washington

FORCE MAJEURE: NORTHWEST SUPERSTAR

As lifetime entrepreneurs constantly on the lookout for opportunities to improve and innovate, Paul and Susan McBride were attracted to the Northwest for the promise of developing world-class vineyards and wines from the region. Their decision was to create vineyards. In their own words, “Drawing inspiration from the great vineyards of Bordeaux, the Northern and Southern Rhône valleys, as well as parts of Spain, and with a desire to challenge existing viticultural practices in Washington state, we embarked on an ambitious plan to pioneer the very first vineyard on the steep, rocky upper slopes of Red Mountain.”

It’s been more than a decade since we first ran across their wines. We kind of recall, like so many vintners we run across, these folks seemed pretty convinced they were going to be the next big thing. In fact, we can’t dispute that given the body of work we have seen from them. We’re actually a little surprised they aren’t better known given the consistent, super high quality we have seen. If you look at the reviews (which are generally quite spectacular) there were 32 different bottling titles with notes in Wine Advocate, many of which bore the title ‘Collaboration Series’. They seem to be honing in on a smaller lineup f ro the long haul now.

Jeb Dunnuck has been a fan from early on and says this about the winery, “Now focusing almost exclusively on their Red Mountain estate vineyards, Force Majeure is making some of the most compelling wines in Washington State, as well as in the United States. Winemaker Todd Alexander (previously at Bryant Family in Napa Valley) came on board in 2014 and today the wines show another level of purity and finesse, all while not sacrificing depth of fruit or texture… Trust me, these are gorgeous wines you need to try.”

We can’t disagree. These folks seem to be able to create wines of great intensity but also remarkable plushness, that latter element something that isn’t apparently that easy to accomplish in Washington. There aren’t many (any?) names that come to mind that work at this level in terms of polish, saturated palate feel and seamless presentation of fruit. The Force Majeure Epinette 2018 is, to their definition, their “Right Bank” effort. We know there will be a few folks out there that will balk at a wine that is Merlot dominated. So is Petrus, by the way, and this wine has the depth and lavish layers of flavor to overcome notions that Merlot is a ‘lighter’ fare.

From Jeb Dunnuck, his highest mark for the Epinette series (the lowest was a ‘94’) since he first reviewed the 2014 with Wine Advocate, “The 2018 Epinette is the Merlot-dominated release from this team, and it’s 79% Merlot, 8% Cabernet Sauvignon, 8% Cabernet Franc, and 5% Petit Verdot, all from the estate vineyard on Red Mountain. Lots of smoky black cherry and darker currant fruits as well as notes of chocolate, graphite, lead pencil, and chalky minerality emerge from the glass, and this full-bodied beauty is beautifully textured, with a stacked mid-palate, velvety tannins, and a blockbuster finish. It’s up with the finest Merlots in the New World and will drink brilliantly for at least a decade, if not longer…97 points.”

Everything seems to be working here and this is impressive juice. We’ve been pioneering Washington wines since the late 80s (like the Leonetti Merlot 1987) and can tell you this is a rare effort. It’s not inexpensive, but something this good from Napa would cost two or three times as much.

ANOTHER NORTHWEST CABERNET VALUE

It appears that more folks in the wine industry have gotten the message that more quality, value-priced reds are needed in the marketplace. In truth, it seems we have seen an increase in offerings over the last year or so. Not all of them are good, but there are certainly more exciting Cabs and blends to be had these days at lower fares. There has been a pretty steady stream of ‘contestants’ out of Washington, and more interesting options at that from some of the newer, more boutique players.

Washington has tremendous potential as a source of value Caberenets. Chateau Ste. Michelle and Hedges, for example, have been consistent players in that arena for decades. We taste a lot of others offerings that you don’t see because, while their intentions are good, the finished wines are kind of boring. Sure they have great color and power, which will win you a lot of friends in some circles. But they are often kind of drying on the finish and lack real definition in the midpalate. If you are only going to have half a glass with dinner to get your daily dose of resveratrol, that’s fine. But if you actually enjoy drinking wine like we do, you need a little something more.

Our never-ending search ran across Ryan Patrick Cabernet Sauvignon Rock Island 2016. Founded as a family winery in 1996, Terry Flanagan named it for his two sons Ryan and Patrick. They were one of the first to plant grapes in what is now the Ancient Lakes AVA more or less due north of the more recognized Wahluke Slope. The winery was sold to Jerry and Butch Milbrandt in 2011, owners of Wahluke Wine Company. Since 2012, according to one source, the winemaker has been Jerry Santo, Washington State grad (go, Cougs?) by way of Canoe Ridge. Yet his name does not appear on the website under ‘meet our wine team’.

Do you need to know all that? Probably not, but it is important to understand that the winery’s philosophy is surely part of the reason this wine stands out among Cabernets of this price range. From their own website, “Intuitive winemaking is the art of letting the fruit speak for itself. It’s minimalist intervention combined with consistency of style…artisanal winemaking where the grape is at the center. Many wineries use static recipes for their wines…Batch-tinkering approaches have resulted in (our) varietals and blends that have justifiably become famous for how they out-perform their price point.”

The Ryan Patrick Cabernet Sauvignon Rock Island 2016 is a blend of83% Cabernet Sauvignon, 15% Merlot, and 2% Malbec that is aged 22 months, 50% in American oak barrels and 50% in stainless steel tanks. The grapes come from six different vineyards across three appellations, Wahluke Slope, Snipes Mountain, and Yakima Valley. For those that care, the alcohol is listed at a somewhat modest 13.5%.

If you haven’t thought about it, it is important to understand that the ripening process in Washington grape-growing is different than California. The roughly two- hour-longer sunlight hours and lower average temperatures present a growing season that has more in common with Bordeaux than California, though ripeness here is clearly not a problem.

As expected, there is deep color and notes of bing and black cherry in the nose with flecks of vanilla and espresso. The palate leans a little darker fruit-wise with aspects of black currant, blackberry and black cherry in the relatively weighty entry. A touch of dark chocolate, some graphite notes, baking spice and a touch of savory on the finish, the difference between this one and your typical ‘$20 Cab’ is in the detail.

WHERE THERE’S A “WILL”…NEW FROM ANDREW WILL

We been following the Washington wine scene for a long time (we started selling Leonetti for example with the 1987 vintage) and have watched as a number of new labels (Quiceda Creek, Chaleur Estate, Cadence, L’Ecole #41, and the subject of today’s offering Andrew Will) were born and flourished. It wasn’t always easy, and it took a while for much of the wine world outside of Washington to pay attention.

Andrew Will has long been one of our favorites from the northwest and we have done a number of offers over the years, particularly with their Sorella bottling. Owner Chris Camarda was one of the early pioneers at the premium end, opening up shop way back in 1989 and then moving to Vachon Island, the winery’s current location, in 1994. They have always focused on terroir driven wines that expressed the vineyard (rather than a specific varietal) and have honed their craft over the decades. Chris was also pretty bold bottling non-varietal, vineyard-designated wines from a relatively new wine region back then. The whole ‘premium red wine’ thing, a la Opus, was still not widely accepted back then.

A recent tasting with Will Camarda (the ‘Will’ in Andrew Will, Andrew is his cousin) showed these guys are at the top of their game. In truth, however, as much as we have always loved what they do here, we probably haven’t been as active as we could have been because their outstanding vineyard bottlings were ‘priced accordingly’. We can’t blame them because the wines typically are worthy of the fare, impeccably produced with native yeasts and minimal intervention, well reviewed, and muy delicioso. But not everybody can swing at $50-80 wines which lead to more ‘measured’ opportunities from our marketing perspective. That, however, is part of what makes this offering very exciting.

Will returned to the vineyard full time in 2013, and is now winemaker and Sales Director, as well as the guy who might deliver their wine to stores and restaurants in Washington. It’s a family operation that produces about 5500 cases per year. Our aforementioned meeting with Will, besides showing off the ‘usual suspects’, also entailed things we had never seen before from Andrew Will…varietal bottings in black labels with lower prices and a value blend call ‘Involuntary Commitment’. Egads, what madness is this?! Well, as Will explained, they wanted to create bottlings at better price points that might find their way into more people’s hands and create more fans. Remarkably sensible.

To us, it is the perfect move. It’s a classic play on our theme of ‘little wines from top players’ which works in other parts of the world. Why not Washington? Our philosophy is that serious, committed producers have higher standards, and it will show in everything they do. That is definitely the case here. These new wines had the same dark chocolate and savory underpinnings, polished lines and honest, no-nonsense fruit impressions as the ‘big dogs’. The oak influence was understandably less, but it was clear the winery took them seriously.

The first wine we tasted in the lineup was the Involuntary Commitment 2018, a blend of 53% Cabernet Franc, 29.5% Cabernet Sauvignon, and 17.5% Merlot that spent 11 months in neutral barrels and was bottled unfiltered and unfined.

It made an immediate impression. So many times these days when we taste a value bottling, we pick up residual sugar and/or ‘doctoring’ notes. This tasted like…fine wine. Imagine that! Dark garnet color, elements in the nose of dark fruit, savory herbs, fresh tobacco (likely from the Cab Franc) and sweet earth, the fruit components spoke of cherry and red currant with evident notes of spice. Kind of Bordeaux-like in feel, but better made and with more personality than you will usually find at this kind of price.

Perhaps as telling was, when we finished the lineup with the high scoring Sorella bottling, we went back to retaste the Involuntary Commitment. It held its own. In the ‘blurb’ on the winery tech sheet we were presented it said, “We believe that with such great fruit coming out of our vineyards it would be shame not to spread the wealth.” Amen to that! Here’s a well priced wine you can have on a Wednesday and serve in a decanter on Sunday and it will play both roles. And at PRICE, you don’t have to take it seriously. But you can. A real surprise and striking value.

RESERVE CAB AT ‘REGULAR’ PRICE FROM GORDON BROS.

One of the descriptions that someone here proffered with regards to the offer of Gordon’s Cabernet at a price like this is like just walking along minding your own business and a $20 bill is just sitting on the ground in front of you waiting to be picked up. Imagine sitting quietly at your computer and a new email pops up that isn’t trying to sell you insurance, diet pills, or new phone service.

This email is about wine. In fact, it’s about a Washington State Cabernet that, thanks to a set of events, is one of the best values that you’re going to come across on a quality Cab. Are you seeing sunshine, rainbows, cherubs and puppies? Maybe hearing a harp? Well certainly that is a bit of an endorsement for a Cabernet that isn’t from the Napa Valley.

Yeah, over the decades we have learned about trying never to ‘oversell’ anything. So instead we’re going to calmly, rationally explain why you should be excited to find a quality Washington Cabernet to add to your holdings with summer ahead of you and barbecue season in full swing.

Gordon’s wines have graced our pages, particularly for their relative value and varietally true style. But this particular offer bears special attention. The 2013 Gordon Estate Reserve Cabernet Sauvignon is from the Columbia Valley, Washington, an area that long ago earned its wings as a source for excellent Cabernet.

Gordon Brothers pride themselves on being the oldest family estate winery in the region (starting grape planting back in 1980). They have been dependable producers that have relied on innovative farming to create fine wines. In baseball terms, these folks would be solid performers that could occasionally get the big hit. The 2013 vintage was one that provided such an opportunity.

The 2013 growing season was one of the hottest on records, right in stride with 1998 and 2003. Hot, 90-degree temperatures came on in early spring, prompting an earlier than average bud break. This heat spell was followed up by welcome spring rains that helped establish healthy canopies early in the season with bloom occurring early in June. Intense heat hung around from late June into mid-September when a dramatic shift in weather brought us a nice cool, but dry fall allowing for good hang time and a great finish for the harvest.

All of that lead to a riper than normal (for Washington) vintage that provided more amplitude and flesh to the this blend of 90% Cabernet Sauvignon and 10% Petit Verdot. Tasted by a broader collection of our team, descriptors ran the gamut of melted grape Jolly Rancher kiss, new saddle leather, fresh turned earth, rose/floral bouquet and baking spices. The secondary aromatics are beautiful, pretty and “happy” with notes of nutmeg, fresh tobacco leaf, blackberry, pencil shavings, dark cocoa powder and toast. The wine shows more open drinkability and palate impressions of confectionary black cherry, caramel, and black tea.

The best part is that, while this is a well-performing wine at its original $36.50 fare, some ‘market factors’ allowed us to pick off the last few cases of this reserve Cabernet at a greatly reduced fare. The Columbia Valley has come a long way since the Gordons put down roots here. A little cooler stylistically than typical Cali Cab and positioned somewhere between that and a Bordeaux in weight, getting a reserve level Cabernet for under $20 ($19.98 to be exact) is a great ‘score’ for Cabernet fans.