Last night, we opened a bottle of GraEagle RedWing from Nicholas Cole Cellars. The GraEagle is 49% cabernet sauvignon, 39% cabernet franc and 12% merlot. We first tried it at Taste of Walla Walla, but this was the first time we’d had a chance to drink it on its own.
Drinking it by itself confirmed what I thought when I tried it at the Taste – this is an outstanding wine. Even at the Taste, where my taste buds suffered a non-stop onslaught of wine after wine, the GraEagle stood out (even more than Nicholas Cole’s higher-end blend, Camille). I like the change of pace from the other red blends I’ve had lately, most of which have included grenache, petit verdot, malbec and other obscure varietals. I think the subtle flavors of a grape like malbec get lost in a blend.
That’s definitely not the case with the cabernet franc in the GraEagle. After an initial burst of fruit (mostly cherry), the wine has a nice spice to it – lots of pepper influence from the cab franc. The pepper mellows out into a long tobacco finish. It’s almost like each varietal takes over from the last in succession – fruit from the merlot, spice from the cab franc and finally, the reserved and more earthy flavors of the cab sauv. The wine is neither very acidic nor very tannic, which makes it very easy to drink (although it could stand to be slightly more tannic – it had a weaker mouthfeel than I would have expected).
A review of the wine in Wine Press Northwest says that the fruit came from a series of high-end vineyards – Klipsun, Champoux – even DuBrul – but the label and the website are mute on the subject. With the balanced acidity, it’s easy to believe that someone took a great deal of care with the fruit. Likewise, at pressing, you have to imagine that the winemaker was extremely judicious, given the gentle tannins.
I have not seen this wine for sale almost anywhere. Less than 2,000 cases were produced. We were lucky enough to stumble upon it at Bennett’s Bistro on Mercer Island for $29. It’s a little spendy, but worth it. This is easily one of the best wines I’ve had in several months.
Tags: GraEagle, Nicholas Cole Cellars, Walla Walla
