The Leutholds have earned an unsurpassed seven Platinum Awards for their Malbec program, starting with the classic 2005 vintage, so it was not surprising to see one of Richard Batchelor’s bottlings finish as the No. 1 wine of this tasting. His winning melange of nearby Gunkel Vineyard (57%), an estate source at the east end of the Columbia Gorge, with Tudor Hills Vineyard in … [Read more...] about Maryhill Winery 2019 Proprietor’s Reserve Malbec, Columbia Valley $44
Wine of the Week
Mercer Estates Winery 2021 Small Lot Sauvignon Blanc, Horse Heaven Hills $18
Best Buy! Consumer interest in Sauvignon Blanc has made this white Bordeaux variety one of the few growth categories in the U.S. wine industry during the past 52 weeks, and here's one of the top bottlings released last year in the Pacific Northwest. Spice Cabinet — the vineyard behind Mercer’s Platinum-winning Malbec — also contributed to this effort along with Culloden … [Read more...] about Mercer Estates Winery 2021 Small Lot Sauvignon Blanc, Horse Heaven Hills $18
Southern Cross Winery 2018 Estate Syrah, Columbia Valley $34
Fans of Crosby, Stills, Nash and Young know what inspired Matt and Debbie Driscoll to name their entry into the wine industry. And wine lovers who remember how superb the Syrah program was at the shuttered Olsen Estates will know why the Driscolls named Kyle Johnson to make this Syrah, a product of the family’s young planting along Sunset View Lane — two miles east of historic … [Read more...] about Southern Cross Winery 2018 Estate Syrah, Columbia Valley $34
Michael Florentino Cellars 2014 Primitivo, Wahluke Slope $28
Italian reds have captured the imagination of owner Brad Sherman and co-winemaker Jared Whelchel, and StoneTree Vineyard on the Wahluke Slope has been a prized resource for these varieties. Brambleberries, candied apple and sagebrush aromas lead to a firecracker of a palate, exploding with cranberry, pomegranate cinnamon and ginger, capped by a lick of barbecued meat. This … [Read more...] about Michael Florentino Cellars 2014 Primitivo, Wahluke Slope $28
Camaraderie Cellars 2018 Dionysus Vineyard Reserve Cabernet Sauvignon, Columbia Valley $45
Olympic Peninsula winemaker Don Corson has won at least one Platinum for his Cabernet Sauvignon program in each of the past three years, and this effort from Sagemoor’s historic Dionysus Vineyard stood atop our judging as the highest-ranking Cab. This work from a site established in 1971 exudes endless layers of dark fruit akin to black currant, black cherry and dried … [Read more...] about Camaraderie Cellars 2018 Dionysus Vineyard Reserve Cabernet Sauvignon, Columbia Valley $45