Wine & Spirits - June 2020 - 71

$19

2018 Columbia Valley Cabernet Sauvignon (Best Buy) ^ A steal at $19, this delivers
a fine evergreen scent overlaying chocolatey,
plumlike sweetness. It's plummy in its texture, too. Light and mildly herbaceous, it's a
good choice for lamb chops. -P.J.C. ¤

MERLOT
520177

90 | L'Ecole No41
520109

93 | Longship

$36

2017 Columbia Valley Quinn Red Blend
(Best Buy) ^ A blend of malbec, merlot and
cabernet, this has a classic Bordeaux scent of
cedar and plum, the malbec adding a violet
bouquet. The flavors are at once plush and
sleek, buoyed by a seductive, purple-fruited
core of fruit and fine claylike tannins. Proceeds from the sale of this wine go to a cystic fibrosis fund called "All In for Quinn."
-P.J.C. (150 cases) ¤
520179
92 L'Ecole No41
$65

2017 Walla Walla Valley Ferguson Vineyard ^ This is a huge wine, a basalt-black pot
of fruit limned with spectacular flourishes
of violet, pine and evergreen, so vivid it's as
if essential oils have been spritzed into it.
The tannins are fine but have a cumulative
power, delivering the flavors with precision.
For flank steak. -P.J.C. (1,280 cases) ¤
520084

88 | Seven Falls

$18

2016 Wahluke Slope Rapids Red (Best
Buy) ^ A classic barbecue wine, this blend of
syrah, merlot and cinsault is dark and tense,
with just enough succulent plummy fruit to
offset its leathery compactness. -P.J.C. ¤

CABERNET FRANC
520361

90 | Dusted Valley

$45

2017 Walla Walla Valley Southwind Vineyard Cabernet Franc ^ A classic franc with
scents of olive and leather, this is both pleasingly austere and juicy, its savory dark berry
and plum flavors drawn by muscular tannins.
For barbecue. -P.J.C. (250 cases) ¤

CABERNET SAUVIGNON
520079

91 | Woodward Canyon

$99

2017 Washington Old Vines Cabernet
Sauvignon ^ Unabashedly old-school, this
wine is all caramel and cedar, its black-fig
fruit heavily paneled with oak. Don't touch
it for a decade, and decant it before serving.
-P.J.C. (688 cases) ¤
520279

$37

2017 Walla Walla Valley Merlot ^ This stylish merlot starts off herbal and dark fruited,
with scents of pine and plum. With air, the
Walla Walla savor comes through, grippy and
succulent, a touch leathery, with firm tannins
for steak. -P.J.C. (1,080 cases) ¤

MOURVEDRE
520238

92 | Gramercy Cellars

$27

2017 Columbia Valley Lower East Mourvedre (Best Buy) ^ This 2017, from vintner Greg
Harrington, feels thick as wool at first go, all
tobacco and suede and a kind of leathery
toughness-until it doesn't. When the reduction lifts, the wine turns peppery and bright,
the flavors of strawberry fruit leather and
cured beef, the whole-cluster spice emerging at the finish and demanding an open-fire
steak. -P.J.C. (490 cases) ¤

SYRAH
520239

94 | Gramercy Cellars

$25

92 | Gramercy Cellars

$42

2017 Columbia Valley Lower East Syrah
(Best Buy) ^ This is from Greg Harrington's
tier of wines meant to broaden the winery's
regional reach to the Columbia Valley. The
blend comes from Les Collines, Forgotten
Hills and Holy Roller vineyards-the latter
a new parcel owned by Chris Figgins, in The
Rocks. The wine leads with scents of mocha
and olive-the Rocks showing its stuff-
while the flavors feel a bit warmer, with a
seductively plush texture, limned by violetand-rosemary-scented tannins. Drinking
beautifully now; serve with lamb. -P.J.C.
(1,500 cases) ¤
520242
2016 Walla Walla Valley Syrah ^ Drawn from
Gramercy's Walla Walla sources, including Forgotten Hills, Les Collines and a few
Rocks sites, this is a low-alcohol gem, bright
with tart berry and plum fruit seasoned with
whole-cluster spice. Lean and crunchy now,
this will become more elegant with age. Cellar. -P.J.C. (1,000 cases) ¤ n

What do you call a favorite
everyday cheese with a blend
of the most fascinating flavors
you can find?

800.591.6878 www.pointreyescheese.com
#saypointreyescheese

TomaTruffle - grounded, yet spontaneous * TomaProvence - charming while quite refined * TomaRashi - feisty and kind of nutty

90 | Boomtown

TomaTruffle - grounded, yet spontaneous * TomaProvence - charming while quite refined * TomaRashi - feisty and kind of nutty

Toma - an original, but plays well with others

https://www.pointreyescheese.com https://www.longshipcellars.com/collections/frontpage http://www.sourflour.org/workshops

Wine & Spirits - June 2020

Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of Wine & Spirits - June 2020