Wine & Spirits - August 2019 - 87

US NEW RELEASES
amount of new oak he uses in aging, and
converting most fermentations to ambient
yeasts. The result has been impressive across
the board, making this a cabernet-centric
brand to watch. (987 cases) -P.J.C.
517012

90 | Dama

cedar to go along with its scents of mint and
plum. The flavors start out plump and finish
tannic, with a lean, linear energy for steak.
(295 cases) -P.J.C.

MOURVEDRE
516951

$45

2015 Walla Walla Valley Collage Bordeaux
Style Red Blend ^ Dama's 2015 blend is nearly
all merlot and cabernet sauvignon, with a bit
of cabernet franc. It's irresistibly zaftig, with
purple plum aromas and some cooler flavors
to match, bringing to mind a cross between
boysenberry and acai. The fruit intensity is
impressive, and a good foil for pork chops.
(200 cases) -P.J.C.

CABERNET SAUVIGNON

91 | Dusted Valley

517223

92 | Swiftwater Cellars

90 | Long Shadows

517224

94 | Swiftwater Cellars

$65

2016 Walla Walla Valley Octave Vineyard
Cabernet Sauvignon ^ Swiftwater's Walla
Walla cabernet is all from the Octave
Vineyard, one of the earliest plantings on the
SeVein hillside, in the southern reaches of the
valley. Right there in the scent of the wine,
you might get a sense of the heat and wind
at the site; it comes across in notes of cedar
and fig compote, an intensity that's evident
well before you taste it. Despite the succulent
power and mineral thrust, the takeaway is
the wine's complexity, the weave of fruit with
pine-scented tannins that feel precise and
focused. Decant it for lean roast beef. (241
cases) -P.J.C.
517225

93 | Swiftwater Cellars

$50

2016 Red Mountain Cabernet Sauvignon ^
As thick as Mexican chocolate, although not
as spicy, this massive cabernet is sourced
from three Red Mountain vineyards: Heart
of the Hill, Klipsun and Quintessence. It's
powerful, loaded with notes of tanbark,
black fig and superripe black plum. With
long, sinuous tannins, it's concentrated and
enveloping, for steak. (387 cases) -P.J.C.

$42

2016 Horse Heaven Hills Zephyr Ridge
Cabernet Sauvignon ^ Tightly wound and
powerfully built, this wind-driven red leads
with scents of cedar fronds and spiced plums.
Despite a fair amount of dark, extracted fruit,
the wine feels sleek, with firm tannins and
plenty of energy, the combination suggesting
a long cellar life. (415 cases) -P.J.C.
516973
$65

2016 Columbia Valley Feather Cabernet
Sauvignon ^ Napa Valley winemaker Randy
Dunn makes this wine from the warm Benches
Vineyard, overlooking the Columbia River.
It's a rich, powerfully extracted cabernet
with an oak-derived smoke component that
surrounds the dark, plummy fruit like a thick
robe. The flavors are deep and round, the
texture seductive; give it some cellar time to
let the oak integrate. (2,930 cases) -P.J.C.
516886

90 | Sparkman Cellars

$65

2015 Red Mountain Kingpin Cabernet
Sauvignon ^ The cabernet in this wine comes
from Klipsun, with a small amount of petit
verdot from Olsen. It starts out powerful
and dark, with a heady, almost ashy, scent,
like figs roasted in a fire. The flavors are
sleek and pure, that ash component lending
complexity and depth, with the ripeness and
grip for smoked pork ribs. (337 cases) -P.J.C.

MALBEC
517221

90 | Swiftwater Cellars

$42

2016 Columbia Valley Malbec ^ This is all
Red Mountain fruit, from Heart of the Hill
Vineyard. It's compact and dominated by
oak at first, until air brings out a complex mix
of fruit and spice, from sweet plum to lavender. It's packed into the glass with a toothstaining Red Mountain concentration that
will reward cellar time. (200 cases) -P.J.C.

MERLOT
517140

90 | Helix

$22

2015 Columbia Valley Stillwater Creek
Vineyard Merlot (Best Buy) ^ Well made and
well priced, this merlot has a hint of tar and

$45

2016 Walla Walla Valley Mourvedre ^ A
slightly leathery scent at the outset feels like
classic mourvedre, and the whiff of dried
tomato suggests Walla Walla. The flavors
have a chewy savor-like strawberry fruit
leather dusted with black pepper. Give it
time in the cellar to knit. (110 cases) -P.J.C.

RED BLENDS
516887

92 | Sparkman Cellars

$55

91 | Sparkman Cellars

$55

2015 Columbia Valley Ruby Leigh ^ Chris
Sparkman's merlot-dominant blend comes
in vinous and concentrated, with dark flavors of plums and black cherries, lightly
oaked and finely wrought. It's got plenty of
grip but also a juicy thrust of acid on the finish. Fire up the grill! (210 cases) -P.J.C.
516888
2015 Columbia Valley Stella Mae ^ Stella
Mae is Sparkman's cabernet-focused blend,
and is much darker than its counterpart,
Ruby Leigh, but still possesses a top note of
violets and pine. The flavors are given more
to black fig and cassis accents, deep and
edged with dark tannins, needing something
charry off the grill. (204 cases) -P.J.C.

SYRAH
516972

91 | Long Shadows

$60

90 | Dusted Valley

$62

2016 Columbia Valley Sequel Syrah ^ John
Duval, formerly the chief winemaker at Penfolds, makes this big brute of a syrah in partnership with Long Shadows. His 2016 feels
like it's packed with grape tannins and compressed by its oak. For all that, there are distant scents of pepper and carob, and as the
wine takes on air the texture becomes sleek
and balanced, the tannins yielding a mild
richness. (1,924 cases) -P.J.C.
516950
2016 Walla Walla Valley Tall Tales Stoney
Vine Vineyard Estate Syrah ^ Derived in
part from Dusted Valley's estate vineyard in
The Rocks district, this smells exotic from
the outset, its wild-purple-berry fruit taking
on a cayenne and chorizo savor with air. It's
got a cured-meat flavor that seems feral and
dark, with a richness you'll want to match
with short ribs. (300 cases) -P.J.C. n
WINE & SPIRITS

AUGUST 2019

https://www.swiftwatercellars.com/wine/ https://www.swiftwatercellars.com/wine/

Wine & Spirits - August 2019

Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of Wine & Spirits - August 2019