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| Drinking Windows and Values |
| Community Tasting History |
| Community Tasting Notes (average 91.4 pts. and median of 91 pts. in 36 notes) - hiding notes with no text | | | Tasted by PhN on 4/10/2022 & rated 90 points: On opening very tannic and not much fruit. That smoothed out in 30 or 40 minutes and became a great dinner wine with lamb meatballs in tomato sauce. Delicious. I do not think this is a long keeper. Drink up. (362 views) | | | Tasted by bluepeter2020@outlook.com on 12/27/2020 & rated 92 points: Complex black fruit and spice, full bodied with a long finish. Drinking beautifully right now. (497 views) | | | Tasted by BarryInSeattle on 6/3/2020 & rated 95 points: Wow. Velvety, full, rich. (601 views) | | | Tasted by Susaninaustin on 10/1/2018: 3 (958 views) | | | Tasted by kmadamskkz on 7/6/2018 & rated 89 points: Dark-dark purple color, aromas of dark fruit, menthol, and black olives. Full bodied flavors of blackberry-blueberry and dark chocolate, full-tilt on the front, but nothing on the back, not very balanced. Drink now. (1043 views) | | | Tasted by kmadamskkz on 4/5/2018 & rated 91 points: Dark purple in color, aromas of cedar box, forest floor, and spice. Very smooth, no rough edges left, blueberry and blackberry with a little earthy nuance. All-in-all a good wine, but mostly primary fruit that lacks a complexity that would make it great. (881 views) | | | Tasted by Nbkat8 on 2/7/2018 & rated 91 points: It was good but I didn't get that great Champoux character out of this one. Will have to wait a year or two to drink the others. (946 views) | | | Tasted by PhN on 5/31/2017 & rated 94 points: This is a marvelous, minty CS in the style of the unfiltered 1960s Krug when Mondavi was making it. Very well structured and ready to drink. I think it is good for a few more years but it is perfect now. The second day left nothing to be desired. Wonderful! (1039 views) | | | Tasted by Pedroel on 12/3/2016 & rated 91 points: Side-by-side comparison with '09 Doubleback, which was better, but not by much. For $30 less, this wins the QPR test. Dusty tannins and black cherry flavor are salient attributes...and a saline juiciness make this very enjoyable. Appears to have plenty of life left. (1021 views) | | | Tasted by jeffhqb on 11/15/2016 & rated 93 points: Day 2 was excellent. Rich and round with fully integrated barrel effects. (864 views) | | | Tasted by JohnSh on 11/11/2016: Lots of reduction in the nose, but the palate seemed relatively unaffected. But this was not a perfect bottle by any means, so no score or notes. (813 views) | | | Tasted by JohnSh on 6/25/2016 & rated 88 points: Had this with the Januik Champoux 2008, and both wines were disappointing, with too much sweetness in the fruit, no structure and a fair amount of oak still. Very soft in the mouth, concentrated and a full bodied palate with blackfruits. Both were OK, but were too ripe and didn't have enough acid or structure for me (B+). (940 views) | | | Tasted by spidersva on 5/30/2016 & rated 89 points: I like it, but I can't say I'm blown away. Maybe too early in the drinking window? (698 views) | | | Tasted by Francophile on 5/24/2015 & rated 91 points: Exceedingly smooth (1011 views) | | | Tasted by Motz on 1/11/2015 & rated 92 points: Not the equal of the 2008 vintage...indeed, not even close. Still a nice wine though. Heavy, extracted, inky, oaky, high alcohol. But, there's something about the Champoux fruit and terroir that comes through...it's ridiculously charming. (1437 views) | | | Tasted by Aravind Asok on 11/30/2014: Yesterday: decanted and had a quick glass with no air time. Heat on the nose, dark fruits, and oak application that seemed glaring. Seemed a tiny bit disjointed on the palate with acidity slightly out of balance, perhaps because of the alcohol. Pretty significant tannin as well. But I would really liked to have tasted this after it had been open for a while.
Day 2: Seems a bit oxidized today. After getting back to drinking temperature, this has mocha and raspberry liqueur notes on the nose, but tending toward the overripe. Still lots of tannin on the palate, but not as nice as other Fidelitas wines I've had recently. Anyway, this is not an optimal tasting. (1270 views) | | | Tasted by blabbott on 11/11/2014: This has a big dark fruit earth nose. The flavors are spicy dark fruit, heavy on the spice with a long dry finish. It's not a "Wow, wish I had tons of this" wine, but it is a very pleasant enjoyable wine. "She" thinks it is a bit "fruit forward/sweet" "He" thinks it is a bit "dry". Don't know what "he" is talking about.. :) (1130 views) | | | Tasted by NavyVet6874 on 12/20/2013 & rated 92 points: Wonderful wine for a special occasion. Very dark ruby; only the outer edge lets any light through. Full nose that made me feel like I was in the cellar surrounded by aging casks. Looong finish. (1775 views) | | | Only displaying the 25 most recent notes - click to see all notes for this wine... |
| Fidelitas Producer website
faithful.loyal.true
The taste of authenticity has rooted itself on the slopes of Red Mountain.
Fidelitas is a boutique winery located on the slopes of the Red Mountain AVA led by owner and winemaker, Charlie Hoppes, an acclaimed Columbia Valley vintner whose first crush in Washington was in 1988. Charlie works in partnership with Washington’s finest growers to capture the distinct character of the vineyard and the purest expression of the fruit. Fidelitas wines are handcrafted and aged in small lots, showing exceptional character, varietal expression and structure.
Visit to Woodinville tasting room.
https://unwindwine.blogspot.com/2018/08/fidelitas-red-mountain-wine-tasting-in.html2009 Fidelitas Cabernet Sauvignon Champoux VineyardFull Pull:
Always a tough wine to source (consecutive 95pt scores for the 2007 and 2008 from Robert Parker’s Wine Advocate don’t hurt), this is going to be even more difficult in 2009, because this is the last Champoux bottling we’ll see from Charlie for several years. Because of damage from the Thanksgiving freeze in 2009, Charlie was not able to harvest Champoux fruit in 2010 nor in 2011, so it will likely be autumn 2015 before we see another Fidelitas Champoux Cab.
100% Cabernet Sauvignon from what is widely considered the finest Cabernet site in Washington, in the competent hands of an experienced winemaker. Need I say more?
Okay, maybe a little more. This is inky black-purple in the glass, and quickly displays the lovely layering of fruit that we all love from Champoux. It starts with cassis and kirsch, then moves to cherries and berries, then onto even more exotic fruits (apricot, guava). Those layers are dense, intense, and tightly-packed, all interwoven with barrel notes of high-cacao chocolate. The graphitic note that can be front and center in cooler Champoux vintages is, in this riper year, more of a grace note, a subtlety, a finishing touch on a wine with length and concentration to burn.Cabernet SauvignonCabernet Sauvignon is probably the most famous red wine grape variety on Earth. It is rivaled in this regard only by its Bordeaux stablemate Merlot, and its opposite number in Burgundy, Pinot Noir. From its origins in Bordeaux, Cabernet has successfully spread to almost every winegrowing country in the world. It is now the key grape variety in many first-rate New World wine regions, most notably Napa Valley, Coonawarra and Maipo Valley. Wherever they come from, Cabernet Sauvignon wines always seem to demonstrate a handful of common character traits: deep color, good tannin structure, moderate acidity and aromas of blackcurrant, tomato leaf, dark spices and cedarwood.
Used as frequently in blends as in varietal wines, Cabernet Sauvignon has a large number of common blending partners. Apart from the obvious Merlot and Cabernet Franc, the most prevalent of these are Malbec, Petit Verdot and Carmenere (the ingredients of a classic Bordeaux Blend), Shiraz (in Australia's favorite blend) and in Spain and South America, a Cabernet – Tempranillo blend is now commonplace. Even the bold Tannat-based wines of Madiran are now generally softened with Cabernet SauvignonChampoux Vineyard About Vineyard (Wikipedia)USAAmerican wine has been produced since the 1500s, with the first widespread production beginning in New Mexico in 1628. Today, wine production is undertaken in all fifty states, with California producing 84% of all U.S. wine. The continent of North America is home to several native species of grape, including Vitis labrusca, Vitis riparia, Vitis rotundifolia, and Vitis vulpina, but the wine-making industry is based almost entirely on the cultivation of the European Vitis vinifera, which was introduced by European settlers. With more than 1,100,000 acres (4,500 km2) under vine, the United States is the fourth-largest wine producing country in the world, after Italy, Spain, and France.Washington Washington Wine Commission | Credit to Washingtonwine.org for this article
Washington Wine
Washington State is a premium wine producing region located in the northwest corner of the United States. Although a relatively young wine industry, it is now the nation's second largest wine producer and is ranked among the world's top wine regions. Washington wines are found nationally in all 50 states and internationally in more than 40 countries.
Wineries
With 30,000+ acres planted, the state has ideal geography and conditions for growing premium vinifera wine grapes. Primarily grown on their own root stocks, the vines produce grapes of consistent quality, resulting in strong vintages year after year. While its focus is on Chardonnay, Riesling, Merlot, Cabernet Sauvignon and Syrah, the region also produces a wide range of other spectacular whites and reds.
Growers
Winemakers from all over the world have chosen to establish themselves in Washington, where they can create wines reflecting this region's unique characteristics. Their hand-crafted wines are receiving wide acclaim from critics regionally, nationally and internationally for their consistently high quality. Many of them have received scores of 90 and above from the major wine media. Overall this is a higher percentage than other leading wine regions.
Regions
As the state's fourth largest fruit crop, the Washington wine industry is an important contributor to the long-term preservation of Washington agriculture. The industry is committed to sustainable agricultural practices and conservation of water resources.
Washington State is a premium wine producing region located in the northwest corner of the United States. Although a relatively young wine industry, it is now the nation's second largest wine producer and is ranked among the world's top wine regions. Washington wines are found nationally in all 50 states and internationally in more than 40 countries.
Varieties
Washington produces more than 20 wine grape varieties - a ratio of 56 percent white to 44 percent red. As the industry matures and experiments, it finds many grape varieties that thrive throughout Washington's microclimates. There are more than 16,000 vineyard acres of red wine varieties statewide.
History & Vintages
Washington's wine future is limitless. As consumers discover the quality of Washington wines, demand continues to grow nationally and internationally. New acreage and wine varietals are being planted and new wineries are opening at a remarkable pace. Washington State is recognized as a premium viticultural region around the world.
State Facts
Washington's wine industry generates more than $3 billion to the state economy. It employs more than 14,000 people, directly and indirectly, with projections to add nearly 2,000 more jobs by 2006. In terms of tax revenues accrued to the state and federal government, wine grapes are among the highest tax generators of any agricultural crops. Furthermore, Washington wine tourism attracts nearly two million visitors annually contributing to the positive growth of local and regional economies.
Washington State - the perfect climate for wine = ideal growing conditions, quality wines, business innovation, lifestyle, and social responsibility. All are key elements of this world-class wine industry.
Vintages
"2008 and even more so 2010 and 2011 were cool, even cold vintages (think: 2002 in the Barossa) without the extreme ripeness, extract and higher alcohol that had become the norm in the state’s post 1995 world. 2008 was manageable but the duo of 2010/2011 nearly caused a “great depression” in Washington State." - Jon RimmermanColumbia Valley Columbia Cascade Winery Association
The Columbia Valley AVA lies mostly in Washington state, with a small section in Oregon. The Cascade Range forms its western boundary with the Palouse regions bordering the area to the east. To the north, the Okanogan National Forest forms a border with the AVA and Canada. It encompasses the valleys formed by the Columbia River and its tributaries, including the Walla Walla River, the Snake River, and the Yakima River. The Columbia valley stretches between the 46th parallel and 47th parallel which puts it in line with the well known French wine growing regions of Bordeaux and Burgundy. The northern latitude gives the areas two more hours of additional daylight during the summer growing season than wine regions of California receive. The volcanic and sandy loam soil of the valley offers good drainage and is poor in nutrients, ideal in forcing the vine to concentrate its resources into the grape clusters.Horse Heaven Hills About AVA (Wikipedia) |
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