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Cathedral Ridge Winery Holiday Celebration
The Governor Hotel, Portland, OR
Tasted December 4, 2008 by RPerro with 1,015 views
Introduction
Cathedral Ridge Winery's annual holiday celebration party at The Governor Hotel Ballroom. I attended with Kristina and Trish.
Flight 1 - White Wine Station (4 notes)
A collection of current release white wines. The 2006 Dry Riesling was gone by the time I arrived.
White
2007 Cathedral Ridge Pinot Gris
85 points
Very crisp, with granny smith apples on the nose and palate. Some hazelnut on the finish that is surprising.
White
2007 Cathedral Ridge Chardonnay
88 points
Very buttery and smooth. I really enjoy CR's chardonnays. Nice minerality with great body.
Rosé
2007 Cathedral Ridge Rosé
87 points
Very tasty. I think this included some merlot and/or syrah grapes in it...Quite tasty, with flavors of peaches and a short, sweet finish redolent of flowers.
White
2007 Cathedral Ridge Riesling
84 points
Quite sweet, with a solid backbone of mineral and apples. Good, but I've had better Rieslings.
Flight 2 - Pinot Noir Station (3 notes)
A collection of current release Pinot Noir wines.
Red
2007 Cathedral Ridge Pinot Noir
82 points
Much thinner than I like...spicy and fruity, but lacking body and structure. Cherry fruit, but a forgettable wine.
Red
2007 Cathedral Ridge Pinot Noir Huber Vineyard
87 points
Much tastier than the regular Pinot bottling, this had much more prominent cherry fruit, with a nice acidty to integrate everything together. Finish is short, but with a nice spicy 'zing'.
Red
2007 Cathedral Ridge Necessity Red
84 points
A blend of Pinot Noir and Zinfandel. Interesting blend, but not my style. Some fruitiness from the Zin, and some earth from the Piniot, but this wine doesn't really come together properly.
Flight 3 - Red Wine Station (5 notes)
A collection of current release red wines. I did not taste the 2006 Zinfandel.
Red
2007 Cathedral Ridge Merlot
88 points
Nice and fruity, I was surprised this was drinking so well this soon. Big plum fruit, with some spicy vanilla oak on the finish. This has some potential!
Red
2007 Cathedral Ridge Cabernet-Merlot
88 points
This one seems to be a tad young yet. I still have a bottle of the 2006, and it's just starting to drink very well, so I think this could use another year. Raspberry fruit, with light tannins on the finish.
Red
2006 Cathedral Ridge Bordheauxd Red
88 points
While I was very impressed with the 2005 vintage of this wine, this one is somewhat of a letdown. Spicy raspberry fruit and earth, reminding me of (surprise) a Bordeaux. More time required!
Red
2006 Cathedral Ridge Cabernet Sauvignon
90 points
Nice fruit, blackberry and cherry. Fairly intense right now, with tight tannins that dry the mouth out. Needs more time for sure.
Red
2006 Cathedral Ridge Syrah
91 points
Very nice nose of blackberry, pepper and violets, following to the palate. Finish has some nice pepper in it, and light tannins. Tasty stuff!
Flight 4 - Reserve/Specialty Wine Station (4 notes)
A collection of current release reserve wines.
Red
2006 Cathedral Ridge Pinot Noir Reserve Bangsund Vineyard
90 points
Very much in the style of Pinot Noir I like. Lots of cherry fruit, earth, tobacco leaf, with a smooth finish of spicy chocolate. Tasted blind, I would not have called this one a Pinot.
Red
2006 Cathedral Ridge Cabernet Sauvignon Reserve
91 points
Quite bold in style, reminding me of a Cali Cabernet. Pretty big tannins at the moment, so I'd lay this one down for another couple years. Tasty blackberry fruit and a lot of oak on the finish.
Red
2006 Cathedral Ridge Syrah Reserve
92 points
Blackberry fruit for days, with spicy black pepper and tobacco. Just like the regular Syrah, plus one.
Red
2006 Cathedral Ridge Rock Star Red
93 points
Wine of the Night for me. Take all of the best things about the Reserve Cabernet and the Reserve Syrah (50% of each) and put them together, you will have this wine. Very complex, with well-integrated tannins, big fruit and pepper flavors, and a touch of earth and flowers to make it interesting. Delicious!