2016 L'Ecole No. 41 Walla Walla Cabernet Sauvignon

Happy Saturday!  Thanks to the snow this past week, my yard is full of snow topped with leaves still, which meant I got a break from leaf blowing and raking today!  So instead I did a bunch of errands around town, and am now ready for a relaxing evening.  And what better way to relax than opening a nice bottle of wine to enjoy, tonight it's a recent wine club selection from L'Ecole No. 41 in Washington.  The 2016 L'Ecole No. 41 Walla Walla Cabernet Sauvignon is a 100% Cabernet from five different vineyards in the Walla Walla Valley AVA, including the Estate Ferguson, Pepper Bridge, Seven Hills, Summit View and Stone Valley Vineyards.  So let's see how this classic Cabernet is shaping up!

The wine is a deep indigo at the center with bright garnet along the edges.  The nose is a beckoning array of blue and black fruit, intermingled with lavender and a a bit of cocoa powder.  The taste is an interesting balance of new world and old world styles, with a new world rush of ripe fruit at the outset, blueberry, blackberry, plum and cherry that break through the door, followed by distinct mineral notes of basalt mixed with tobacco and dark chocolate.  The tannins are nicely polished providing an ideal backing for the long, smooth and exceptionally dry finish that reminds me of a classic Bordeaux.

Overall, I would rate this wine a solid 9, it's a great example of the varietal and truly highlights the differences between the more elevated Cabernet of Walla Walla compared to the more aggressive, in your face Cabernets of Napa.  This wine is an ideal one for fall, pairing nicely with a broad range of dishes from beef short ribs to pasta, steaks and chops to hearty stews.  Tonight I am enjoying this wine with a rare grilled prime New York strip, topped with Bearnaise sauce, some grilled asparagus and a big baked potato.  Cheers!

2013 Casa Natal Malbec Reserva

Good evening!  It's been a remarkably rainy week so far, and I just got back from the gym so I'm ready for a nice glass of wine with dinner.  Tonight I've decided to open a bottle that I bought from Wines Till Sold Out last fall, the 2013 Casa Natal Malbec Reserva from Mendoza Argentina, a blend of Malbec (90%) and Cabernet Sauvignon (10%).  We know many of the best Malbecs come from so let's see how this one stacks up!

The wine is a deep, inky indigo at the center with bright ruby along the edges, just as you might expect from the varietal.  The nose is a luxurious combination of leather, blueberry, violet and graphite that just makes you sit up and take notice.  The taste is a rush of blueberry, blackberry and plum, that transition to some notes of cocoa powder, oak and a reprise of candied plum on the finish.  The tannins are voluminous but well structured, providing for a pleasant, velvety dry finish that doesn't share the sharpness that can be found in Malbec.

Overall, I would rate this wine a solid 8.5, as it's a very pleasant drinking wine and a terrific value for only $15.  This wine practically stands like a gaucho ready to carve up a steak, so it would be perfect with almost any cut of steak, from filet to porterhouse, but tonight I'm taking a slightly different and decidedly old school approach and enjoying this wine with a pan seared veal loin chop along with parsley buttered red potatoes and some steamed asparagus.  Cheers!

2015 Mark Ryan Winery "The Dissident"

Happy Taco Tuesday!  I bet you'll never guess what's for dinner tonight!  But at least the wine is settled, as I've decided to open a bottle of a wine club shipment from Mark Ryan Winery.  I'll admit to being a more recent convert to these wines (what was it 2012?), but I was hooked once I realized where the wines got their names.  And despite letting me reminisce about my grunge days, they are also terrific wine.  The 2015 Mark Ryan Winery "The Dissident" is a blend of Cabernet Sauvignon (55%), Merlot (27%), Cabernet Franc (16%) and Petit Verdot (1%) all from some of the best vineyards in the Columbia Valley of Washington.  So let's see how this one tastes!

The wine is the color and consistency you'd expect from a blend so heavily weighted toward Cabernet Sauvignon and Merlot.  The nose is an earthy rush of smoke, oak and dried herbs intermingled with ripe black fruit, blackberry, cherry and cassis.  The taste is at once a rush of heavy black fruit, blackberry, cherry and a hint of prune that transitions smoothly to some notes of dusty limestone and white pepper midpalate.  The finish is delightful, with nicely polished tannins supporting the long, smooth and voluptuous finish that seems to linger more than a minute.

Overall, I would rate this wine a solid 8.5, as it's a great example of the quality of Bordeaux style blends being produced in the Columbia Valley, but I thought this vintage was just below the 2011 vintage that I last reviewed (see here).  And of course I'm enjoying this wine with some chorizo tacos, though it would pair well with anything from steak to salmon to lamb, or just sipping by itself.  Cheers!

2014 Forgeron Malbec

Happy Wine Wednesday!  It's been a lovely day so why not end it with a wonderful dinner and a nice bottle of wine?  Yes on both counts!  Tonight I've decided to open a recent wine club bottle from Forgeron Cellars in Walla Walla.  I've been a fan of Marie Eve and her wines since I visited there in 2012, or maybe it was 2010, in any case, they have been doing some wonderful things with some less explored varietals in the region, including Malbec.  This particular wine is 100% Malbec from the Stone Tree Vineyard (89%) on the Wahluke Slope in Washington's Columbia Valley with the remainder from the Minnick Hills Vineyard (11%) in the Walla Walla Valley.  So let's see how this one tastes!

The wine is a stunning, deep purple color in the glass, picture perfect for Malbec.  The nose is a symphony of aromas that bring you to images of gauchos in the Andes of Argentina, leather, smoke, black cherry and hints of white pepper spice and mocha over the top.  The taste is refined and complex, pretty much the opposite of a big, gut punching Cabernet that's so popular among so many today.  There is a rush of ripe fruit up front, cherry, pomegranate and currant that transition effortlessly to some notes of peppery dark chocolate midpalate.  The finish is just the best part of this wine, with incredibly polished tannins supporting a velvety smooth finish that seems to last the better part of five minutes.

Overall, I would rate this wine a solid 9, maybe even a 9.5 as this has to be one of the best Malbecs I've had.  This wine practically begs to be paired with a big hunk of beef, and it would certainly be delicious with a prime ribeye, but tonight I am going off the rails again, pairing this wine with a lovely grilled mango marinaded pork tenderloin with grilled peppers and Brussels sprouts.  The wine just brings out the richness of pork while the complex fruit just makes the perfect complement.  Cheers!