I posted on the Travel forum on my recent trip to Seattle, concentrating on the food and restaurants. Here are notes on 11 wines extracted from that post. The briefer notes are comments on glasses we had in restaurants. This is quite an eclectic group, but there were some excellent wines and nice surprises. I asked my distributor to bring me three geeky reds that I would never otherwise run into and he did a great job. Two of them (Zin Nouveau and Trousseau) I write about as a cautionary tale, the third (Zweigelt) was wonderful.
2012 Cedergreen Cellars Cabernet Sauvignon, Columbia Valley –
Even if they can’t spell ‘cedar’, they know how to incorporate it into their wine. This was a mainstream beauty. The primary fruit aromas are blackberry and red currant. There is a touch of oak, along with the conifer component. The palate is really well balanced, the flavors barely secondary (Washington cabs can be long-lived, I was happy to find something with some bottle age), the texture just starting to soften. The finish was long, this is a winner, if I owned a case I’d open a bottle a year. Rated 92, 2 points of improvement likely over 10 years. $37 very well spent.
2022 Ita Nouveau Zinfandel – I probably haven’t had a Nouveau in 20 years and never one that wasn’t Beaujolais. This was pale in color, slightly soft but had OK fruit, oddly more red than black. Short finish. I might try another Nouveau in another 20 years, but maybe not. Rated 83.
2021 Avennia Sauvignon Blanc - classic, tasted more like a white Graves (minus the Semillon) than like California, rated 88.5
2019 Stewart ‘Big Fire’ Pinot Noir - surprisingly lively; a fresh, black-fruited Pinot. Rated 89.5.
2021 Elk Cove Pinot Noir – Medium garnet color, fresh, tender aromas feature red cherries, cranberry and iron-laden dirt. The flavors follow the aromas, the texture is light and opulent. Rated 92.
2019 Eyrie Vineyard Trousseau – I love Eyrie, I knew David Lett (founder of both Eyrie and the Oregon wine industry). This was my first Trousseau, from anywhere. I don’t know if Jura is overrated, I don’t know Trousseau, but I know that this wine is very mediocre.
Pale color. Bland aromas with some vague red fruit. Soft light palate is boring. Eileen and I had a small glass each, we finished them. Rated 81.
2021 Protocolo rose - pleasant, with cherry and watermelon flavors and some heft. Rated 86.5.
2020 Hatzimichalis Assyrtiko - vivid zing, very bright, slightly citric, nice herbal subtlety, but missing the salinity and intensity of great Assyrtico. Rated 90.
NV Marc Hebrart NV Brut (375ml) - If there was a disgorgement date, I didn’t notice, but the bubbles were a little weak. That was more than compensated by wonderful aromas and flavors, featuring distinct red fruit, wild herbs, minerality and vinous density. Rated 90.5.
2022 l’Ecole 41 Chardonnay, Columbia Valley (375ml) - What a comfort it was to find this in half bottle. I’ve never had their upper level wines (a mistake I want to rectify). This was a beauty, zingy but savory. The rich pear and melon flavors were balanced by racy acidity. The precision was that of a more expensive wine. Rated 91.5.
2020 Gabernik 23 Zweigelt - Last of Mike’s Geek Selections, and it more than made up for the other two. It’s been decades since my last Zweigelt:
My, how you’ve grown!
This is almost pitch black in color. The aromas are heady (alcoholic) but filled with pitch black fruit, mostly blackberry. The palate is both light and lush. I’m guessing carbonic maceration here, but it carries it off brilliantly. This is gulpable, notable as much for texture as aromas and flavors. Drink as young as possible, although this was far from fading. Rated 91.5.
Dan Kravitz