2000 Seven Hills Walla Walla Cabernet Sauvignon

Well, it's another "Cellar Saturday" and since it's also Washington Wine Month, that means a double heaping helping of great Washington wine!  And for tonight, I've opened a bottle of 2000 Seven Hills Walla Walla Cabernet Sauvignon that I bought at the vineyard on one of my early visits in perhaps 2002 or 2003, or maybe even when I stopped on the way out of the state when I moved from Seattle to Indiana back in 2004.  In any case, I've had this bottle for a while, so tonight's the night to enjoy it!

The wine is a wonderful deep purple in the glass, and the nose is pure Walla Walla Cab, with lovely aromas of rich dark fruit, cassis, ripe berries and figs, with just a hint of sweetness dancing around the edge.  The rich fruit is contained by some lovely earthy notes of leather and tobacco and some interesting Asian spices.  The taste is pure joy, very fruit forward, with a certain dark sweetness of ripe blackberries and strawberries and just the slightest hint of anise, which is a testimony to the quality of the wine with such powerful fruit more than a decade after bottling.  The fruit effortlessly transitions into some lovely mocha and dark chocolate notes midpalate, and then the beautifully structured tannins glide into the long, supple and super dry finish, which belies the sweet fruit at the outset.  This is a bottle that I will be enjoying for a full afternoon/evening!

Overall, I would rate this wine a solid 9, it's one that regardless of the price, I wish I could buy more!  Tonight I am pairing this wine with a lovely rare T-bone, some cheddar mashed potatoes and grilled purple carrots.  The rich fruit of the wine just accents the heartiness of the steak and the rich starch of the carrots and potatoes, it's a perfect mid-winter combination that makes you want to curl up in front of a fire with a good book.  Cheers!