Wine & Spirits - August 2020 - 51

88 | Wine by Joe

$14

2019 Willamette Valley Pinot Noir Rosé
(Best Buy) ^ Bargain-priced, this delivers
concentrated flavors of wild strawberry compote, with scents of lees plus a whiff of peach
and Sour Patch candy to tighten it up. It's a
light and airy rosé for smoked trout. -P.J.C. §

WA SHINGTON
COLUMBIA VALLEY

520770

91 | The Four Graces

$21

2019 Willamette Valley Rosé ^ This youthful
pink starts out exuberantly fruity, like raspberries bursting with ripeness. With air, the
fruit flavors take on a slightly herbal tinge
with notes of bergamot and peppermint.
The wine stays fresh and delicate; for a wild
mushroom pizza. -P.J.C. (3,000 cases) §
520772

91 | Tumwater

$25

2019 Willamette Valley Pinot Noir Rosé ^
Buzzy and bright, with strawberry and cherry
flavor, this is lively and mouthwatering, finishing with a pithy savor; for grilled chicken.
-P.J.C. (500 cases) §
520758

90 | Adelsheim

$28

2019 Willamette Valley Rosé ^ This wine's
grainy, wheaty lees scents lend it a smoky
savor that complements its tense, taut red
fruit and a slightly bitter plum-skin finish.
Pour it with barbecue. -P.J.C. (3,200 cases) §
520762

90 | Argyle

$20

2019 Willamette Valley Pinot Noir Rosé
(Best Buy) ^ Pretty and perfumed, with a scent
of cherry blossoms, and flavors of red cherry
and watermelon rind, the wine's texture is
creamy and succulent, lined with a nutty
lees note. Pour it for a salmon feast. -P.J.C.
(3,000 cases) §
520768

90 | Fairsing

520781

93 | Gramercy Cellars

$22

2019 Columbia Valley Olsen Vineyard
Rosé (Best Buy) ^ Greg Harrington channels Provence in this bracing single-vineyard blend of cinsault, grenache and syrah.
A pale onion-skin hue, the wine spent four
months on the lees, lending it a nutty and biscuity complexity and breadth. With a sharp
cut of acidity, it holds an impressive tension,
even after two days open. Pour this with a
light meal, like gravlax with capers on a fresh
baguette. -P.J.C. (500 cases) §
520791

90 | DeLille Cellars

$32

2019 Yakima Valley Rosé ^ Salmon in color,
this has a faint scent of orange blossom. Its
flavors are deep and satisfying, structured
with tension, drive and an orange-pith bitterness that had me thinking of mild sausages,
like bockwurst, with brown mustard. -P.J.C.
(800 cases) §
520779

88 | Chateau Ste. Michelle $11

2019 Columbia Valley Rosé (Best Buy) ^
Savory and bright, this offers a line of bright
cherry flavor with unexpected richness. The
wine finishes with a lingering scallion note;
for chilled sesame noodles. -P.J.C. §

W&S scores are based on
quality and distinctive regional
character, to help you find
delicious wines grown and
made with integrity.

100
Transcendent
A wine that speaks directly from
the earth, communicating the
flavors of its place with unequaled
complexity and intensity; it will
offer pleasure for decades.

96 to 99
Astonishing, Rare
A wine that saturates the senses
with flavors that feel unique
and thrilling; a rare
landmark for its region.

93 to 95
Exciting, Distinctive
A wine that transcends simple
typicity to its region or variety-a
vivid, singular expression of place.

90 to 92
Delicious, Compelling
A compelling wine of its region;
a delicious, finessed
expression of a place.

Well-made, pleasurable and
true to its region or variety.

85 to 87
Balanced, Crowd Pleasing

$18

2019 Willamette Valley Pinot Noir Rosé
(Best Buy) ^ Firm and tense, this pink pinot
has scents of dried cherry and woodsmoke. A
driving cherry flavor barrels across a wheaty
backdrop; the smoky, leesy tannins add
another layer of complexity. To sip sitting in
front of a campfire. -P.J.C. (200 cases) §
520773

Our Score
Definitions

88 to 89
Delicious, Representative

$30

2019 Willamette Valley Pinot Noir Rosé ^
This offers a persistent whiff of sea spray
to go along with its melon and kiwi flavors,
creamy and bright, with the tension for Thai
yellow curry. -P.J.C. (344 cases) §
520766

89 | Compton

Wine&Spirits

Identifiable in style and regional
character, and qualitatively solid.

520780

88 | Columbia Winery

$17

2019 Columbia Valley Rosé (Best Buy) ^
Light and lively, this fruit-forward rosé
smells of cherry compote and has a sweet
and juicy texture. Chill it for a back-porch
pour. -P.J.C. (2,800 cases) § n

80 to 84
Useful
Simple wine that will either
quench thirst or play a
useful role at the table.

WINE & SPIRITS

AUGUST 2020

https://shop.foleyfoodandwinesociety.com/Wine-Shop/Brands/The-Four-Graces https://www.columbiawinery.com/columbia-valley-wines

Wine & Spirits - August 2020

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