Savage Grace Wines Red Willow Vineyard Rose 2017
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Wine Enthusiast
It's rare to see rosé made from this esteemed vineyard. The color is a very appealing pale salmon. Aromas of freshly slice green pepper open up over time to show cherry and citrus. The palate is elegant and flavorful, with a lovely sense of texture and balance. It might show too green pepper for some tastes but there are lots of good things going on, especially with some additional time open.
His vision is to make Old World style lower-alcohol, balanced, and expressive wines. He is continuing to deepen his core understanding of all stages in the vinification process, to put his philosophy of low-intervention winemaking into practice, where the grape, vineyard and vintage form a unique balance.
“SAVAGE” – echoes the struggle of the grape to withstand the stress of ripening, along with making wine that is true to the grape, site, and vintage.
“GRACE” – also his wife’s name, is symbolizing what he hopes to achieve as the end result a wine that is delicate, balanced, approachable yet expressive.
Whether it’s playful and fun or savory and serious, most rosé today is not your grandmother’s White Zinfandel, though that category remains strong. Pink wine has recently become quite trendy, and this time around it’s commonly quite dry. Since the pigment in red wines comes from keeping fermenting juice in contact with the grape skins for an extended period, it follows that a pink wine can be made using just a brief period of skin contact—usually just a couple of days. The resulting color depends on grape variety and winemaking style, ranging from pale salmon to deep magenta.
As the first recognized wine-growing region in the Pacific Northwest, Yakima Valley is centrally located within Washington’s vast Columbia Valley. The region also includes Washington’s oldest Cabernet Sauvignon vines, Otis Vineyard, planted in 1957, and Harrison Hill Vineyard, planted in 1963. Yakima Valley contains three smaller sub-regions: Rattlesnake Hills, Red Mountain, and Snipes Mountain and is ideal for both red and white wine production. In fact, Yakima Valley is Washington’s most diverse region, boasting more than 40 different grape varieties over about one hundred miles.
The cooler parts of the valley are home to almost half of the Chardonnay and Riesling produced in the state! Both are made in a wide range of styles depending on the conditions of the vineyard site.
But its warmer locations yield a large proportion of Washington’s best Merlot, Syrah and Cabernet Sauvignon. The finest Yakima Valley reds are jam-packed full of red cherry, currant, raspberry or blackberry fruit, as well as cocoa, herb, spice and savory notes, and exhibit a supple texture, great body, focus and length.