Aside from working a few vintages at a 7,000-case winery in North Carolina, Kiley Evans has spent the past 15 years as a winemaker in Southern Oregon. His first six years were at Abacela, and that experience shows in this small-lot offering of Tempranillo. It’s an estate production from sixth-leaf Valdepeñas clone, and the juice spent time in two-year-old French oak. The wine is dark and tarry with gorgeous smoky red fruit notes of cherries and figs, backed by chai spices, tobacco and firm blueberry skin tannins. Its finish offers a sense of earthiness, pomegranate and coffee. Sales of this wine are limited to the 2Hawk tasting room in Medford, where they suggest serving it alongside roasted lamb with garlic chimichurri and shaved wasabi chocolate.
Rating: Outstanding!
Production: 67 cases
Alcohol: 13.3%
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