Country: | United States |
Region: | Washington (Columbia Valley) |
Winery: | Buty Winery |
Grape Type: | Syrah |
Vintage: | 2009 |
Bottle Size: | 750 ml |
The Prisoner Wine Company The Prisoner Red Blend is made from a blend of Zinfandel, Cabernet Sauvignon, Petite Sirah, Syrah, and Charbono.
Bright aromas of ripe raspberry, vanilla, and coconut give way to flavors of fresh and dried blackberry, pomegranate, and vanilla, which linger harmoniously for a smooth and luscious finish.The Prisoner Red Blend was inspired by the wines first made by the Italian immigrants who originally settled in Napa Valley. The Prisoner is now the most recognized red blend, leading the resurgence of interesting blends by incorporating Zinfandel with the unlikely mix of Cabernet Sauvignon, Petite Sirah, Syrah, and Charbono.
On the nose, dried blackberry, dried açai berries, and hints of cedar and tobacco leaf are accented by sweet spices of clove, cinnamon, and nutmeg. Flavors of ripe dark cherry, blackberry coulis, and hints of anise linger harmoniously for a soft, vibrant finish balanced by ripe tannins.
Chef Brett recommends pairing The Prisoner Red Blend with Kalbi Short Ribs or Chicken Mole Tostada.
Vineyards: When you outgrow winemaking tradition, you must forge your own path. And we did. The Prisoner exists because of the collaboration with our growers, many of which have been with us since the very beginning—from the Solari Family Vineyard in Calistoga, where old school sensibilities meet new techniques, to the Korte Ranch in St. Helena, a vineyard whose diligence outlasted the Prohibition and has sustained four generations.
The Walls Stanley Groovy Portuguese Red Blend is made from 37% Touriga Nacional | 16% Cabernet Sauvignon| 13% Tinta Roriz | 13% |Tinta Cao, 9% Souzão | 4% Mourvédre | 4% Grenache | 4% Counoise
The Walls 2021 Stanley Groovy Red Wine Blend was fermented in concrete and open and closed-top stainless steel tanks. Cold soaks for up to 5 days. Maceration ran 18 to 38 days. 100% free-run juice. Aged in 20% new French oak large format vessels. This is a Portuguese-varietal-dominant wine that is currently sourced from the Red Mountain AVA. STANLEY GROOVY is the character displayed on The Walls wines’ labels and the embodiment of our explorative and curious nature.
Robert Mondavi Winery The Estates Red Blend is made from 49% Cabernet Franc, 47% Cabernet Sauvignon, 4% Petit Verdot.
Robert Mondavi’s vision was to elevate Napa to the world stage. In celebration of his achievement, our Napa Tier wines are sourced from distinctive vineyards throughout the Napa Valley and truly emulate a classic Napa Valley style.
Aromas of blackberry, cherry, toasted almond, bay leaf and mocha. Luscious ripe cherry and cassis, with savory notes of dried herbs and toast. Rich, weighty, and mouth-coating, with classic fine To Kalon tannins.
Review:
This has a pretty fragrance of violets, green peppercorns, salted olives, blackcurrants and black raspberries. Creamy, salted dark chocolate and praline to follow. Medium-to full-bodied with fine-grained tannins. Delicious and superbly balanced. 50% cabernet franc, 47% cabernet sauvignon and 3% petit verdot.
-James Sucking 94 Points
The 2019 Red Blend Estate comes all from the To Kalon Vineyard and is close to an even split of Cabernet Franc and Cabernet Sauvignon. It's a clear step up over the base Red Blend and offers terrific, full-bodied aromas and flavors of darker fruits, dark chocolate, violets, and a kiss of spring flowers. With silky tannins, terrific balance, and outstanding length, it's going to evolve for 15 years or so.
-Jeb Dunnuck 94 Points
Red Phoenix Red Blend is made from 57% Zinfandel; 14% Petit Verdot; 12% Petite Sirah; 7% Syrah; 5% Merlot; 5% Cabernet Sauvignon.
With European origins dating back centuries ago, blended red wine is once again having its day in the sun. Red Phoenix Red Wine Blend represents the essence of this well-deserved resurgence. Unbound by a single varietal or appellation, and given more flexibility with vintages, winemaker Joseph Smith skillfully showcases six distinct varietals in this luscious and layered wine. Unlike traditional red blends, Red Phoenix is both barrel aged and barrel fermented, adding structure, balance, and a new dimension to a wine that is rooted in tradition and soars on the palate.
APPELLATION
75% of the fruit is coming from Lodi AVA, while the remaining 25% are Napa Valley AVA's fruits.
Coastal aromas of fresh fruit and lush florals coupled with a deep ruby color intrigue the senses. Bright, bold flavors of cherry and blackberry ascend on the palate while showcasing subtle, smooth tannins. The wine crescendos with anise, chocolate and toasted oak, offering depth and complexity, as velvety flavors continue to linger and evolve throughout the long, rich finish.
Review:
"This rich, velvety, mature and full-bodied wine was made from 93°/o Cabernet Sauvignon. Concentrated blackberry and blueberry flavors are generously accented by milk chocolate. While rather tannic, the mouthfeel is full but not tight. -J.G. "
- Wine Enthusiast (November 2022), 90 pts
Red Phoenix Red Blend is made from 57% Zinfandel; 14% Petit Verdot; 12% Petite Sirah; 7% Syrah; 5% Merlot; 5% Cabernet Sauvignon.
With European origins dating back centuries ago, blended red wine is once again having its day in the sun. Red Phoenix Red Wine Blend represents the essence of this well-deserved resurgence. Unbound by a single varietal or appellation, and given more flexibility with vintages, winemaker Joseph Smith skillfully showcases six distinct varietals in this luscious and layered wine. Unlike traditional red blends, Red Phoenix is both barrel aged and barrel fermented, adding structure, balance, and a new dimension to a wine that is rooted in tradition and soars on the palate.
APPELLATION
75% of the fruit is coming from Lodi AVA, while the remaining 25% are Napa Valley AVA's fruits.
Coastal aromas of fresh fruit and lush florals coupled with a deep ruby color intrigue the senses. Bright, bold flavors of cherry and blackberry ascend on the palate while showcasing subtle, smooth tannins. The wine crescendos with anise, chocolate and toasted oak, offering depth and complexity, as velvety flavors continue to linger and evolve throughout the long, rich finish.
Review:
"This rich, velvety, mature and full-bodied wine was made from 93°/o Cabernet Sauvignon. Concentrated blackberry and blueberry flavors are generously accented by milk chocolate. While rather tannic, the mouthfeel is full but not tight. -J.G. "
- Wine Enthusiast (November 2022), 90 pts
This is a Grenache blend coming from Red Heaven Vineyard on Red Mountain. The name refers to the ramparts surround the City of Avignon in Southern France.
Hand harvested, sorted upon arrival, destemmed, concrete fermentation, combination of punch downs and pump overs, no racked often, 20 day maceration, 18 months in neutral French oak, no fining or filtering, free-run juice, no RS.
Pair with pork rillettes, smoked salmon, goat cheese.
Review:
"The Ramparts offers lots of up-front red and black fruits as well as spicy, peppery, underbrush nuances, medium to full body, fine tannins, and a soft, pure, layered, already hard-to-resist style."
92-94 points -Jeb Dunnuck
Buty The Beast Wildebeest Red Blend 2009 is made from 45% Syrah, 40% Cabernet Sauvignon, 15% Malbec
Nature of the BEAST: BEAST is the rare alter ego of Buty. The elusive and mercurial nature of our BEAST wines, allows us the freedom and spontaneity to explore new varietals, new vineyards and new blends outside of the classic Buty portfolio. While our menagerie of BEASTs has historically only been available through the winery, in the spring of 2010 we released the second generation of BEAST: Wildebeest, Hartebeest and Sphinx. These three BEASTs may be found in fine restaurants and wine shops in our national markets.
Lair of the BEAST: A true denizen of the Columbia Valley, the 2009 Wildebeest ranges far and wide, from the slopes of Phinny Hill Vineyard in the Horse Heaven Hills to LeFore and River Rock vineyards in the Walla Walla Valley.
Season of the BEAST: Though the 2009 growing season started with a cold spring, there were no frost issues, and flowering occurring right around the solstice. A warm August led to a hot September, which brought beautiful ripeness to the fruit. Even so, the grapes maintained relatively modest sugar levels and excellent acidity. Though 2009 was our fastest harvest in memory (32 days from start to finish), every lot had a separate tank, and the quality was exceptional.
Winemaking: Our winemaking efforts focused on accentuating the suppleness and generosity of the 2009 Wildebeest. Each lot was aged separately in the finest French oak for 18 months before blending. In order to allow the Wildebeest to display its full fruit and spice character, most of the barrels were older (from two to 10 years). The alcohol content is 14%
Notes Upon Encountering the Wildebeest:Our 2009 Wildebeest combines poise and power, with suave tannins, perfumed aromatics and a plush, creamy texture. In the nose and on the palate, the Syrah contributes big beautiful licorice and ripe black cherry notes, with the Cabernet adding richness and the Malbec bringing high-tone raspberry and red fruit elements to the blend. Throughout it all, the lush fruit surrounds a core of sleek Washington State acidity that adds length and definition to this handsome BEAST.
The Buty Winery Estate
Pronounced "Beauty", Buty winery was founded in 2000 by owners Caleb Foster and Nina Buty, inspired by a decade of vintages from Washington and overseas. An artisan producer, Buty creates vineyard designated chardonnay, a crisp white blend and nuanced red blends—including Rediviva, Washington’s pioneering blend of syrah and cabernet sauvignon. The Rediviva of the Stones will be grown from the 2008 plantings at Rockgarden, their organic Estate vineyard in the cobblestones of Walla Walla.
Since the spring of 2001 they have worked with Californian consultant Zelma Long. Zelma’s multiple decades of worldwide winegrowing and winemaking offer a great breadth of wine and vine knowledge and a “whole business” perspective to Buty.
The philosophy of winegrowing and winemaking at Buty is one of balance, artisanship and enjoyment, as we aim to capture the essence of the grape in bottle.
The Buty Winery Vineyard
Caleb and Nina purchased 10 acres of apple orchard in Milton-Freewater in late 2006. In 2008, they organically prepared and planted Buty’s Estate, Rockgarden. The famous cobblestones section of the Walla Walla Valley appellation is located in the southeast part of the valley. In the 5% highest elevation of the cobblestones, this Grand Cru section has been the most prized farming section since the Walla Walla Valley was settled over one hundred years ago. Grand Cru is defined and set apart from its neighbors by location, history and consistently superior wines. We waited years to buy only here. Anywhere else further out in the cobblestones would have been a compromise. Developing the Estate with one wine in mind—the Rediviva of the Stones—we have densely planted clones of syrah, cabernet sauvignon, grenache, mourvèdre, marsanne and roussanne.
The Columbia Valley Appellation wines are sourced from six great estate grown vineyards. Caleb’s experience making wine from Champoux and Conner Lee Vineyards spans 16 vintages since 1992. All winegrowing stages are all maintained to Buty’s specific goals from pruning to shoot positioning, prevéraison cluster thinning, water and pest management, and the day and the time of harvest. They exclusively harvest by hand and hand berry sort on a shaker table before fermentation.
Rioja Oriental is blessed with a warm, dry Mediterranean-influenced climate (unlike Rioja’s west, where the climate is more continental). The soils, formed by carbonate sedimentation with diverse colluviums containing deposits of volcanic ophite, quartz, and sandstone, covered with carbonate clay, sand, and silt. At varying depths, there is a poor, cold horizon containing petrocalcic calcium (calcium carbonate) with a distinctive white color—this is prized by many for its ability to impart a mineral-driven finesse to the wine.
Rioja’s eastern-most district is often described as flatter than its western counterpart but make no mistake—there is significant elevation here. The grapes for Propiedad represent the pinnacle expressions of Palacios Remondo’s terroir and come from three estate vineyards: Las Mulgas, Valviejo and Corral Serrano Viejo.
The soils between 0.5 and 2 meters thick are from the Quaternary Period, formed by carbonate sedimentation with colluviums of very diverse origin, containing volcanic ophite, quartz, sandstone, etc. covered with carbonate clay, sand, and silt. The exposure is east/northeast on the Yerga Mountain slopes with vineyard heights reaching between 400-640 meters (1,321-2,099 feet) above sea level with a vine age of 30-94 years old. The grapes were harvested between Sept. 28th and Oct. 6th.
The grapes were destemmed, crushed, and fermented with native yeasts in wooden vats with gentle cap immersion. Maceration took place over 35 days followed by spontaneous malolactic fermentation in barrel. Aging was 10 months in fudres and bocoyes (wooden cask) followed by fining but no filtration.
Propiedad is quite elegant but has remarkable concentration. Dried herbs, strawberry, blueberry, and baking spices ripple over subtle earthy notes and fine-grained tannins. The palate is seamless and beautifully balanced, sporting a mineral verve and seductive mouthfeel. Will age beautifully for a decade or longer.
Review:
Nose: red fruit, ripe fruit, expressive, dried herbs, wild herbs. Mouth: tasty, full, good acidity. , aromatic, varietal
-Guia Penin 95 Points
A blend that is unique in Rioja, this combines mostly Garnacha with around 7% of Tinto Velasco, Graciano and Bobal, all sourced from a six-hectare parcel on the Monte Yerga. Rich, dense and concentrated, with remarkable intensity, focus and balance, nuanced oak and a fine, refreshing finish. 2020-28
-Tim Atkin 95 Points
The old-vine Garnacha 2017 Propiedad was produced with grapes coming from organically farmed vineyards in Las Mulgas, Valfrío, Valviejo and Corral de Serrano in Alfaro, vineyards that are organically farmed. The destemmed and crushed grapes fermented in oak vats with indigenous yeasts and the wine matured in larger oak vats (mostly 5,000-liter) for 12 months. It has the Mediterranean profile of the vintage with some jovial notes of orange peel and red cherries intermixed with aromatic herbs. The palate reveals fine-grained, slightly dusty tannins. The palate has more freshness than what you expect from the notes on the nose. This wine has a good evolution in bottle even in warmer years like this or 2015.
-Wine Advocate 94 Points
A super elegant and silky Rioja with delicate red fruit and milk chocolate aromas, rather than the blueberry and bitter chocolate of so many modern wines from here. Lingering, filigree finish that draws you back to the glass.
-James Suckling 94 Points
Dark ruby color. Aromas of cherry, currant, vanilla bean and hint of tar. Full-bodied, with flavors of cherries, cocoa powder and oak. A touch of sweetness on entry with a little bit of air with soft tannins that are starting to integrate well.
The latest step in the project is Vinsacro (formerly Valsacro) Dioro. The earlier Valsacros were made from a field selection of the older vineyards. Now, thanks to the new facility Amador has been able to build an upmarket version of Vinsacro (formerly Valsacro) with a four-stage selection process that includes an initial field selection of the fruit followed by a second table selection as the grapes come into the winery. After fermentation wine from selected tanks is transferred to new French oak barrels for 12-14 months of barrel age. Finally, the best barrels are set aside for Dioro and the remainder used to "upgrade" the normal Vinsacro.
Vinsacro Dioro is a blend of grapes from 100+ year old "vidau" vineyards where many varieties were planted together in the same plot.
Today the grapes are harvested and vinified separately. The final blend depends on the vintage but typically it's Tempranillo (50%), Garnacha (20%) and remaining 30% is a mix of mainly Graciano (10%) & Mazuelo (10%) with a little of Monastrell (5%) & Bobal (5%).