Every
year, this wine is an
exhuberant, lush, lively,
juicy blend of Rhone
varietals. This year
it's 63% Grenache, 10%
Syrah, 7% Mourvedre
from several Yakima
vineyards in Washington.
Sweet and spicy,
the nose has black fruit, plum,
and currant, with a most pleasant
rustic quality incorporating
hints of anise, lavender & sweet
thyme, smoke, and barrel spice.
This dark ruby
colored, opaque wine's flavors
of sweet blackberry, plum, and
black currant are heady, fleshy,
and fruity -- characteristic
of Grenache. Hints of black
cherry and toasty smoke from
Syrah add depth and richness.
This wine expands in the mouth,
offering additional lively sweet
fruit and spice in a long finish.
The tannins are well integrated,
present but seamlessly integrated
with a refreshing acidity and
a dominant sweet fruit flavor.
We
found ourselves commenting on
the hints of a Languedoc-like
"garrigue" of anise, lavender,
and thyme. "Primitive"
and "rustic" attempt to define
a quality of this wine that
one experiences while drinking
a Cotes du Rhone or Coteaux
de Languedoc, preferably in
France under a shady tree on
a warm summer day.
The
label shows the severed hand
of Owen Roe O'Neil- the Irish
patriot whose severed hand
appears on the coat of arms
of winemaker David O'Reilly's
family.
Not currently available to order.
May be out of stock or sold out. Inquire at 541-752-7418 or store@avalonwine.com
Detailed Info, Previous Vintage Notes, Reviews:
Previous Vintage Tasting Notes2005 Vintage tasting notes
Every year, this wine is an exhuberant, lush, lively, juicy blend of Rhone varietals. This year it's 52% Grenache, 39% Syrah, 7% Mourvedre, and 2% Counoise, all from Elerding Vineyard in Washington.
The nose is appealingly bright and fresh, and the flavors are classic Rhone, with great lively, uplifting notes of red fruit. Flavors are of bright, red and black fruits, with lots of white pepper, good acidity and tannins and nothing out of place. Very well made and balanced. There's lots of "back of the mouth" feel in the finish. -jy
2004 Vintage Tasting Notes
Very limited this vintage. An exhuberant, lush, lively, juicy blend of Rhone varietals. Lots and lots of different black fruit and spice flavors with a rich texture and almost liquor-like richness. Blend is 36% grenache, 32% syrah, 22% mourvedre, and 10% counoise. All grapes from the Elerding Vineyard in Alderdale, OR.David says: "All of the fruit is from Steve Elerding's Vineyard in Alderdale in the Mid-Columbia Valley where the Rhone varieties seem to have found a home. The area is just off the Columbia River and so both the summer heat and winter cold are moderated resulting in a long growing season that highlight the edgy personalities of each of the Rhone varietals. This Rhone-styled wine is very dark with enormous fruit flavors and pepper with excellent texture - it will work well with a variety of foods especially spicy fare and dark meats."
"The label is a depiction of a severed left hand that tells the story of a rowing competition among the O'Neills and O'Reillys (Owen Roe was an O'Neill). Whoever touched land first after rowing across the lake was rewarded with the land he touched. Lagging behind, one of the kinsfolk grabs his sword and cleaves his hand and pitches it ashore to touch land first. He won the land and eventually ruled over it as king."
"This year's version has more Grenache and is more fragrant and polished than the previous vintages. It will stand proud against all comers from Chateauneuf-du-Pape. Violet perfume and dark fruits meld nicely with peppery Syrah. A keeper for ten years plus!"
