Best Buy! This vintage marked John Freeman’s 10th as Waterbrook’s head winemaker after taking over from founder Eric Rindal, and the Walla Walla winery continues to serve as a Pacific Northwest ambassador for this lesser-known red Bordeaux grape. One of the state’s most underrated sites — Doval on the Wahluke Slope — was combined with Art denHoed and Canyon Ranch vineyards, and the 20% new American oak program leads to plummy aromas with cherry, milk chocolate, vanilla and chai spices. The drink is clean, luscious and round with complexity among its flavors of Marionberry, ripe plum and blackberry cobbler. There’s more heft to the structure from the midpalate on back than one might expect, particularly at this price and scale.
Rating: Outstanding!
Production: 4,914 cases
Alcohol: 13.4%
Leave a Reply