Well this has been a sunny Sunday, so I took advantage and spent the last five hours blowing and raking leaves! Ironically enough I think that may be more time than I spent enjoying the shade of said leaves this past summer! So after that fun I am ready to relax with a nice glass of wine, and tonight it's a wine that's been six years in the making, though it only arrived within the last couple weeks, the 2013 Reininger Cima. Cima means peak in Italian, and this super Tuscan style wine is an ode to Chuck Reininger's mountaineering days and is crafted of Sangiovese and Bordeaux varietals with an extended time aging in barrel before release, similar to many of the best known Italian wines. This vintage is a blend of Sangiovese (41%), Cabernet Sauvignon (27%), Merlot (27%) and Petit Verdot (5%) from the Pepper Bridge, Seven Hills and XL Vineyards in the Walla Walla Valley of Washington. I had a chance to barrel taste this vintage on a visit to Reininger in 2017 (see here:
2017 Vacation to Walla Walla Wine Country - Day 2) and it's been waiting six years, let's see how this wine tastes!
The wine is a lovely ruby color in the glass, with nice clarity, a tribute to the heavy emphasis of Sangiovese in the blend. The nose is a lovely tribute to Tuscany, with aromas of leather, smoke, dried violets and pipe tobacco amid ripe berry fruit. The taste is a rush of cool fruit, cherry, plum, black raspberry and loganberry that just dance around your palate before easing into notes of Asian spice and vanilla bean midpalate. The soft tannins and bright acidity provide for a velvety mouthfeel and an elegant dry finish that lingers for a minute or more.
Overall, I would rate this wine a solid 9, as this one is certainly on par with the
2006 and
2007 vintages, and extends the streak from
2011 and
2012. This wine would pair well with a variety of hearty fall dishes, from roast beef to stew to hearty steaks and mushroom risotto. Tonight I am enjoying this wine with a wonderful Italian dinner of linguine with mussels simmered in red wine and San Marzano tomatoes. Cheers!
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