Merlot -- Horse Heaven Hills, Washington

Today, we've traveled to the Horse Heaven Hills American Viticultural Area (AVA) to drink some of the finest Merlot being produced in the State of Washington. Bordered by the Yakima Valley to its west and the Columbia River to its south, the silty loam predominant in the area at elevations as low as 200 feet/60 meters near the river and as high as 1800 feet /550 meters in the far northern part of the AVA are excellent for growing both Merlot and Cabernet Sauvignon. The strong winds often coming from the Columbia Gorge to the west both stress the typically south-facing vineyards and reduce the risk of fungus and rot.

The weather here is more extreme than in many grape-growing regions we've visited. Typical daytime highs in July are in the low 90s F/ nearly 35C while overnight lows in the winter are often down around 25F/ -4C. Rain is rare during the growing season and even during winter, it snows as much as it rains. But, during the summer, the sun shines on the south-facing slopes and this is perfect for the Merlot we are drinking today.

If you're looking for subtle, this is not it. The wines here are meaty, big, and bold. They're fruit forward and somewhat tannic. And, while you can drink them young, the best Merlot from Horse Heaven Hills will easily lay down for 10 years and often more.

The wines made here with larger production typically use American oak, but the smaller ones typically use French oak, often about half new, just a bit neutral and the remainder used once previously.

If there are complaints about these wines, it's that all the power is in the mid-palate, but to be fair, that's where most of us get most of our enjoyment from wines, particularly those that don't have the extraordinarily long finishes.

Our wines today are loaded with dark berry. In particular, we get blackberries and blueberries, as well as something called a marionberry (I learned last month from Googling that marionberry is a cultivar of a blackberry and is found only in the Pacific northwest), as well as gentle notes of fig and black plum all enveloped by toasty vanilla.

Take some root vegetables and put them on the grill with steak (not aged) for a few minutes and servie with these wines at about 7C/62-63F.








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