2005 Columbia Valley Red Wine

View Winemaker's Tasting Notes Video

Philosophy

Matthews original intent when entering into the wine business was to create a flagship Bordeaux blend. The Red Wine has always been a benchmark in Washington state and beyond, consistently using all five Bordeaux varietals. Matthews has been producing Cabernet Sauvignon driven wines with all of the power and elegance that made the Paulliac and St. Estephe regions famous, with the added intensity of Columbia Valley fruit. Though the past Red Wines have been a standard for other wineries to benchmark themselves, the 2005 vintage will be the last af the Matthews Estate Red Wines.

Growing Season

A relatively warm to hot year caused a small amount of concern for many of us looking at varietals ripening too quickly and not achieving developed flavor profiles. Luckily the weather cooled in September and October allowing the necessary hang time to develop optimal flavors. Should go down as one of the best vintages in recent memory judging from the wines.

Winemaking

The traditional practice of separating lots initially to judge quality before making a blend was not as easy this year as there was tremendous competition. The result is that there will be a fantastic Red Wine but also a tremendous Claret. This wine was sterile filtered to tone down the structure, but this will also lead to this wine lasting quite a long time.

Winemaker's Tasting Notes

 

A tightly wound nose begins with ripe cherry, black currant and an earthy espresso. A hint of black tea comes out with a small amount of exposure and an intriguing mixture of eucalyptus and toffee, a structured wine with the polished elegance of earlier Matthews Red Wines. This wine will last an easy 15 years plus.