What a day it's been, working around the yard, raking the leftover leaves from fall and picking up all manner of sticks, and now I'm quite ready for a nice glass of wine. Tonight, I've decided to open a bottle of the recent wine club shipment from Reininger Winery, the 2017 Helix Petit Verdot. Chuck Reininger saw a lot of potential in this varietal, and the Stone Tree Vineyard in the Wahluke Slope AVA of Washington produces some Petit Verdot that rarely disappoints. So, let's see what this wine has to offer!
This vintage featured a warm to hot summer, which resulted in smaller berries and clusters, creating a deep purple color to this wine, very reminiscent of a big bold Cabernet. But a quick whiff in the glass reveals that this wine is not a Cabernet, with floral notes of lilac intertwined with toasted oak and hints of earthy graphite. Take a sip and you're treated to a rush of vibrant, ripe blackberry, cherry and currant that dance around your tongue before opening up to some notes of tobacco and dark chocolate midpalate. The tannins are bold but well structured, creating the perfect foundation for the long, dry finish, with subtle reprise of acidity at the end.
Overall, I would rate this wine a solid 9, as it's just a wonderfully interesting wine to enjoy with dinner, or to just sip on a quiet evening. This wine would pair with a broad range of dished, from braised short ribs to lamb chops, mushroom risotto to a prime filet. But of course, I am taking the road less traveled tonight and am enjoying this wine with some oven roasted salmon, with some lemon dill cream sauce, cilantro lime rice and asparagus with hollandaise. Clearly I couldn't decide on a single bold flavor, and decided to go with bold flavors in every area of my dinner, cheers!
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