Nice garnet color with brown edges. On the nose, developed, medium+ intensity, fig, cherry, plum, cedar, bitter sweet chocolate, leather, bark, not earthy or oaky, but loaded with layers. On the palate, dry, medium+ intensity, medium tannin, medium acidity, beautiful fig and cherry fruit leather, layered with spice and cedar, great balance, with an above average finish. I couldn’t help but think how much I wanted some of this for my cellar.
Tag Archive: Yakima Valley
2003 Apex Merlot Yakima Valley
2005 Sheridan Vineyards Syrah Yakima Valley
Great vineyard on the western edge of the Yakima Valley. On the nose, youthful, medium intensity, meat, paste, plum, blackberry, salami, mint, cracked pepper, some oak, and not earthy. On the palate, dry, medium tannin, dense and inky fruit, medium+ acidity, meaty for sure, with lots of spice, some oak present, great balance, and a solid finish. Worth the every penny.
2004 Columbia Winery Red Willow Vineyard Cabernet Sauvignon
I ranked this my least favorite of the 6 Washington Single Vineyard Cab tasting I orchestrated at work over the weekend. Although I thought with some aeration and a big piece of meat this would have showed nicely on it’s own. David Lake has left and it’s time to move on. On the palate, youthful, medium intensity, a dust, earth, and vegetal driven wine, wiht lots of tobacco, dark plum, currant, cedar, dirt, and vanilla. On the palate, dry, medium intensity, cherry, plum, spice, vanilla, med+ tannin, medium acidity, moderate finish. Just wasn’t interesting enough to compete.
2005 Walla Walla Vintners Sagemour Vineyards Cabernet Sauvignon
On the nose, youthful, medium+ intensity, bell pepper, sandlewood, tobacco, dust, mint, baked plum fruit roll up, some earth, and some oak. On the palate, dry, medium intensity, med- tannin, med acidity, berry frappaccino, lots of coffee flavors, on an oaky but pretty long finish. Nice wine but not great.
2002 Andrew Will Sheridan Vineyard Yakima Valley
50% Cabernet Sauvignon, 21% Cabernet Franc, 28% Merlot, 1% Petite Verdot. So what, a few of some close work friends came back to my vacant condo and rocked out some guitar and song. Oh and I did decant this wine while we warmed up the guitars. Not what I expected but this stole some thunder from the music. On the nose, moving toward bouquet, still medium+ intensity, some black cherry and cassis, smoked meat of the non-conventional variety, creamy black raspberry, some dust and earth, and some oak too. On the palate, dry, med intensity, black cherry, cream of raspberry, brussel sprouts, stemmy vegetal action, cedar box perfume, very deep and complex, med tannin, med acidity, and immense finish. A contemplate for fifteen minutes kind of finish.
2005 Kestrel Estate Syrah Yakima Valley
I almost bought fruit from this vineyard, but another local winery told me not to because of problems in vineyard management that would take a few years to straighten out. That being said, on the nose this wine was youthful, med- intensity, cherries, blackberries, black pepper, and not that interesting. On the palate, some juiciness to the fruit, but it falls away really quickly, into blandness, med tannin, med acidity, weak finish. We are pulling it of the menu, sorry but it’s not worth the $60 on our menu.
2005 Stevens Family Winery Yakima Valley Merlot
I really dig this winery, in a short time they have gone from obscurity to crafting excellent wines. Dark ruby in color, of medium+ intensity. On the nose, aroma, a funky wet Earth and dirt , cherries, black raspberry, coffee, sandlewood, and toasted oak. On the palate, dry, juicy dark berries and cherries, lush and voluptuous mouth-feel. Lots of coffee yogurt on the finish. Nicely integrated flavors, this is a beautiful Merlot, and a bargain for the quality.
2005 Apex Cellars Yakima Valley Chardonnay
I have a lot of respect for Brian Carter and his long career with Washington grapes, and Harry Alhadef is a great guy with a lot of wisdom and passion for the juice. This winery makes top notch wines, hence the apex of a pyramid name. Golden straw in color, of med+ intensity. There aren’t many white grapes that get this kind of color. When this wine was cold the nose was almost nothing, but I had an unexpected trip to the airport. On the nose, once it warmed up, aroma, med intensity, apple and pear, butterscotch, bread, toasted nuts, smoke, there’s some oak going on, but it’s balanced. On the palate, dry, med acidity, med intensity, green apple and oak dominate, nice finish. Slightly over-oaked but a nice chardonnay.