Figgins Walla Walla Valley Estate Red 2014
Ever since I tasted the 2010 Figgins Estate Red, a remarkable and flawless vintage, I’ve come to prefer it over Leonetti, but both are crafted by Chris Figgins. For me these wines are poised, showing more restraint and complexity than I find in most Walla Walla Valley reds. The 2014 is lavishly trimmed in red […]
Locations WA-4 NV
Winemaker Dave Phinney has captured the spirit of Washington State Syrah, accented by Merlot, and Petit Sirah. His latest Locations WA-4 is rife with sumptuous blueberries, blackberries, cassis, vanilla, incense; it’s medium-bodied in the mouth with a core of sweet, juicy fruit nicely counterbalanced and bound by acidity and powdery tannins. A finish of bay […]
Locations NZ-7 NV
Another stellar offering from Dave Phinney’s Locations project, the NZ-7 is fresh, grassy, and quite mineral, owing in part, to the Awatere Valley’s proximity to the Pacific Ocean and the Waihopai Valley’s gravelly soils in combination with a cooler climate. Fresh and elegant, it’s awash in underripe pineapple, boxwood, lemongrass, lime zest, and sea foam. […]
Sea Pearl Sauvignon Blanc Marlborough 2017
Sourced from vineyards across Marlborough’s sub-regions, including the Wairau Valley, Sea Pearl is straw-colored in the glass and abundantly layered with aromas of gooseberry, guava, passionfruit, lemongrass, and lime zest. On the palate, it’s fresh and somewhat lighter in body than expected—and yet there is ample concentration of flavor, grapefruit and lemon pith notes give […]
Otis Kenyon Syrah 2013
With a quinacridone violet core and that most classic plump, juicy Walla Walla fruit profile, the 2013 Otis Kenyon Syrah has developed nicely. Layered aromas of boysenberry and black fruit rest beneath lighter notes of lavender oil and incense—there is a lovely floral aspect that is certainly appealing. The palate is silky and round, quite […]
Whitehaven Sauvignon Blanc 2018
Whitehaven Sauvignon Blanc 2018 — April 27, 2019 Lime zest, white grapefruit, passionfruit, d’Anjou pear, and boxwood waft from the glass. Taught acidity on the palate gives this medium to full-bodied Marlborough Sauvignon Blanc a mouthwatering sensory arc, that finishes with a lively burst of crushed herbs and grapefruit pith. An excellent value. 13.0% ABV […]
Burrowing Owl Chardonnay 2013
There are elements in Burrowing Owl’s 2013 Chardonnay suggestive of a wine from a warmer climate, the defining edge of it—a length of acidity that makes its presence known from start to finish, is the one element that queues this taster to Canada’s more northerly latitudes of the Okanagan Valley. There is a sense of […]
Heritance Cabernet Sauvignon 2014
Plush without being over the top, classic notes of black currants, black cherries, plums, vanilla bean and incense round out the nose. The 2014 Heritance Cabernet Sauvignon is modern and moderate in character, it feels slightly cautious. Like a four-door sedan, it’s not a risk-taker by any means, this is the family car of Napa […]
SpierHead Okanagan Valley Pinot Noir Cuvée 2014
The lighter, more tensile side of Pinot Noir, Spierhead’s 2014 Cuvée is aged in French oak and is made up of 35% Dijon 115, 25% Dijon 667, 25% Dijon 828, and 15% Pommard. Brambly forest berries, cranberries, mint, and bark are suspended in dust kicked up from a summer windstorm. It’s very clean on the […]
Tendril Wine Cellars Saffron Fields Vineyard Pinot Noir 2013
Hitting its stride, the 2013 Tendril Saffron Fields Vineyard Pinot Noir from winemaker Tony Rynders offers up an alluring bouquet of Dalmatia Sour Cherry Spread, black raspberry, sous bois, decaying rose petal, Asian spice, and crushed stone. It’s supple and pliant on the palate, a dark fruit core tidily wrapped in buoyant acidity with impressive […]