Wine & Spirits

Details I loved the 2016 Cabernet Sauvignon Lewelling Ranch from winemaker Haley Wight, a blend of 96% Cabernet Sauvignon and 4% Petit Verdot that spent 20 months in 75% new French oak. It shines for its purity and elegance just as much as its richness and depth and gives up medium to full-bodied notes of red and blue fruits, violets, and espresso roast. With silky, ultra-fine tannins, no hard edges, and a great finish, it tastes like it cost 2-3 times the price. 790 cases.Jeb Dunnuck | 95 JD

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Details Tightly coiled and tense at first. Slowly and steadily hinting at the incredible power and concentration in the glass. Orange blossom, beeswax, gunflint, marzipan and Meyer lemon. Precise and powerful on the palate. Solid core of citrus fruit, almond and loquat. Touch of toasted oak. Fresh and light as a feather on the long finish. Hint of malolactic softness and roundness. Pure 2015 with everything in its right place and all senses elevated to a higher level.

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Details Showing a richness in aroma and flavor due to its age but still quite fresh. Enticing aromas of red apple, pear and melon open to a round, creamy mid-palate filled with layers of lemon, pear and citrus flavors, braced by lively acidity. Green apple, minerality and subtle oak notes carry through the lingering finish of this juicy, succulent chardonnay. A versatile food wine. Enjoy now or cellar through 2022.

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Winemaker Notes Expressive, silky, and refined. Jolie is an elegantly transparent Pinot Noir – sharing the beauty of Block 9’s hillsides in every bottle. The wine opens with light-footed red fruit and rhubarb, then blooms into bright raspberry, strawberry and floral notes. A perfectly balanced acidity accompanies the delicate fruit notes across the palate and into a soft finish. Jolie is crafted from Block 9 and clone 115. Block 9's north-facing and south-facing slopes were harvested and vinified separately on parallel tracks and aged in 45% new French oak before the final blend was assembled. 750ML / 14.2% ABV

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92 points Robert Parker's Wine Advocate  The 2009 Art Bus Red is another seductive, totally polished wine from La Sirena and Heidi Barrett. Ripe red berries, crushed flowers, cinnamon and sweet pipe tobacco are layered into the silky, polished finish. This pretty, mid-weight red has plenty of juicy, forward fruit, not to mention considerable sheer appeal. Fifteen percent of the proceeds from the sale of Art Bus are donated to charity. (AG)  (12/2012)

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Wine Enthusiast -Santa Barbara, CA- "Black plum, violet, lilac and a hint of chocolate are well integrated on the tangy yet rich noise of this balanced effort...The wine hits the palate with hefty black cherry, blackberry and elderberry jam flavors, proving thick and impressive atop chalky tannins."

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Winemaker Notes A brilliant and nice Ruby red in color. The nose is delicate, floral and fruity, with red fruits, wild flowers and noble wood fragrance. The wine is fine, subtle in the mouth. The tension is balanced by a delicate tannic structure, and the palate is full of fruits (raspberry, strawberry, blackberry) and spices (pepper, clove). The minerality dominates a long and elegant finale. Meaning "Discovery" in French and produced from the second Estate Vineyard owned by Résonance, the Découverte Vineyard Pinot Noir displays the best of the Dundee Hills AVA. Elegant yet structured, the wine is complex on the nose and palate with classic Pinot Noir aromas and flavors and a long finish. Pairs well with lightly seasoned red meats, chicken, turkey, lamb and root vegetables.

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Winemaker Notes The 2016 wines show an incredible density and concentration, with brilliant red and black fruit and impressive tannins. The 2016 Willamette Valley is a focused wine, revealing a darker nose than the previous vintage, with black cherry and plum accented by hints of violet, dried herbs, and bay laurel. The palate is supported by a backbone of racy acidity which lingers long into the finish and offers bright red fruit along with savory herbs, olive, and a saline edge.

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93 points Jeb Dunnuck  The 2015 Chardonnay Frenchman Hills offers a similar rich, ripe, sexy style, with a touch more minerality as well as toasted nut notions. Deep, rich, concentrated, and opulent, yet always with a fresh style, it's another ripe, toasty, rich Chardonnay to drink over the coming 2-3 years.  (4/2018) 93 points Robert Parker's Wine Advocate  The 2015 Chardonnay Frenchman Hills Vineyard is very attractive, wafting from the glass with notes of buttered yellow orchard fruit, honeycomb, subtle spice and struck match. On the palate, it's medium to full-bodied, glossy and ample, with bright acids, lovely grip and tension and a chalky, flavorful finish. It's a very compelling Washington State Chardonnay. (WK)  (6/2018) 92 points Vinous  Bright yellow-gold. Lively scents of peach, lemon and spices, with a touch of mineral pungency. Silky, fine-grained, seamless wine with a hint of salinity to its complex stone fruit, cyanic apricot pit and brown spice flavors. Lovely umami texture here in a rich but very dry wine. Finishes tactile and long, with a touch of youthful austerity. (From vines planted on broken basalt soil at nearly 1,700 feet.) (ST)  (10/2017)

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This blend of 41% Cabernet Sauvignon, 37% Merlot and 12% Cabernet Franc offers aromas of blackberry cobbler with dark jammy fruit, clove spice and black licorice. Plum and black cherry flavors are balanced by notes of dried herbs, slate and tea on a lingering dry finish. Plenty of structure and integrated tannins make this delicious now, but and age worthy wine as well.

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Founded in 1983 in the Walla Walla Valley, L’Ecole No 41 is one of Washington State’s most iconic and oldest family-owned wineries. Housed in the historic Frenchtown School depicted on our label, we have earned international acclaim for producing distinctive wines of the highest quality. We craft ultra-premium wines that re?ect the unmistakable typicity of Washington State and the unique terroir of our Walla Walla Valley vineyards. Growing and making 100% of our wines, each bottle is handcrafted with a commitment to quality in the vineyards and the winery. More than three decades of winemaking experience, ongoing investments in our Walla Walla Estate Ferguson and Seven Hills Vineyards, and long term relationships with many of the most prominent vineyards in Washington State are central to our well-known reputation for quality and consistency across our wine portfolio. These tenets will continue to sustain L’Ecole well into the future.  L’Ecole is one of the most honored wineries in Washington State. We are proud to be recognized by Wine & Spirits Magazine as a Top 100 Winery of the Year for fourteen consecutive years. In 2014, Decanter awarded our 2011 Estate Ferguson the International Trophy for Best Bordeaux Blend in the World! In 2016, the 2013 Ferguson won the International Trophy for Best New World Bordeaux Blend from the Six Nations Wine Challenge.  

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Winemaker Notes An intense mix of fresh boysenberry, black cherry and plum jump from the glass with cocoa powder, allspice and nutmeg. Its earthy elements of our rocky northern California hillsides include Bay Laurel, sage, cedar, dry red earth which speak to its origins. Supple and balanced tannins of this rich wine lead to a long savory finish with hints of graphite and star anise. It is approachable now and built to cellar.

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