Stay local for Labor Day. Here are some Northwest wines that have recently hit our shelves with enough variety for everyone.
2020 Rock Meadow Cellars, Viognier $13
From Lake Chelan a very affordable Washington white the showcases a smooth rich body with notes of peach and pear and a touch of spice.
2018 Sparkman, Apparition Roussanne $13
Apparition offers a beautiful bouquet of white currants, white flowers, honeysuckle, and toasted brioche that opens up beautifully with time in the glass. It has a honeyed pineapple lushness, and at the same time, clean, vibrant zest and brine notes, while staying perfectly balanced on the palate.
2020 Patricia Green, Sauvignon Blanc $27
Willamette Sancerre. There are less than 30 acres of Sauvignon Blanc planted in the Willamette Valley and Patricia Green works with three sites including their estate to craft this cuvee. The nose shows lychee and tropical fruits with a hit of melon and a bit of citrus. The palate is light with good acidity and a flavor set of orange blossom, lychee and melon.
2019 Roots, Autre Monde Un Syrah $19
This Columbia Gorge Syrah from Roots has enough earth, mineral notes to make it closer to Rocks District than Red Mountain, and the lack of new wood makes it a tad ,dare we say, European.
Two Mountains, Hidden Horse Red No.18 $14
Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot, Malbec, Cabernet Franc
More elegance than muscle, this good value Washington Red opens with rich aromas of dark fruits, tobacco and white pepper followed by flavors of blackberry, dark cherry and vanilla, framed in toasty oak.
2017 Fall Line, Cirque $26
84% Cabernet Franc, 16% Cabernet Sauvignon
Cirque Red Wine is cut from the same cloth and has a complex, Bordeaux-like bouquet of cedary herbs, graphite, crushed flowers, and cassis and black raspberry fruit. Beautifully complex, nuanced, and layered, it’s not massive by any means yet is seamless, balanced, and just glides over the palate.
2017 Animale, Cabernet Franc Reserve $25
Grown at a cool-climate vineyard site, these grapes developed complex flavors as they struggled to ripen during the 2017 growing season. Fragrant mix of blueberries and plum with piquant roasted red peppers. Flavors of black currant, plum, pomegranate, citrus peel, sassafras and savory spice. Firm acidity and fruit tannins provide balance.
2017 Animale, Petit Sirah Reserve $25
Aged in neutral oak barrels, this Petit is packed with aromas or fresh blackberries, with hints of pencil, Frangelico, eucalyptus, celery, fresh-cut grass, and fresh-ground white peppercorns. Flavors of blackberry syrup, fruit leather, and lemon zest, with hints of cranberry, and black tea.
2018 Di Stefano, Horse Heaven Hills Cabernet Sauvignon $15
75% Cabernet Sauvignon, 25% Merlot
Super smooth and polished, this wine is less about the rusticity of previous vintages, and more about immediate drinkability. Crushed blackberries, Bing cherry and vanilla oak notes flow on a soft palate of ripe, fine tannins that finish smooth. Was $29 now $15