2014 Underground Wine Project Cabernet Sauvignon Devil's Playground

Full Pull

• By Paul Zitarelli
  Full Pull Mr. Pink and Mr. Pink's Red Friend (+Spring Release REMINDER), 5/3/2017, (See more on Full Pull...)

  (Underground Wine Project Devils Playground Cab Sauv) Spring Release Event REMINDER: We’re debuting several new wines at a spring release event on Saturday May 6. Our partner winemaker in Block Wines, Morgan Lee, will be in the house from 11am to 3pm, pouring alongside Paul Z. They’ll be pouring the new vintage of Chenin Blanc, the debut of Discovery Vineyard Block 1 Cabernet Sauvignon, and the recently-released Full Pull & Friends sparkling wine. Probably a few other goodies too. You’re certainly welcome to come down after 3pm as well. We’ll be open until 7pm, with our usual band of merry Full Pullers behind the bar from 3-7pm. We're expecting an extra-busy day, so if you’re planning to come down and pick up wine, *please do make an appointment using our online module.* ---- Hello friends. Here at Full Pull, we talk frequently about about the Washington wine community. Collaboration reigns king in our little corner of the country—from a small, online distributor partnering with a Woodinville winemaker on a terroir driven project to individual winemakers coming together to create new labels. Today, we’re offering up one of those special, offshoot labels. The Underground Wine Project is a collaboration between Trey Busch (Sleight of Hand Cellars, Renegade Wine Co.) and Mark McNeilly (Mary Ryan Winery). After well-over a decade of friendship and separate, individual success making wine east of the Cascades, Mark and Trey released their first collaboration wine, Idle Hands. Only 100 cases were produced, and with these two heavy hitters at the helm, it rapidly became difficult-to-source juice. The Idle Hands’ success turned quickly into a full fledged project, with multiple vintages of Washington-style red wines and two vintages of some great-drinking pink. 90% Cabernet Sauvignon and 10% Syrah make up this bold, Washington red from Quintessence Vineyard on Red Mountain. To those of you new to Quintessence, it’s a relatively new player in the Washington wine scene. It was first planted in 2010, but is already a heavy hitter, known for high quality vineyard management and spectacular Red Mountain fruit. Always a good sign: it’s already a major player for some of our favorite Washington wineries (Mark Ryan Winery, Fidelitas) Devil’s Playground spends 24 months in 100% new French Oak before bottling and clocks in at 15% alc. This is a wonderfully Red Mountain wine—opulent yet smooth. It simultaneously feels wild and refined, which is Red Mountain at its best.The nose is big, ripe fruit layered with bittersweet extra dark chocolate, allspice, cinnamon, and clove. On the palate, it’s lush and medium-full bodied with heaping portions of blackberry and black cherry. The 10% addition of Syrah balances the Cabernet, softening the wine on the palate and adding a touch of cassis and smoke. You could absolutely lay this wine down—but also wouldn’t be amiss to drink it sooner with a nice decant.