Mackey Vineyards 2009 Merlot, Columbia Valley, $36
Roger and Philip Mackey moved to Walla Walla in 2007 to work with Bordeaux varieties, and while much of their focus is on estate fruit and neighboring vineyards, they struck on a winning combination with Dionysus (58%) from north of Pasco, Wash., and DuBrul (42%) — a site with a cult following in the Yakima Valley. Their winemaker, Billo Naravane of Rasa Vineyards, leans heavily on new French oak here (70%), but it provides accents of sweet dark chocolate and maple among the aromas of fresh Bing cherry, ripe blackberry, rose petals and crushed herb. Those dark fruits fill the mouth amid a structure that’s supremely balanced with dusty tannins, lingering acidity and a complex finish of dried herbs. This wine earned a double gold at the 2012 Seattle Wine Awards, and it hasn’t lost a step.
Rating: Outstanding!
Production: 165 cases
Alcohol: 14.8%
Lots of love for Merlot. Several of your recently are new to me. I am looking forward to trying them. Several of my favs, in addition to Kyra’s Estate Merlot, wonder if you had the opportunity to try them…are: Dunham Cellars, Januik, Kontos, LongShadow’s “Pedestal”, Pepperbridge, Reininger, Seven Hills, Sineann, and of course, Leonetti Cellar, L’Ecole!?!
Hi, Bill. We do taste a lot of these wines. However, this group included Merlots we’ve tasted in the past few weeks.
To Whom It May Concern:
I really enjoy your website and this story and review in particular as I enjoy well made Washington Merlot. I’m blown away by the quality and value of the Columbia Winery 2012 Merlot. This is a juicy, plummy wine that gets better after being open for at least three days. I hope other wineries take note as this a great example of Merlot, especially at this price point. I can’t wait to see the evolution of Sean Hails (Columbia Winery Winemaker)wines over these next few years. A very promising future for this winery indeed!
Best,
Jeff Curry
Gig Harbor, WA
Thanks, Jeff. We appreciate the great feedback.
We’ve now tasted the Columbia wines three or four times, mostly under blind tasting conditions, and they are delicious. Add in the price point, and I think Gallo has a winner here.