2015 Quilceda Creek Columbia Valley Red (CVR)

Dark red-ruby. Briary red and darker berries, spices, licorice, bitter chocolate and mocha on the nose. Juicy and savory on the palate, with berry flavors complicated by notes of black olive and wild herbs. A very nicely balanced second wine with a fine-grained texture, good energy and early accessibility. A line of bitter chocolate oak extends from entry to aftertaste. (ST)

A blend of 81% Cabernet Sauvignon, 11% Merlot and the balance equal parts Cabernet Franc and Petit Verdot, the 2015 CVR Columbia Valley Red Wine offers up a generous bouquet of ripe red cherries, licorice and creamy new oak. On the palate, it's medium to full-bodied, supple and velvety, with an open-knit core and a generous personality, concluding with a chewy, richly fruity finish.

The 2015 CVR Columbia Valley Red Wine checks in as a blend of 81% Cabernet Sauvignon, 11% Merlot and the rest Cabernet Franc and Petit Verdot. It's a great introduction to the estate and offers a creamy, full-bodied, elegant, seamless style that just begs to be drunk. Crème de cassis, kirsch, violets, and incense notes all emerge from this sweetly fruited, pretty, elegant red that has incredibly sweet tannin. I wasn’t able to taste the 2016s from Snohomish, WA based Quilceda Creek, but their 2015s are serious, sexy, opulent wines that check-in near the top of the vintage.