylloxera is not a serious concern.
Red wines make up the majority of production in the Columbia Valley. Cabernet Sauvignon is the dominant variety here, where it produces wines with a pleasant balance of dark fruit and herbs. Wines made from Merlot are typically supple, with sweet red fruit and sometimes a hint of chocolate or mint. Syrah tends to be savory and Old-World-leaning, with a wide range of possible fruit flavors and plenty of spice. The most planted white varieties are Chardonnay and Riesling. These range in style from citrus and green apple dominant in cooler sites, to riper, fleshier wines with stone fruit flavors coming from the warmer vineyards.