Tasting at Chateau Ste Michelle

WINE TALK
1

Went tasting on Friday over at the reserve room at Ch. Ste. Michelle. I love CSM. They get a terribly bad rap some times because they are one of those ‘giant industrial wineries’, but they will always have a soft stop in my heart. The grounds are always beautiful, the Chateau is magnificent, the staff is always nice, and their higher end wines are often very well made and delicious. I have been a wine club member there since 1995 and don’t think I will ever quit. Memories of some of the early wine club parties that were so much fun. So, I had wine to pick up and off to the vintage club, reserved for members only and a very comfy room is where we headed.

I tasted 5 wines were being poured for club members. These are the good stuff. They may be a giant winery producing millions of cases a year, but these wines are low in production and even sometimes limited release stuff. 500-600 cases per year, aged in small French barrels, really nice wines if you can find them.


2011 Waussie Riesling
610 cases produced, $22
Clean, crisp, dry riesling with bright citrus and great acidity. Very nice wine.

2009 Ethos Reserve Syrah
800 cases produced, $40
I really liked this. Deep dark fruit, complexity with some decent acidity and smooth tannins.

2009 Cold Creek Red
603 cases produced, $32
51% Cabernet Sauvignon, 30% Syrah, 12% Merlot, 7% Cabernet Franc. Good balanced blend, I really liked this wine. Higher on alc at 15.5%, but great fruit comes through with nice smooth tannins. 20% off on my club price, I’m laying a few of these down, I really like the stuff they do from Cold Creek Vineyard.

2008 Mouvedre
693 cases produced, $25
93% Mouvedre, 7% Syrah.
Very interesting wine. Inky dark, earthy, herbs, white pepper, dark fruit. Nice expression of Mouvedre and at the price I think they hit a home run with this wine.

2009 Druthers Cabernet Sauvignon
178 cases produced, $90
Wow. Pretty ballsy of CSM to put together a 90 dollar wine. 97% Cabernet Sauvignon, 2% Merlot, 1% Petit Verdot. 16% abc will turn some heads at this price but the alc was integrated very well, did not seem hot to me. Most of the fruit is from Cold Creek, which I think is their best vineyard. Great wine, really nice to drink, just big fruit that is rich, plush, velvety smooth…long lingering finish. Just can’t pull the trigger at the price.

2

Dave, I wholeheartedly agree with you. CSM is under appreciated and under acknowledged for making some really fine wines. Unfortunately, they also make some that are not so fine and thus a bad rap. As with you, I go back into the early 90`s with a visit and not only found some wines to like, but loved the property and the knowledgeable folks in the tasting room. Sounds as if all is still happening as I experienced it. Thanks for your notes and comments.

3

tasted a cold creek, it was 04 or 05, i was very impressed, drank out of its price range…glad to c the quality is still there

4

I will admit to always having a soft spot for this winery. Back in the very early '90s, before I became addicted to Bordeaux, my young palate noticed the difference in the cooler climate reds in comparison to the Napa wines I was drinking. I still have a reserve cab 1979 sitting quietly in a wine fridge waiting for Marc F to swing by to help me kill it. We have very similar palates, and I agree with his assessment of Cold Creek.

Thanks for your post. I need to check out that Mourvedre.

5

While at UC Davis, as part of my Masters work, I was ‘gifted’ a nice vertical of their reserve syrahs from the mid 90’s forward . . . and I was quite impressed indeed. Markedly different structure and tannin wise from most of the CA syrahs that were part of my study, the aromatics and balance on these wines were stunning . . .

Cheers

6

Always been a fan of their Rieslings, right up the line.

7

I hate to rain on the parade but I am not a fan of where this winery is heading (mainly w/r to their red wines). I was a wine club member since around the 2001 and watched the wines get bigger, oakier, more extracted and higher in pH just about every year. I dropped out about 3 years ago but my dad still gets wines quarterly and brings all of them over to my house. I understand there is more to wine that numbers, but most of the reds are clocking in at a pH or 3.9 or higher with alcohol consistently in the 15% or higher range. The wines are so dark and extracted I find them fatiguing and out of balance. There was a time this winery made wines that were built to age but I just don’t see that any more with most of the reds. I still really enjoy their white wine program, especially the rieslings (Eroica and the Waussie), and I like that they’ve recognized how well Rhone varietals do in WA, but I don’t care for how they handle them.

I have really enjoyed the staff over at the winery and grounds are great. We have enjoyed the concerts and have many fond memories of family picnics (our kids love it there). I just wish they would reel themselves in a bit. Clearly there is a market for what they are selling and I think they are passionate, but I just don’t care for most of the wines. My tastes have changed but I think their wines have too. Especially the “limited release” wines made for the wine club. Their lowest end reds are actually the most balanced of the bunch and still represent a solid buy when at a supermarket with limited options, IMHO.

8

I like CSM, but I would consider the vast majority of their wines to be food wines.

Thanks

9

Ohhhh…and this would be bad??? Not quite sure I understand your comment, Robert.
Tom

10

My favorite is the $5.49 Riesling they sell at Costo… such great QPR for crowd pleasing casual drinkers…

11

I was trying to say that I do not drink too many of their wines without food. I find a food pairing to help them quite a bit. Not saying it is a bad thing, but do like to have some wines with nothing.

Thanks