Homebuilder/winemaker Dennis Murphy pays tribute to his grandmother Eleanor Caprio on every bottle he produces, and this Left Bank-inspired Bordeaux blend pulls strictly from two estate plantings in the Walla Walla Valley — Octave (65%) in the SeVein project and Eleanor Vineyard (35%) near his home near the Washington/Oregon stateline. It's a classic approach with Cabernet … [Read more...] about Caprio Cellars 2017 Estate Eleanor Red Wine, Walla Walla Valley, $48
Outstanding
Youngberg Hill Vineyards 2020 Pinot Noir Rosé, Willamette Valley, $40
Although this is created using Pinot Noir clones Pommard and Wädensvil from Wayne Bailey's Natasha Block in the McMinnville American Viticultural Area, the color of the 2020 vintage hints at Provence with delicate pinkish salmon, followed by beautiful dried strawberry, spiced cherry and sweet herb aromas. They come through on the palate with succulent but approachable structure … [Read more...] about Youngberg Hill Vineyards 2020 Pinot Noir Rosé, Willamette Valley, $40
Mount Si Winery 2017 Lonesome Springs Ranch Malbec, Yakima Valley, $32
Living and making wine in Snoqualmie, Wash., means Jim Larsen has a shorter drive than most winemakers in Western Washington to pick up bins full of Columbia Valley grapes yet to be crushed. He produces small lots of award-winning, single-designated wines from several sites, and his three barrels of Malbec from Colin Morrell's vineyard near Benton City is a head-turner. The … [Read more...] about Mount Si Winery 2017 Lonesome Springs Ranch Malbec, Yakima Valley, $32
Mosquito Fleet Winery 2018 SS Flyer Meritage • Starboard Red Wine, Horse Heaven Hills, $38
Kitsap Peninsula winemaker Dr. Brian Petersen cleverly hints at his Right Bank Bordeaux approach by naming this Meritage-style bottling as "Starboard," and using it as an homage to the fastest passenger steamer servicing the Seattle-Tacoma route in the early 1900s. He draws from Beightol-farmed Double Canyon Vineyard along Phinny Hill for the Merlot (59%), the Cabernet … [Read more...] about Mosquito Fleet Winery 2018 SS Flyer Meritage • Starboard Red Wine, Horse Heaven Hills, $38
Double Canyon 2016 Cabernet Sauvignon, Red Mountain, $40
Crimson Wine Group's young production facility for Double Canyon is about than five minutes from the eastern shoulders of Red Mountain, and this bottling features two remarkable sites for Cabernet Sauvignon on both flanks of this storied growing region — historic Klipsun Vineyard and Block 51 from the Shaw family's rising star Quintessence Vineyard. Kate Michaud took over these … [Read more...] about Double Canyon 2016 Cabernet Sauvignon, Red Mountain, $40