Vinous

• By Stephen Tanzer
  Focus on Washington: The New Normal (Nov 2018), 11/1/2018 (link)

  (L’ecole No. 41 Apogee Estate Pepper Bridge Vineyard Washington Red) Subscribe to see review text.

JebDunnuck.com

• By Jeb Dunnuck
  Latest Releases from Washington State, 4/5/2018 (link)

  (L'Ecole No 41 Apogee Pepper Bridge Vineyard) Subscribe to see review text.

JamesSuckling.com

• By James Suckling
  3/18/2018 (link)

  (L’Ecole No 41 Walla Walla Valley Apogee Pepper Bridge Vineyard, Red, United States) Subscribe to see review text.

Full Pull

• By Paul Zitarelli
  Full Pull Quality Will Out, 12/7/2018

  (L'Ecole No. 41 Apogee Pepper Bridge Vineyard) Phenol55 REMINDER: Full Pull has partnered with Phenol55 for *optional* storage services for our list members. P55 is a full-service wine cellar less than ten minutes from our warehouse, in the subterranean basement of the Malt House in the heart of Georgetown. See here for more details, and then contact Phenol55 if you’re interested in signing up. ----- Hello friends. I love writing about L’Ecole No. 41. Not only because they’re Washington stalwarts who have been doing it – and doing it well – for a very long time, but also because they offer a roadmap for how Washington wineries can mature and evolve and maintain relevance. I feel like Marty Clubb and his team nail a few important principles: 1. It all starts with the land. Focus on estate vineyards and high-quality partners. 2. Stay loyal to the vineyards and wines that brought your initial success, but don’t be afraid to expand and innovate. 3. Quality will out. Trust your own assessment of quality more than the whims of fashion, and that good enough wines will always find a market. Today we’re offering a trio of wines that encapsulate these principles; one from a new estate vineyard, one from a long-time vineyard partner, and one from an old estate vineyard.L’Ecole has been working with Pepper Bridge, the dark king of the Walla Walla Valley, since 1993. This is their flagship Pepper Bridge wine, so they use only the best material from the site, including many of the vineyard’s oldest vines. In 2015 it’s a Cab-dominant, four-variety BDX blend – 60% Cabernet Sauvignon, 25% Merlot, 10% Malbec, 5% Cabernet Franc – aged for two years in French oak, 50% new. In most years, Pepper Bridge is notorious for producing tightly wound brooders that take years to unfurl. Not so in 2015, warmest vintage on record; this is a remarkably accessible version of Apogee. I’m certain that you *could* still age this for 10 or 15 years, but would you want to, when there’s this much up-front pleasure? It has Pepper Bridge’s signature robust structure, but here it’s paired to loads of plush fruit, all blackcurrant/violet/soil goodness. The finish (which sails on and on) is just-right chewy and redolent of earl gray tea. Jeb Dunnuck: Copyrighted material withheld.