Winery - Tulpen Cellars
* Expert NoteJanuary 12, 2012
Pure Cabernet sourced from a trio of Walla Walla vineyards, and finished at 14.9% alcohol. Supple and spicy, this displays a firm core of tart fruit, annotated with lead pencil, graphite and charcoal. Though it seems almost deceptively light alongside the Tulpen Merlot, this compact and layered wine is built to age over a decade or more.
0 out of 0 people thought this note was helpful.
* Expert NoteJanuary 12, 2012
Once again the Merlot is the best of a very fine flight of Tulpen wines. More muscular than the Cabernet, it includes 10% Malbec and 5% Petit Verdot in the mix, resulting in a dense, dark wine loaded with black fruits. Polished tannins are lightly layered in streaks of leaf, herb and earth. The alcohol tops 15%, but there is not a hint of heat in the finish.
0 out of 0 people thought this note was helpful.
* Expert NoteJanuary 12, 2012
This Bordeaux blend is three fifths Cabernet Sauvignon, yet deftly weaves in smaller percentages of Merlot, Cab Franc, Petit Verdot and Malbec. Fruit-driven and complex, it’s a smooth ride through fresh fruit flavors of plum, blueberry and cherry, focusing into a finish with ripe, polished tannins.
0 out of 0 people thought this note was helpful.
* Expert NoteJanuary 12, 2012
A Rhône blend that will, in future vintages, not be varietally named, this is far from a standard Washington Syrah. It’s threaded beautifully with nuances of fruit and spice from the Viognier coferment, Grenache and Mourvèdre that are included. Aromatic, spicy and weaving together chocolate, licorice, granite, roasted meat and berry flavors, it is both substantial and forward.
0 out of 0 people thought this note was helpful.
* Expert NoteJanuary 12, 2012
This is 70% Cabernet, 20% Merlot. Dark, tight and loaded with fruits, this balanced, juicy wine has it all—elegance, length, finesse and mouth appeal. Blackberry and black cherry fruits dominate, with light suggestions of pretty leaf, tobacco, earth and some iron.
0 out of 0 people thought this note was helpful.
* Expert NoteJanuary 12, 2012
A juicy, delicious Sangio, whose bright acidity underscores a lush mix of raspberries, blackberries, boysenberries and plum. The alcohol is a substantial 14.8%. The wine benefits from an extra year of bottle age, and is now beginning to hint at grace notes of leaf and tobacco.
0 out of 0 people thought this note was helpful.
* Expert NoteJanuary 12, 2012
Real pretty strawberry fruit shows right away. The 20% Sagemoor vineyard Cabernet Sauvignon in the blend was finished in new Hungarian oak, which does add some assertive spice. It’s got some grip, plenty of acid, and flavors dominated by the new oak.
0 out of 0 people thought this note was helpful.
* Expert NoteJanuary 12, 2012
About 4% of the blend is Malbec; the Merlot is from the Lewis and Gamache vineyards. This is broad-shouldered, with sweet berry fruit jam flavors. The alcohol tops 15%, but there is no discernable heat; it’s supple and the fruit is absolutely delicious.
0 out of 0 people thought this note was helpful.
* Expert NoteJanuary 12, 2012
This tight, chewy, spicy Syrah fills out as it breathes. Though not as big and ripe as the other Tulpen reds, this brings in subtle nuances of herb, spice, mint and white pepper. Bottom line: more structure, but less hedonistic fruit.
0 out of 0 people thought this note was helpful.
* Expert NoteJanuary 12, 2012
A beautiful nose introduces a Cabernet built upon clean, precise, supple yet muscular fruit. This is a really nice bottle, still quite youthful, with beautiful primary fruit scents and flavors. The barrel tannins still need to soften up a bit.
0 out of 0 people thought this note was helpful.
