Winemaker Notes
Aromas of black cherry and spicy saffron lead into a savory palate ripe with black raspberry, marionberry, dark chocolate, cedar, and vanilla flavors. The wine has a full mid-palate and a rich finish of maple and cherry.
Professional Ratings
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James Suckling
Blackberries, black raspberries, dried leaves, mint chocolate and a hint of menthol on the nose. Full-bodied, plush and compact, with fleshy tannins and ripe black fruit. Drink now or hold.
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Robert Parker's Wine Advocate
Made exclusively from 100% Cabernet, the 2020 Columbia Valley Cabernet Sauvignon is ripe and juicy in the glass with blackberry and red cherry aromas. The wine is firm with tannins that grip the gumline before concluding with a spicy, lingering finish that gives way to flavors of bitter dark chocolate. This will improve when enjoyed with food.
Northstar, located in Walla Walla, Washington, aims to make Merlots that can be considered among the world's best, using fruit sourced from one of the world's best regions for the variety: Washington state. Winemaker, David "Merf" Merfeld, blends New World fruit with an old world winemaking style, influenced by Bordeaux's "right bank," to create his highly-acclaimed wines. Northstar produces two Merlot-based wines from the Columbia Valley and Walla Walla AVAs, as well as the Stella Maris red blend and extremely limited production bottlings of the blending component varieties that Merf uses as his "spice box" in creating Northstar's Merlots.
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.