14 Left Bank blends from the Great Northwest

A reader recently asked us about Left Bank-style blends from Washington, and that gave us the idea of compiling a list of Left Bank Bordeaux-style blends from the red blends we’ve tasted recently.

Generally speaking, a Left Bank blend is one that uses one or more of the six red Bordeaux grapes and leads with Cabernet Sauvignon. A Right Bank blend will lead with Merlot or, on occasion, Cabernet Franc.

The two major regions within the Left Bank are the Médoc and Graves. Within these two broader appellations are smaller areas such as Pauillac, Margaux and St. Julien.

Here are 14 Left Bank-style red blends – a dozen from Washington, plus one from the Lewis-Clark Valley in Idaho and one from the Oregon side of the Walla Walla Valley. All of these use only Bordeaux grapes.