2014 L'Ecole No. 41 Perigee

What a day, full of gathering leaves and getting them up to the street for the city to take in a few weeks.  This is the time of year when we work outside in the cold, then come in to a nice warm meal and a glass of wine.  Tonight I've decided to open up a bottle from one of my long-time favorite wineries in Walla Walla, L'Ecole No. 41, and in particular, one of my perennial favorite blends, the Perigee.  The 2014 vintage is a blend of Cabernet Sauvignon (60%), Merlot (20%), Cabernet Franc (12%), Petit Verdot (5%) and Malbec (3%).  I brought this bottle back with me from my trip to Walla Walla back in August, so let's see how it tastes!

The wine is a deep ruby color in the glass, with nice clarity.  The nose is an elegant blend of leather, blueberry and smoky oak, that exudes richness and thoughtfulness in the blending.  The taste is a rush of ripe black fruit, blackberry and plum that evolve into dark chocolate and tobacco.  The tannins are youthful but refined providing an ideal base for the long, smooth and well structured finish that seems to last a minute or more.

Overall, I'd rate this wine a solid 9, as the Perigee is still one of my all time favorites.  This wine would be fairly versatile with food, but it really deserves to be paired with a nice steak, whether a prime filet mignon or as I'm enjoying tonight, an Angus Porterhouse with baked potato and grilled leeks.  Cheers!