2009 Marie's View
THE STORY:
Washington State endured a cool, wet spring, pushing bud break/fruit set back almost three weeks. A hot, dry summer provided catch-up heat units. The first peculiar feature of this harvest was that merlot ripened a week later than usual but cab ripened a week early. The normal break between merlot and cab during harvest did not occur. The second main feature of 2009 harvest was that just as cab, syrah, and cab franc reached 25 brix a freeze-out occurred on October 11 ending almost all grape maturation and destroying most canopies. This created an enormous rush to hand-pick all hanging fruit. Thank goodness Wallula has early-maturing clones and sites!!! We were still able to achieve complex flavors while keeping our alcohol low by using cold-soaking and cool fermentations.
Harvest Note: Approximately 26 brix at picking.
PRODUCTION
194 cases
RELEASE DATE
September 6, 2014
| Vintage | 2009 |
| Varietal | Red Blend |
| Varietal Composition | 25% Cabernet Sauvignon
25% Syrah
25% Merlot
13% Petit Verdot
6% Cab Franc
6% Sangiovese |
| Appellation | Horse Heaven Hills |
| Vineyard | Wallula |
| Aging | 50% new Millet French oak and 50% neutral French oak for 24 months, then blended to a neutral tank for 3 months of flavor profile assimilation. |
| Fermentation | Soaked on skins for 15 days with cool fermentation |
| Alcohol | 14.50% |
| Wine Style | Red Wine |
| Volume | 750 ml |
| Bottling Date | 04/03/2012 |
91 POINTS - Wine Advocate
"More lifted and perfumed, with notions of violets, potpourri, exotic spice and cedar intermixed with plenty of raspberry, blackberry and red plum, the 2010 Marie’s View is full-bodied, balanced and layered on the palate, with juicy acidity and building, fine-grained tannin that emerge on the finish. A blend of 25% Cabernet Sauvignon, 25% Merlot, 25% Syrah and the balance Petit Verdot, Sangiovese and Cabernet Franc aged 24 months in 50% new and 50% neutral French oak barrels, it walks a fine line with regards to volatility, yet manages to hold everything together and is a beautiful drink. I’m less bullish on the drink window here, but it will certainly evolve gracefully for a decade."
100% Wallula Vineyard
Considered by some to be the best vineyard site in Washington state, Wallula Vineyard is a picturesque growing location nestled high above the mighty Columbia River south of Kennewick. The vineyard is planted on south-facing slopes which vary from 2% up to 30% grade and its perimeter totals 9 miles of varied terrain. Of this perimeter, the shore of the Columbia River provides nearly 3.5 miles of waterfront. From the river's edge at 320 feet above sea level, the property climbs a distance of nearly 3.5 miles to its peak elevation of 1367 feet. The lower elevations of the property provide ideal growing conditions for ultra-premium reds while conditions at the upper elevations allow for high quality whites to be grown. The river is of utmost importance as the water acts as a massive insulator where during the day heat accumulates quickly and at night it provides a cooling effect once the sun goes down.
Wallula's beauty as well as its suitability to winegrapes is due in part to the huge Missoula floods that raced down the Columbia River during the last ice age. The surging waters deposited Shano silt loam soils on the site, and carved the steep, basalt-rimmed canyon walls atop which the vineyards are planted.
Rob Newsom
Rob Newsom, the Louisiana-born founder of Washington State’s already legendary Boudreaux Cellars, was inspired and tutored by Leonetti Cellar icon Gary Figgins. This former professional alpinist, ice climbing pioneer, and developer of the Gore-Tex fly-fishing wader, is known widely for his bold, rich cabernet sauvignons. Never afraid to experiment, smooth exotic blends are one of Rob’s specialties.
His background in musical performance, cooking and grilling, scientific analysis, and marketing combine with his sly sense of humor and global experience to make Rob engaging and entertaining. Rob was chosen as Seattle Magazine’s Best New Winemaker of the Year in 2007. He is serving his second term on the board of directors of the Washington Wine Institute and also serves on the board of Acoustic Sound, Inc. producers of Wintergrass.
