July 7, 2021 - A few more years really helped this bottle. After the first bottle put the other two in my area of the cellar for wines that we didn't really like but thought I would try it again. Wow! What a change. This is the first time I've experienced the "dumb" stage they talk about in wine. Bursting with flavor.
April 11, 2020 - Decanted 1 hour. Seriously good Cab, as I would expect from this producer and Red Willow Vineyard. Creme de Cassis, black cherry, tobacco and earth, wrapped in dark chocolate and sprinkled with ground espresso. Very tasty! Drink now - 2029+.
January 3, 2020 - Pnp. Much more approachable than it was 15 months ago. Really enjoyed this time around. Red willow fruit shines. Long finish. A Fantastic QPR at $35 after three years on its belly.
Ex animo “by my own hand, from the heart”
March 15, 2019 - I opened this at a friends after returning from dinner at Francisco's on 3/15/19. It had a rich, ripe nose of smoke, black currant, black cherry, blackberry, burnt toast, sage, cinnamon and spice aromas. The palate was ripe and jammy with flavors of black currant, black cherry, blackberry, burnt toast, licorice, cinnamon, pepper and spice.
February 16, 2019 - I opened this for our 2/16/19 Cabernet Sauvignon tasting. It had a deep, rich, ripe nose of smoke, black currant, blackberry, black cherry, mocha, sage, cinnamon, pepper and spice aromas. The palate was dense, rich and layered with flavors of black currant, blackberry, black cherry, burnt toast, cinnamon, pepper and spice.
September 7, 2018 - Double decant. Consumed over 4 hours. Red and blue fruits, black pepper, Tobacco. As expected it has a very long and chewy tannic finish. This is a great qpr and a good drink though slightly disappointing. I intentionally seek out wine from this vineyard and some of my favorite wines include Adams bench red willow cab and Avennia Sestina. I will try another bottle in the next year or two and report back.
May 4, 2018 - We tasted this at the Mark Ryan Woodinville tasting room on 5/4/18. It had a deep, dark, brooding bouquet of black currant, blackberry, plum, mocha, sage, cinnamon, pepper and spice aromas. The palate was rich, ripe, dense and dry with flavors that followed the nose.
May 3, 2018 - Hommage a DryCab - Washington Wines release; 5/3/2018-5/5/2018 (Various spots in Walla Walla): Dark and intense and perhaps not really a breakfast wine, but we're on vacation. Nice dry style with still a very prevalent fruit in that almost sour red fruit style. It's got a touch of pepper. The Vino Volo form says brooding and I like that description for it.