Opened this gem to share with wonderful friends as a treat. This is my first Quilceda Creek wine! Initial pour right after opening, beautiful opaque garnet, the legs were slow to form. The nose was constrained and initial taste was tight. Double decanted then left to rest for an hour. Second taste the air really began to open up this wine, the legs formed quick and thin. Nose was big dark fruits, black cherry, tannins were silky. Waited another hour (2 hours from opening) the wine is beautiful and amazing. Structured and balanced. At 4 hours the wine had fulled opened and was a beautiful experience.
Food pairing, Ribeye, needs the beef & fat to complement the big Cab Sav. Roasted Brussels sprouts and pancetta wrapped asparagus.
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Decanted 90 minutes before service. In the glass, dark maroon at the rim, shading quickly to near-impenetrable black at the core. On the nose, damp pine forest, incense, and currants. On the palate, cassis liqueur and more pine, with tannic structure asserting its presence on the mid-palate and the long finish. Comes across as youthful, but it is approachable now with a bit of air. Another five years will be beneficial.
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Encore bien ample et tout en jeunesse. Grosse matière, des mures et des poivrons avec une peu d'épices. Les tannins sont serrés et la finale hyper longue assèche un peu. Jeune et brutal en ce moment.
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This wine is singing right now. If you like big bold, dark fruit, tannic, well balanced Cabernets, you came to the right place. this wine is in the sweet spot.
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Wow! What an outstanding wine that I would put in the league of a JP Insignia; not kidding. Dark flowery nots and wood are in the nose. The palate is full of blackberry, blueberry, oak, hint of coffee, tobacco, and glycerin. There is still some chewy tannins in the finish that lasts for 30 seconds. Drink it alone or savor it with a coal fired steak. I have 1 more and should have bought more.
Drank over 2 nights. The tannins are integrated and the fruit powerful. Black and blue fruits. This seems to be the opening of a wonderful drinking window. Enjoy!
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Restaurant purchase, decanted half the bottle but little time to breathe before getting into this. Spice and dark fruit on the nose, seems primary, but not as tight as I recall from my notes from 6 months ago.
Palate is heavier on tannins than fruit, reinforcing my criminal infanticide. Tannins are fine grained, lacking the time to integrate and soften as last experienced. Tons of blackberry, hint of graphite and crushed stone; this went well with tonite's fillet w bone marrow and king salmon, but clearly needs at least 3-4 hours of air. Assume with added ageing and/or air this will meet or exceed my earlier 94/5 ratings
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First sample follows a splash decant. Nose is darker than the typical QC Cab, and is tight. Tons of black fruit are well integrated with sweet, satiny tannins,And the wine has opened up rest of the way in just a few minutes. Look forward to watching this evolve throughout the evening.
Two hours later the nose is largely unchanged.The pallet is opening up a bit more, showing blackberry, tobacco The finishes focused front to mid pallet and lasts 20 to 30+ seconds. This is showing incredibly well this evening, and will continue to improve in the coming years. No rush at all.
Maybe it's the wrong season! And my score is increasing exponentially with time in glass (I didn't decant). Nose of graphite, black fruit, tobacco, herbaceous; a touch of darkness, astringency. Brooding. Dark.... Very nice mouthfeel and finish. Very well made. I may give this a much higher score in cold weather!? Haha!
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Popped & poured to end the night. Fabulous Bordeaux style red blend. All the classic characteristics of a French Bordeaux with Washington big red grapes. Cab heavy but that is what it should be. Delicious with many years left to hold this if you want.
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Notes follow two hours of air from the bottle, but not decanted. Blueberries and sweet fruit on the nose, really dark profile w a solid grip on the stems.
Sweet red and dark fruit on the palate with a silky mouthfeel
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The nose is all forest floor and wet gravel, very nice and fragrant. 1h of air and the wine is really good, mostly red fruit notes and a nice and long finish.
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Double decant and then left open for 12 hours. Jam packed with Black, blue and red fruits. Pencil lead and ground coffee. A very serious wine. This is a bruiser. Really thought I gave it enough air but felt that somehow it needed more. Beautiful nose. Amazing texture. Med-long finish. It’s a very well made wine though I find the aggressive oak treatment on these to be really distracting. It’s like the oak just sits on top. Will wait another 5 years before I open my last bottle.
Just to follow up. This was much much better on day 3. Oak had blown off some. Very dry finish.
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Slow ox for 5 hours, drank over the next 3 hours. A little disappointed as the wine was slightly hot and shut down. Decided to put in fridge overnight and try the next day. After opening the wine and allowing the wine to warm to about 60 degrees the Palengat came to life. Fine tannins, balanced with just the right acidity. Notes of plum, earth and graphite, combined with a much longer finish the wine came into its own. Had I not tried the wine the second day I would have scored it in the 92-93 range. However after an extra 24 hours the wine was most enjoyable and a very solid 95 and, given the tannins and exquisite balance, a possible 96 in the future.
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Decanted for 2 hours and the wine continued to evolve all night, needs more air or cellar time. Great Bordeaux blend that is well worth the $95 I paid upon release.
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An evening of CdPs++ with Aaron_Maxwell and Tiffany_Kerry; this was a ++. A_M had decanted and consumed--with others, I hasten to add- most of this the night before; 5 hour decant + whatever amount of time he had this open; I had about half a glass. I don't normally review under such circumstances (I had a similar experience with a '16 Cheval des Andes which was disappointingly bland yesterday which I'm not otherwise writing up), but thought this so distinct it was worth capturing. My first QC, although I have a '06 reserve cab at home. Very powerful notes of dark berries, cherries, loamy earth, forest floor, camphor, semi-sweet chocolate and oak, with similar notes on the palate. Deep purple, full-bodied, thick legs. Medium++ complexity, powerful intensity, medium persistence; a slightly clipped finish is one of the few things I'd criticize. Powerful but mostly silky tannins, light+ acidity, no heat. This wine is interesting and delicious with strong savory notes and was holding up brilliantly despite lots of air. I'm not familiar with the bottling or even the winery but suspect that, like the Sinatra song, the best is yet to come with this wine, although if you have several bottles, nothing wrong with popping one now if you give it some air. Had it on its own so can't evaluate it with food, but suspect it would work pretty well with most red meat and savory dishes. 94-95+
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Decanted for ~5 hours, and it's drinking better and better every moment I allow it to get more air. I'll have another glass tomorrow and comment back if I discover more.
Drank with Tiffany_Kerry <3
Medium purple appearance, bubbles collecting along the sides after the pour.
Smells intensely like plums, cherry compote, baking spices, and it's hot with booze on the nose too, lighting up your nostrils. It smells young and sharp. The oak and heat blend together on the nose, so I can't distinguish the oak well.
I love the fruit forward, tannic nature of this wine. This is screaming with dark blackberry/blueberry bramble. The cassis cuts through strongly, and there's a gentle leather & smoke note as well with a sprinkling of black pepper. This is a jammy wine, not sweet, but with that thicker texture on your palette, riddled with dark chocolate savoriness.
It's a big, bold wine -- and it is complex. But it's lacking in finesse of complexity (at today's young age).
It finishes rather abruptly after the fruit punch leaves. The tannins linger, and they're not delicate today. Medium-low acidity and strong tannins give a big backbone to this wine. It held up well during dinner complementing a Texas wagyu ribeye.
93-95 and punching well above its price. No reason to think this couldn't go the distance with another 20-40 years in the cellar.
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I’ve been a Quilceda fan for years. Their modern style wines consistently exhibit finesse, power and delicious fruit. If I was to have one criticism, sometimes they lack a bit in complexity or representation of terroir. That said, I’ve never not enjoyed one of their wines. The 2014 QC Palengat is no exception yo this general description. Bottom line: These guys and gals are pros!
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Needed about 4 hours to open up. Cassis, brambly blackberry, black cherry, plum, flowers, herbs, smoke, minerals, graphite, new leather, and vanilla on the nose. The floral aspects are rather pretty. Plum, blackberry, black cherry, licorice, earth, herbs, red cherry, vanilla, and a little wood on the palate. Fairly low acidity, fine but mouthcoating tannins, long, delicious finish. Yup, it's Quilceda. Modern, big, concentrated. You know what you're getting yourself into.
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My first experience with Quilceda Creek and I was not disappointed. Purchased for our first quarter Cabernet wine dinner. Decanted for 60 minutes at home, then back into the bottle for travel. Poured into a decanter at dinner and served within 30 minutes. Rich, but not overbearing with black fruit flavors on the palate. Fine grain tannin on the finish. Entering a beautiful drinking window. Will definitely seek out another bottle for my cellar
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Floral bouquet upon opening, drank half the bottle out of the decanter after allowing it to breathe for 45 mins, with the balance enjoyed directly from the bottle 1.5-3 hours after opening.
Black fruit, bramble, dark chocolate are dominant on the nose after 90 mins of air. Approach is silky but quickly yields a 20+ second dry, tannic finish. Well-balanced blackberry, dark plum and dark chocolate, with hints of vanilla and toasted oak flavors. This is really drinking well, though the early tannins are a sign of its youth, and capacity to age well for 8-10+ years. Solid wine and QPR. Next bottle late '20-early '21
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Floral bouquet upon opening, drank half the bottle out of the decanter after allowing it to breathe for 45 mins, followed the balance directly of the bottle 1.5-2.5 hours after opening.
Dark black fruit, bramble, dark chocolate are dominant on the nose after 90 mins of air. Approach is silky but quickly yields to a 20+ second dry tannic finish; well-balanced blackberry, dark plum and dark chocolate, with hints of vanilla and toasted oak. This is really drinking well, though the early tannins are a sign of its youth, and capacity to age well for 8-10+ years. Solid wine and QPR.
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With a rich nose of leather and cedar, this wine jumps from the glass in an enticing manner. Quite a bit less acidic than my last bottle of over a year and a half ago, this wine is in a very nice place. Very... very long finish with primary notes of chocolate and dark fruit complimented by pleasant and distinctive secondary notes of chalk, tobacco and spearmint. A most unique wine that is entering a very good drinking window. Definitely a fun and unique wine that should pair well with a nice filet.
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Nose of tobacco, milk chocolate, cedar. Silky smooth texture with a chocolate milk like richness. On the palate, cherry compote, blueberry pie, and rich pipe tobacco. I'd like to have another case or two.
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A bramble, textured expression of a fruit-driven new world blend, one that took on nice complexity as a result, with fine grained tannins and a lingering finish. A touch overripe for me. Give it time to settle down.
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Quilceda Creek VIP Tasting (Esquin Seattle): Deep purple color and long legs. The nose was fairly earthy with hints of caramel amongst the dark fruit. The palate was slightly acidic, with sharp/bold tannins. I would definitely hold for another 5 years before opening. Overall, this has some great potential, especially after the bouquet starts to come together.
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83% Cab with 13% Merlot and Cab Franc. Medium plus nose shows black fruits, bramble, herbal tone, violets. Palate very expressive, layers of black fruits, coffee grounds, juicy layers, structure frames things nicely, big style but elegant at the same time. Great example of WA and American Cab in general.
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PNP at restaurant, so no formal notes. Benefitted from some air, nice Bordeaux blend with steak. Still mostly primary, but balanced red fruit and very enjoyable. Loses a bit for QPR. Can drink now but will improve with a few more years.
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Took a 3 hour decant from cellar temperature to open up. Sweet red fruits, smooth and balanced. Wine was initially too acidic, but it settled down over time. Had with lamb. The wine did not over power the dish. Not extremely complex, but nicely done. Drank this next to 2013 Roy Piper Napa Cabernet. Roy’s wine was bigger and more complex. The Quilceda held its own although technically Roy’s wine was slightly better. My guess is that the Napa cab will age better than the Palengat.
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This wine is drinking wonderfully. Probably not the most complex example (yet) but so smooth, silky, seductive and balanced. It has power and body but is still quite elegant with pure not too ripe cool forest fruit. I do not take price into consideration for my ratings but at roughly 95 bucks this cuvée gives a lot of Napa wines a run for their money.
TN: Black and blue forest berries, dark chocolate, and just hints of forest floor and graphite. Very good texture and mouthfeel with smooth tannins, enough freshness, good tension and great balance. Some points deducted for the not overly expressive nose and a youthfulness lack of complexity. Nevertheless, this put a smile on my face with every sip (until the waiter mistakenly cleared away our remaining glasses when we left the table for short moment).
Decant: Drank at a restaurant. No extended decant but the wine needed just 20 minutes in the glass to begin to shine. Nevertheless, I would give it some 1 or 2 hours of air to be even more expressive.
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Excellent. I wish I had bought more than 2 bottled during my allocation. Decanted two hours, but also tasted right after opening. Dark cherry in color, vibrant nose of ripe fruit, blackberry, black cherry, chocolate, baking spices. Full bodied, but not over the top. Well balanced. Pepper and spice on the finish. Opened up over the evening and continued to drink very well for a few hours.
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Hitting this a touch early - still a little bitey but in that way that the vampire seems pretty cool and getting bitten isn’t so bad, particularly since the post-bite lifestyle is so seductive. And it’s that weird thing that you are getting bitten but also biting back, savoring the dark fruits, cedar, glycerin and dry tree bark. I don’t remember drinking that much, but the bottle is empty and I don’t think I will welcome the sunrise.
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PnP, great Bordeaux style, tart, black cherry, cassis with soft tannins and slightly acidic. Great with Easter ham. Slight layers of spice, most likely will continue to improve over the next few years.
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Nicely balanced, fine tanins, nuanced fruits, plum, blackberry and black pepper, lighter mouth feel. Finer and more subtle than a lot of Washington blends and nowhere near the blast of a big California can. Used the coravin on this one.
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rich lush structure, fruit forward, bright red fruit, red currants, some mineral, well balanced, warming, very enjoyable, a significant step up from the CVR in my opinion -paired well with bitter greens in salad -enhanced sweetness
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4/17/2024 - Sp@rk Likes this wine: 94 Points
Needed 1-2 hr of air initially but the wine was singing after that. Velvety smooth tannins and savory.
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4/14/2024 - jcbrand Likes this wine: 96 Points
Entered into WA / OR red over $75 tasting and it crushed the competition. Great balance, big fruit, lots of time left on this one.
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3/31/2024 - JHwineDrkr Likes this wine: 96 Points
Opened this gem to share with wonderful friends as a treat. This is my first Quilceda Creek wine!
Initial pour right after opening, beautiful opaque garnet, the legs were slow to form. The nose was constrained and initial taste was tight. Double decanted then left to rest for an hour. Second taste the air really began to open up this wine, the legs formed quick and thin. Nose was big dark fruits, black cherry, tannins were silky. Waited another hour (2 hours from opening) the wine is beautiful and amazing. Structured and balanced. At 4 hours the wine had fulled opened and was a beautiful experience.
Food pairing, Ribeye, needs the beef & fat to complement the big Cab Sav. Roasted Brussels sprouts and pancetta wrapped asparagus.
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7/16/2023 - jshufelt wrote: 92 Points
Decanted 90 minutes before service. In the glass, dark maroon at the rim, shading quickly to near-impenetrable black at the core. On the nose, damp pine forest, incense, and currants. On the palate, cassis liqueur and more pine, with tannic structure asserting its presence on the mid-palate and the long finish. Comes across as youthful, but it is approachable now with a bit of air. Another five years will be beneficial.
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2/22/2023 - maxima wrote: 90 Points
Encore bien ample et tout en jeunesse.
Grosse matière, des mures et des poivrons
avec une peu d'épices. Les tannins sont
serrés et la finale hyper longue
assèche un peu.
Jeune et brutal en ce moment.
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2/16/2023 - peterk Likes this wine:
Still a baby!
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2/14/2023 - BobbaWA Likes this wine: 92 Points
Valentines Day treat -- didn't knock my socks off early on, but got better. Lead pencil mixed with cassis.
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12/29/2022 - ptelgenh wrote: 95 Points
This wine is singing right now. If you like big bold, dark fruit, tannic, well balanced Cabernets, you came to the right place. this wine is in the sweet spot.
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12/24/2022 - handyb wrote:
Gsbsnsj
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10/19/2022 - HeavyPourWine Likes this wine: 92 Points
Very nice. Needed about 45 minutes to really open up.
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8/7/2022 - aerosol Likes this wine: 95 Points
Wow! What an outstanding wine that I would put in the league of a JP Insignia; not kidding. Dark flowery nots and wood are in the nose. The palate is full of blackberry, blueberry, oak, hint of coffee, tobacco, and glycerin. There is still some chewy tannins in the finish that lasts for 30 seconds. Drink it alone or savor it with a coal fired steak. I have 1 more and should have bought more.
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5/22/2022 - Indywinefan Likes this wine: 94 Points
Great wine. I do like 2014 Quilceda Creek estate wine better.
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4/30/2022 - carlb128 Likes this wine:
Best wine of the night
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4/20/2022 - KenCT Likes this wine: 95 Points
Drank over 2 nights. The tannins are integrated and the fruit powerful. Black and blue fruits. This seems to be the opening of a wonderful drinking window. Enjoy!
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2/26/2022 - ta75 Likes this wine: 94 Points
6 hour decant, went through some different phases. Overall the taste was best 6+ hours in.
Round, cedar, tobacco, dark juicy cherry, leather, sweet spices. Hedonistic and world class.
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2/22/2022 - davidandrose Likes this wine: 94 Points
Restaurant purchase, decanted half the bottle but little time to breathe before getting into this. Spice and dark fruit on the nose, seems primary, but not as tight as I recall from my notes from 6 months ago.
Palate is heavier on tannins than fruit, reinforcing my criminal infanticide. Tannins are fine grained, lacking the time to integrate and soften as last experienced. Tons of blackberry, hint of graphite and crushed stone; this went well with tonite's fillet w bone marrow and king salmon, but clearly needs at least 3-4 hours of air. Assume with added ageing and/or air this will meet or exceed my earlier 94/5 ratings
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1/27/2022 - ptelgenh Likes this wine: 94 Points
Big and bold. Drink now if you like that style I do and it was awesome
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1/21/2022 - Bob23 Likes this wine: 93 Points
Still a touch too hot - needs another year or two
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9/11/2021 - davidandrose Likes this wine: 95 Points
First sample follows a splash decant. Nose is darker than the typical QC Cab, and is tight. Tons of black fruit are well integrated with sweet, satiny tannins,And the wine has opened up rest of the way in just a few minutes. Look forward to watching this evolve throughout the evening.
Two hours later the nose is largely unchanged.The pallet is opening up a bit more, showing blackberry, tobacco The finishes focused front to mid pallet and lasts 20 to 30+ seconds. This is showing incredibly well this evening, and will continue to improve in the coming years. No rush at all.
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8/11/2021 - MJMorris55 Likes this wine: 97 Points
Great nose, beautiful deep color, flavors of blueberry, blackberry and a light herbal note...maybe fresh sage. Delicious.
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7/26/2021 - dlcass Likes this wine: 95 Points
Maybe it's the wrong season! And my score is increasing exponentially with time in glass (I didn't decant). Nose of graphite, black fruit, tobacco, herbaceous; a touch of darkness, astringency. Brooding. Dark.... Very nice mouthfeel and finish. Very well made. I may give this a much higher score in cold weather!? Haha!
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7/12/2021 - krhaugh Likes this wine: 96 Points
Popped & poured to end the night. Fabulous Bordeaux style red blend. All the classic characteristics of a French Bordeaux with Washington big red grapes. Cab heavy but that is what it should be. Delicious with many years left to hold this if you want.
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3/18/2021 - Tsliwinski Likes this wine: 96 Points
Nice Bdx style cab. Firm tannic structure with rich red fruit and game and forest floor make this a nice complex Washington St wine
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12/5/2020 - davidandrose Likes this wine: 93 Points
Notes follow two hours of air from the bottle, but not decanted. Blueberries and sweet fruit on the nose, really dark profile w a solid grip on the stems.
Sweet red and dark fruit on the palate with a silky mouthfeel
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11/22/2020 - Myman24 Likes this wine: 95 Points
The nose is all forest floor and wet gravel, very nice and fragrant. 1h of air and the wine is really good, mostly red fruit notes and a nice and long finish.
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10/31/2020 - Clark W Griswold Likes this wine: 93 Points
Double decant and then left open for 12 hours. Jam packed with Black, blue and red fruits. Pencil lead and ground coffee. A very serious wine. This is a bruiser. Really thought I gave it enough air but felt that somehow it needed more. Beautiful nose. Amazing texture. Med-long finish. It’s a very well made wine though I find the aggressive oak treatment on these to be really distracting. It’s like the oak just sits on top. Will wait another 5 years before I open my last bottle.
Just to follow up. This was much much better on day 3. Oak had blown off some. Very dry finish.
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10/6/2020 - Justinwine wrote: 93 Points
The more bottle age the better this gets.
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9/20/2020 - TXRDW wrote: 95 Points
Slow ox for 5 hours, drank over the next 3 hours. A little disappointed as the wine was slightly hot and shut down. Decided to put in fridge overnight and try the next day. After opening the wine and allowing the wine to warm to about 60 degrees the Palengat came to life. Fine tannins, balanced with just the right acidity. Notes of plum, earth and graphite, combined with a much longer finish the wine came into its own. Had I not tried the wine the second day I would have scored it in the 92-93 range. However after an extra 24 hours the wine was most enjoyable and a very solid 95 and, given the tannins and exquisite balance, a possible 96 in the future.
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8/31/2020 - GaryHOhio Likes this wine: 95 Points
Decanted for 2 hours and the wine continued to evolve all night, needs more air or cellar time. Great Bordeaux blend that is well worth the $95 I paid upon release.
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6/22/2020 - sfwinelover1 Likes this wine: 95 Points
An evening of CdPs++ with Aaron_Maxwell and Tiffany_Kerry; this was a ++. A_M had decanted and consumed--with others, I hasten to add- most of this the night before; 5 hour decant + whatever amount of time he had this open; I had about half a glass. I don't normally review under such circumstances (I had a similar experience with a '16 Cheval des Andes which was disappointingly bland yesterday which I'm not otherwise writing up), but thought this so distinct it was worth capturing. My first QC, although I have a '06 reserve cab at home. Very powerful notes of dark berries, cherries, loamy earth, forest floor, camphor, semi-sweet chocolate and oak, with similar notes on the palate. Deep purple, full-bodied, thick legs. Medium++ complexity, powerful intensity, medium persistence; a slightly clipped finish is one of the few things I'd criticize. Powerful but mostly silky tannins, light+ acidity, no heat. This wine is interesting and delicious with strong savory notes and was holding up brilliantly despite lots of air. I'm not familiar with the bottling or even the winery but suspect that, like the Sinatra song, the best is yet to come with this wine, although if you have several bottles, nothing wrong with popping one now if you give it some air. Had it on its own so can't evaluate it with food, but suspect it would work pretty well with most red meat and savory dishes. 94-95+
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6/20/2020 - AaronMaxwell Likes this wine: 94 Points
Decanted for ~5 hours, and it's drinking better and better every moment I allow it to get more air. I'll have another glass tomorrow and comment back if I discover more.
Drank with Tiffany_Kerry <3
Medium purple appearance, bubbles collecting along the sides after the pour.
Smells intensely like plums, cherry compote, baking spices, and it's hot with booze on the nose too, lighting up your nostrils. It smells young and sharp. The oak and heat blend together on the nose, so I can't distinguish the oak well.
I love the fruit forward, tannic nature of this wine. This is screaming with dark blackberry/blueberry bramble. The cassis cuts through strongly, and there's a gentle leather & smoke note as well with a sprinkling of black pepper. This is a jammy wine, not sweet, but with that thicker texture on your palette, riddled with dark chocolate savoriness.
It's a big, bold wine -- and it is complex. But it's lacking in finesse of complexity (at today's young age).
It finishes rather abruptly after the fruit punch leaves. The tannins linger, and they're not delicate today. Medium-low acidity and strong tannins give a big backbone to this wine. It held up well during dinner complementing a Texas wagyu ribeye.
93-95 and punching well above its price. No reason to think this couldn't go the distance with another 20-40 years in the cellar.
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5/30/2020 - Dough Boy Likes this wine: 95 Points
I’ve been a Quilceda fan for years. Their modern style wines consistently exhibit finesse, power and delicious fruit. If I was to have one criticism, sometimes they lack a bit in complexity or representation of terroir. That said, I’ve never not enjoyed one of their wines. The 2014 QC Palengat is no exception yo this general description. Bottom line: These guys and gals are pros!
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5/7/2020 - GlenviewGSW Likes this wine: 92 Points
A full bodied , full throttled Cabernet from Washington. Deep purple with chocolate notes
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1/4/2020 - rmh66 wrote: 93 Points
Needed about 4 hours to open up. Cassis, brambly blackberry, black cherry, plum, flowers, herbs, smoke, minerals, graphite, new leather, and vanilla on the nose. The floral aspects are rather pretty. Plum, blackberry, black cherry, licorice, earth, herbs, red cherry, vanilla, and a little wood on the palate. Fairly low acidity, fine but mouthcoating tannins, long, delicious finish. Yup, it's Quilceda. Modern, big, concentrated. You know what you're getting yourself into.
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1/3/2020 - themuzzle wrote: 94 Points
My first experience with Quilceda Creek and I was not disappointed. Purchased for our first quarter Cabernet wine dinner. Decanted for 60 minutes at home, then back into the bottle for travel. Poured into a decanter at dinner and served within 30 minutes. Rich, but not overbearing with black fruit flavors on the palate. Fine grain tannin on the finish. Entering a beautiful drinking window. Will definitely seek out another bottle for my cellar
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12/15/2019 - davidandrose Likes this wine: 94 Points
Floral bouquet upon opening, drank half the bottle out of the decanter after allowing it to breathe for 45 mins, with the balance enjoyed directly from the bottle 1.5-3 hours after opening.
Black fruit, bramble, dark chocolate are dominant on the nose after 90 mins of air. Approach is silky but quickly yields a 20+ second dry, tannic finish. Well-balanced blackberry, dark plum and dark chocolate, with hints of vanilla and toasted oak flavors. This is really drinking well, though the early tannins are a sign of its youth, and capacity to age well for 8-10+ years. Solid wine and QPR. Next bottle late '20-early '21
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12/15/2019 - davidandrose Likes this wine: 94 Points
Floral bouquet upon opening, drank half the bottle out of the decanter after allowing it to breathe for 45 mins, followed the balance directly of the bottle 1.5-2.5 hours after opening.
Dark black fruit, bramble, dark chocolate are dominant on the nose after 90 mins of air. Approach is silky but quickly yields to a 20+ second dry tannic finish; well-balanced blackberry, dark plum and dark chocolate, with hints of vanilla and toasted oak. This is really drinking well, though the early tannins are a sign of its youth, and capacity to age well for 8-10+ years. Solid wine and QPR.
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11/8/2019 - TXRDW wrote: 95 Points
With a rich nose of leather and cedar, this wine jumps from the glass in an enticing manner. Quite a bit less acidic than my last bottle of over a year and a half ago, this wine is in a very nice place. Very... very long finish with primary notes of chocolate and dark fruit complimented by pleasant and distinctive secondary notes of chalk, tobacco and spearmint. A most unique wine that is entering a very good drinking window. Definitely a fun and unique wine that should pair well with a nice filet.
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11/7/2019 - royalscam Likes this wine: 95 Points
Solid 95, not sure why undervalued by wine community/industry. Solid cab at all levels
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11/3/2019 - cawineaux Likes this wine: 96 Points
Nose of tobacco, milk chocolate, cedar. Silky smooth texture with a chocolate milk like richness. On the palate, cherry compote, blueberry pie, and rich pipe tobacco. I'd like to have another case or two.
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8/20/2019 - JonnyG Likes this wine: 92 Points
A bramble, textured expression of a fruit-driven new world blend, one that took on nice complexity as a result, with fine grained tannins and a lingering finish. A touch overripe for me. Give it time to settle down.
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8/15/2019 - Winning_Wines wrote: 93 Points
Quilceda Creek VIP Tasting (Esquin Seattle): Deep purple color and long legs. The nose was fairly earthy with hints of caramel amongst the dark fruit. The palate was slightly acidic, with sharp/bold tannins. I would definitely hold for another 5 years before opening. Overall, this has some great potential, especially after the bouquet starts to come together.
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8/5/2019 - GTFreek wrote:
83% Cab with 13% Merlot and Cab Franc. Medium plus nose shows black fruits, bramble, herbal tone, violets. Palate very expressive, layers of black fruits, coffee grounds, juicy layers, structure frames things nicely, big style but elegant at the same time. Great example of WA and American Cab in general.
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5/12/2019 - Maphill01 Likes this wine:
PNP at restaurant, so no formal notes. Benefitted from some air, nice Bordeaux blend with steak. Still mostly primary, but balanced red fruit and very enjoyable. Loses a bit for QPR. Can drink now but will improve with a few more years.
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3/17/2019 - yaCellar Likes this wine: 92 Points
Much, much too young. The tannins rip your tongue off, even after a couple hours of decant.
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12/26/2018 - Jimaronson Likes this wine: 93 Points
Took a 3 hour decant from cellar temperature to open up. Sweet red fruits, smooth and balanced. Wine was initially too acidic, but it settled down over time. Had with lamb. The wine did not over power the dish. Not extremely complex, but nicely done. Drank this next to 2013 Roy Piper Napa Cabernet. Roy’s wine was bigger and more complex. The Quilceda held its own although technically Roy’s wine was slightly better. My guess is that the Napa cab will age better than the Palengat.
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11/24/2018 - Cailles wrote: 95 Points
This wine is drinking wonderfully. Probably not the most complex example (yet) but so smooth, silky, seductive and balanced. It has power and body but is still quite elegant with pure not too ripe cool forest fruit. I do not take price into consideration for my ratings but at roughly 95 bucks this cuvée gives a lot of Napa wines a run for their money.
TN: Black and blue forest berries, dark chocolate, and just hints of forest floor and graphite. Very good texture and mouthfeel with smooth tannins, enough freshness, good tension and great balance. Some points deducted for the not overly expressive nose and a youthfulness lack of complexity. Nevertheless, this put a smile on my face with every sip (until the waiter mistakenly cleared away our remaining glasses when we left the table for short moment).
Decant: Drank at a restaurant. No extended decant but the wine needed just 20 minutes in the glass to begin to shine. Nevertheless, I would give it some 1 or 2 hours of air to be even more expressive.
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11/17/2018 - Wine-ding Down wrote: 98 Points
Double decanted.
10:30AM from bottle carafe and 4PM from carafe back to bottle. Will decant again at dinner at Chop’s Lobster Bar with the Craig’s.
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9/29/2018 - wdcwineguys Likes this wine: 94 Points
Excellent. I wish I had bought more than 2 bottled during my allocation. Decanted two hours, but also tasted right after opening. Dark cherry in color, vibrant nose of ripe fruit, blackberry, black cherry, chocolate, baking spices. Full bodied, but not over the top. Well balanced. Pepper and spice on the finish. Opened up over the evening and continued to drink very well for a few hours.
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4/14/2018 - Buffy the Wine Slayer Likes this wine: 92 Points
Hitting this a touch early - still a little bitey but in that way that the vampire seems pretty cool and getting bitten isn’t so bad, particularly since the post-bite lifestyle is so seductive. And it’s that weird thing that you are getting bitten but also biting back, savoring the dark fruits, cedar, glycerin and dry tree bark. I don’t remember drinking that much, but the bottle is empty and I don’t think I will welcome the sunrise.
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4/1/2018 - TXRDW wrote: 94 Points
PnP, great Bordeaux style, tart, black cherry, cassis with soft tannins and slightly acidic. Great with Easter ham. Slight layers of spice, most likely will continue to improve over the next few years.
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11/10/2017 - Quiet Lion Likes this wine: 95 Points
Decanted for three hours. Young wine, young vines, but showing beautifully. Don't be afraid to drink these young with some air.
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10/13/2017 - nzinkgraf wrote:
Yes, much more nicely balanced after the 2014 CVR. A savory Cabernet. Light baking spice palate.
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10/5/2017 - akpace wrote: 93 Points
Nicely balanced, fine tanins, nuanced fruits, plum, blackberry and black pepper, lighter mouth feel. Finer and more subtle than a lot of Washington blends and nowhere near the blast of a big California can. Used the coravin on this one.
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9/29/2017 - AlbertaOenologist Likes this wine: 94 Points
rich lush structure, fruit forward, bright red fruit, red currants, some mineral, well balanced, warming, very enjoyable, a significant step up from the CVR in my opinion
-paired well with bitter greens in salad -enhanced sweetness
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