Soft, supple and scrumptious. Aging has definitely softened this and it is ready to drink. Paired with lamb chops and swiss chard w/pancetta for Mothers Day.
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Medium-bodied, hints of eucalyptus, very smooth with plenty of oak (rather more than preferred). Tasted alongside the 2015 Quilceda Creek CVR 2015, and while I’d be happy to have either one as a sipping wine, neither one was quite as delicious as I remembered.
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Good acidity. More forward than most Medoc. Had at a restaurant in Charlottesville with pork chop and beef shortribs. Great nose, low tannin, medium finish.
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Remarkable deft touch, rich but not cloying, complex flavors of cassis, black raspberries, dusty thyme, exceedingly well integrated tannins and a nice backbone of acidity! Bravo!
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Haven’t found a lot of Merlot dominant blends from WA that I like but this is really good especially for $40. Fruit forward, drying, oaky after taste. Long finish. I’ll be looking for this again.
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This was a delicious wine. Three hour decant, and it was smooth, velvety, and very flavorful. Dark fruits, with a hint of tobacco, and earth....just a real nice wine.
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Seems to be entering the drinking window...in style. Tannic enough, fruit-forward, too, this carries interest from the Cab Franc and Petit Verdot, and has a long, juicy finish. Love this blend, even though Merlot-dominant wines aren’t a fav.
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From magnum out of so-so restaurant stems. Not decanted. Very nice depth of fruit and spice with black raspberry, currant, and mint. Thoroughly enjoyable, but not yet complex. I think this might improve with a couple of years. Quite good now, but given a choice I'd hold for a bit longer.
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Notes from memory. Smooth, easy-drinker, took about an hour to open up in the decanter. Nice, plummy, red berries and chocolate mocha, set against a soy savory core. Drinking nice young, consume before 2025. Technical score: 90. Enjoyment score: 92.
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We had this after dinner on 12/21/18. It had a rich, deep nose of black cherry, plum, cocoa, mocha, mineral and spice aromas. The palate was rich and dry with flavors that followed the nose. 90+
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Medium+ ruby color. On the nose black currant, cassis and plum with toasted oak, graphite and baking spice. Medium+ tannins that are firm and drying, but now over the top with a medium- acidity. On the palate the wood spice from the oak treatment comes out with black and red fruit rounding out the profile. A well made wine, that lacks added depth on the palate to merit a higher score.
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Nose: Fresh (just washed) red fruits like cherries and strawberries , soft earth.. slight oak/heat. After some time in the glass, vanilla notes begin to show.
Palate: Great red fruit, minerality, bitterness, earth notes and a slight oak.
Really dark garnet with slight translucency. Dry with soft, smooth yet grippy tannins. Light-plus body. Decent finish of about 4 seconds. Finishes earthy, slightly minerally and some of the red fruit. Great complexity for a Merlot (though it's blended with 3 other grapes which explains why). Really enjoyable, smooth and great initial fruit on on the front and mid-palate. There's a juiciness to this as well. Well made.
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We had this after dinner on 11/9/18. It had a deep, rich bouquet of plum, black cherry, black currant, mocha, cocoa and mineral aromas. The palate was rich and dry with flavors of plum, black cherry, black currant, mocha, cocoa, minerals and spice.
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A 60/40 blend of Merlot and Cabernet Sauvignon including minor percentages of CF and PV, this big-bodied wine shows the power of Washington Merlot. A balanced show of red and blue fruits with cocoa, sandalwood and a touch of wild rosemary.
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I think this bottle has a future but right now it seems dominated by a finish of slightly tart black cherry and cola. I am not finding some of the finesse noticed by others and it might just be I got it at Costco where it sits out in full light for an unknown time. I will wait six months before trying my other bottle.
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My wife and I tasted this at the Carriage House tasting room on 12/22/17. It had deep, rich, harmonious bouquet of black cherry, plum, floral, mocha, cocoa, spice and mineral aromas. The palate was rich, dense and dry with flavors of black cherry, plum, mocha, cocoa, minerals and spice.
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7/31/2023 - golfhawk Likes this wine: 92 Points
Rounded into form with dark rich black fruits. May last a couple more years but in a great place right now.
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5/14/2023 - Gman_21 Likes this wine: 92 Points
Soft, supple and scrumptious. Aging has definitely softened this and it is ready to drink. Paired with lamb chops and swiss chard w/pancetta for Mothers Day.
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9/3/2022 - dgcaldwell Likes this wine: 90 Points
Short decant . Black and blue notes on nose, plus vanilla, medium body, medium finish. Reasonable balance with a touch of acidity.
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1/1/2022 - Twowinechicks Likes this wine: 89 Points
Medium-bodied, hints of eucalyptus, very smooth with plenty of oak (rather more than preferred). Tasted alongside the 2015 Quilceda Creek CVR 2015, and while I’d be happy to have either one as a sipping wine, neither one was quite as delicious as I remembered.
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11/25/2021 - golfhawk Likes this wine: 90 Points
Still a bit tannic but a very good blend. I would give it another year.
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10/12/2021 - vincemcd61 Likes this wine: 92 Points
Paired wonderfully with pastitsio
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9/26/2021 - wboyd Likes this wine:
Good acidity. More forward than most Medoc. Had at a restaurant in Charlottesville with pork chop and beef shortribs. Great nose, low tannin, medium finish.
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8/17/2021 - vincemcd61 Likes this wine: 92 Points
Delicious. Had with leftover Prima’s white pizza with sausage
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8/8/2021 - Bobby the geek Likes this wine: 93 Points
Remarkable deft touch, rich but not cloying, complex flavors of cassis, black raspberries, dusty thyme, exceedingly well integrated tannins and a nice backbone of acidity! Bravo!
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8/5/2021 - vincemcd61 Likes this wine: 92 Points
Wonderful
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5/20/2021 - spacewrangler wrote: 91 Points
Great wine that's got up to a decade to run. Still fairly primary but loads of potential, tasty now with a decant.
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5/4/2021 - vincemcd61 wrote: 93 Points
Delicious. Had with Scarpetta short rib and bone marrow pasta.
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4/29/2021 - vincemcd61 Likes this wine: 92 Points
Love this wine. Had with leftover Beef Wellington
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4/3/2021 - vincemcd61 Likes this wine: 93 Points
Delicious. Had with Swiss and mushroom burgers
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1/29/2021 - vincemcd61 Likes this wine: 93 Points
Love this wine. Had with sausage mushroom and onion pizza with ricotta fresh mozzarella and arugula. Kaboom!
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1/7/2021 - nisid Likes this wine: 92 Points
Lovely wine. Still quite tannic. Needs a hearty piece of meat or a few more years.
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12/26/2020 - Cltjkirk wrote: 93 Points
Haven’t found a lot of Merlot dominant blends from WA that I like but this is really good especially for $40. Fruit forward, drying, oaky after taste. Long finish. I’ll be looking for this again.
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12/3/2020 - vincemcd61 Likes this wine: 93 Points
Love this wine. Had with Pasta Puttanesca.
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12/1/2020 - jmcmchi Likes this wine:
Decanted 90 minutes, ripe cherry and touch of oak on nose
Open on palate while keeping restrained fruit and tannins: quite a sophisticated mouthful
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11/3/2020 - CCestaro wrote: 92 Points
This was a delicious wine. Three hour decant, and it was smooth, velvety, and very flavorful. Dark fruits, with a hint of tobacco, and earth....just a real nice wine.
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10/12/2020 - jroberts86 Likes this wine: 92 Points
Lovely nose with a touch of cedar, tobacco. Medium dark fruit that is just right, not over ripe. Mineral undertones and a nice soft tannin finish.
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10/5/2020 - vincemcd61 Likes this wine: 92 Points
Fantastic wine. Had with Mediterranean one pot pasta. Not very good, but the wine saved the day
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9/4/2020 - dgcaldwell Likes this wine: 90 Points
Red and black fruit, vanilla on nose, medium body with touch of acidity, nice balanced finish.
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8/28/2020 - jroberts86 Likes this wine: 90 Points
Good and very nice. On the way to losing it's luster?
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6/12/2020 - vincemcd61 Likes this wine: 92 Points
Delicious wine. Had with Claudia on her birthday with Prima’s Bella pizza
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12/15/2019 - Neecies Likes this wine:
Ready to go the second the cork's out. Friendly, ripe vintage character, sleek and easy to drink.
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11/30/2019 - Pedroel Likes this wine: 92 Points
Seems to be entering the drinking window...in style. Tannic enough, fruit-forward, too, this carries interest from the Cab Franc and Petit Verdot, and has a long, juicy finish. Love this blend, even though Merlot-dominant wines aren’t a fav.
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11/27/2019 - BRR Likes this wine: 90 Points
From magnum out of so-so restaurant stems. Not decanted. Very nice depth of fruit and spice with black raspberry, currant, and mint. Thoroughly enjoyable, but not yet complex. I think this might improve with a couple of years. Quite good now, but given a choice I'd hold for a bit longer.
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8/21/2019 - Cinsteve wrote:
Ronald McDonald House Charities (RMHC) Gala Wine Wall donation.
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4/14/2019 - scorbett Likes this wine:
Powerful and dense. Black fruit, pencil shavings. Rock solid structure.
Touch too young still; needed over an hour to start showing anything.
Would not drink on its own but it hit the spot with a steak dinner.
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3/2/2019 - Dale M wrote: 91 Points
Decanted 90 min, some initial oak settled back after an hour of air time, sweet, but good structure, enjoyed this.
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1/23/2019 - jlhkiss Likes this wine: 91 Points
Notes from memory. Smooth, easy-drinker, took about an hour to open up in the decanter. Nice, plummy, red berries and chocolate mocha, set against a soy savory core. Drinking nice young, consume before 2025.
Technical score: 90. Enjoyment score: 92.
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1/18/2019 - TashNYC wrote: 90 Points
Faran and Jen finished off this bottle on their own so I dudn’t try any. I heard it was a very good meritage blend.
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12/29/2018 - S+M Wine Likes this wine: 89 Points
Nice wine. Can probably use some more time in the bottle. Will keep the other two bottles for a couple years.
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12/21/2018 - garambler Likes this wine: 91 Points
We had this after dinner on 12/21/18. It had a rich, deep nose of black cherry, plum, cocoa, mocha, mineral and spice aromas. The palate was rich and dry with flavors that followed the nose. 90+
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12/15/2018 - SommJourney05 Likes this wine: 89 Points
Medium+ ruby color. On the nose black currant, cassis and plum with toasted oak, graphite and baking spice. Medium+ tannins that are firm and drying, but now over the top with a medium- acidity. On the palate the wood spice from the oak treatment comes out with black and red fruit rounding out the profile. A well made wine, that lacks added depth on the palate to merit a higher score.
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11/22/2018 - WineBurrowingWombat Likes this wine: 90 Points
Nose: Fresh (just washed) red fruits like cherries and strawberries , soft earth.. slight oak/heat. After some time in the glass, vanilla notes begin to show.
Palate: Great red fruit, minerality, bitterness, earth notes and a slight oak.
Really dark garnet with slight translucency. Dry with soft, smooth yet grippy tannins. Light-plus body. Decent finish of about 4 seconds. Finishes earthy, slightly minerally and some of the red fruit. Great complexity for a Merlot (though it's blended with 3 other grapes which explains why). Really enjoyable, smooth and great initial fruit on on the front and mid-palate. There's a juiciness to this as well. Well made.
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11/9/2018 - garambler Likes this wine: 90 Points
We had this after dinner on 11/9/18. It had a deep, rich bouquet of plum, black cherry, black currant, mocha, cocoa and mineral aromas. The palate was rich and dry with flavors of plum, black cherry, black currant, mocha, cocoa, minerals and spice.
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10/6/2018 - BlancdeBlanc Likes this wine: 90 Points
55% Merlot. 14.1% alcohol. Great fruity nose, taste: dark fruit, chocolate, blueberry, slight tannins, very fruity
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8/24/2018 - Neecies Likes this wine:
A 60/40 blend of Merlot and Cabernet Sauvignon including minor percentages of CF and PV, this big-bodied wine shows the power of Washington Merlot. A balanced show of red and blue fruits with cocoa, sandalwood and a touch of wild rosemary.
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8/4/2018 - Deux Chevaux wrote:
Bright, lovely round and sweet fruit, but with adequate acidity; quite primary at this early stage.
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5/28/2018 - Ben Christiansen wrote:
A very pretty fruit character on the nose. Shows the soft
Merlot on the front and then some grippy Cabernet on the back.
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5/27/2018 - spicy1 wrote: 88 Points
Probably should have waited on this bottle. A decent blend but for $35 (Costco) you can do much better. Maybe it needs a few years more.
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5/15/2018 - Thenewmanshow Likes this wine: 89 Points
Merlot forward blend, fruity at first with dry finish. Solid blend
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4/29/2018 - wmccone54 wrote: 92 Points
Austin Food & Wine Festival: Merlot, Cabernet Sauvignon, CF, and PV blend. Great fruit, nice balance, wonderful structure and long finish.
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4/14/2018 - sporens Likes this wine: 89 Points
The bouquet is fruity cherry with the taste soft and smooth strawberry with a pepper finnish.
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2/19/2018 - spicy1 Likes this wine: 89 Points
I think this bottle has a future but right now it seems dominated by a finish of slightly tart black cherry and cola. I am not finding some of the finesse noticed by others and it might just be I got it at Costco where it sits out in full light for an unknown time. I will wait six months before trying my other bottle.
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12/22/2017 - garambler Likes this wine: 91 Points
My wife and I tasted this at the Carriage House tasting room on 12/22/17. It had deep, rich, harmonious bouquet of black cherry, plum, floral, mocha, cocoa, spice and mineral aromas. The palate was rich, dense and dry with flavors of black cherry, plum, mocha, cocoa, minerals and spice.
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