WTN: A Pair of 1989 Quilceda Creek CS

Enjoyed a simple dinner of beef fillets (in Dawn's peppercorn sauce) with creamed fire-roasted corn with mild white cheddar and anaheim chili. We paired this with the two 1989 CS bottlings from Quilceda Creek.

1989 Quilceda Creek - Washington - Cabernet Sauvignon
Shows a matured color of garnet throughout, with a bit of browning right at glasses' edge, but still fairly saturated. The nose opened quickly , fairly reeking of vanilla, black cherry and something typically herbal. Very wonderful nose. You could really smell this from across the table, even outside on the patio - as soon as the wine was poured. The mouthfeel presents a fairly unresolved tang of acid, not my favorite thing in a cabernet and something quite surprising from such a ripe year. This seems a familiar pattern for this type of nose and this house, at least for the early years. I was the only one at the table who objected to the mouthfeel however. Flavors are spot-on for me with that close-knit cabernet tango of dark cherry chocolate going on. I could have mistaken this easily for the Reserve bottling, except for the mouthfeel.

1989 Quilceda Creek - Reserve - Washington - Cabernet Sauvignon
It's the same wine essentially as the standard bottling, but offering a darker color as well as a smoother, more inviting mouthfeel. Perhaps a stronger balance away from chocolate and more towards a leathery tone, but it's not much different. I'm somewhat disappointed; I liked these wines more on initial release and for several years following. But we cellared a pair until now to see where they would go, given the hype. Look at that sticker - gasp - was it really only $31.99 at Larry's ? Prices have definitely changed.

I like the older QC label better.

We're down now to having only the 1990-1991-1992 trio of Quilceda Creek CS pairs in the cellar. Prices jumped so enormously at that point that we dropped our hunt for this nice cabernet. I'm trading away these last six bottles with my neighbor (who raved about the QC wines last night) for four bottles of 1990 Seavey CS. We both think we're getting the better end of the deal, and that's a good place to be. Chalk one up for creative cellar reduction and non-shopping !

[David M. Bueker]

Prices have jumped & the wine has changed. 2001 is the last vintage of Quilceda that I really like, as from 2002 onward it became an ooze monster. I do still have a couple of bottles of 2002 (and one 2004) in the cellar that I will age for a long time just to see what happens.

[Jenise]

Enjoyed your report; I really enjoy those older QC's, especially one of those you've traded away, the '92. Haven't had the 89 but I did have a Woodward Canyon Dedication Series Cab from '89 that was the best older Washington wine I've had, more mature than what you describe in these QC's but nonetheless ethereal. Seems to have been a very good vintage.

David - I like that "ooze monster" handle, so intuitive; though I think I also am not a fan of the style either. We were a bit stunned when we toured his facility a few years back (2003 perhaps). His wines were unrecognizable to me as progression from '86 - '92 versions. I guess the market moved in that direction for him, he seemed to be not hurting for business at all.

Jenise - Yes, the '89 vintage was so consistently good in Washington and for me, pretty much set a high water mark for many wineries, at least as of the vintage 1991. Leonetti and Woodward Cayon both in particular comes to mind, though I regret to say we stopped following Leonetti for similar price reasons. The '92 QC Reserve was really good on release and it's good news that it is still drinking well. Maybe I can arm wrestle a friend to retaste it some day.

Back in 1989 as I recall the big three of WA Cabs were Leonetti, Quilceda and Woodward Canyon, with their Columbia or Washington State bottlings commanding release prices that were more or less in the same ball park. What do they sell for now? Here are the Winesearcher Pro prices:

1989 Leonetti Cabernet Sauvignon Columbia Valley $119 - $200

1989 Quilceda Creek Cabernet Sauvignon Washington State $225 - $300

1989 Woodward Canyon Cabernet Sauvignon Columbia Valley $99 (The Dedication Series is $69)

The older Woodward Canyons are a bargain and age beautifully. I had a 1996 Woodward Cab Columbia Valley (aged in my cellar) last night and it was delicious. Check out the prices for older Woodwards on Winesearcher. If I didn't have some of my own I think I'd be buying.

Clint,

Yes, I have similar recall of the Washington heavyweights in the same period. Those W-C wines were - and are now again - apparently a better buy. I drifted away from that house, preferring something perhaps a little less restrained in style.

But I have to say that some of those higher prices listed are hilarious. Of course, I assume Wine-Seacher simply returns the asking prices found on the selling sites. Does the site report anything about actual selling prices for goods sold ?

For me, except for some sentimental or technical tasting reason, it would be hard to blindly (i.e., in a pre-tasting opinion) justify paying even $75 for either bottle we opened.

This path of consignment selling may be a better idea than I thought. I hated (really hated) the idea of selling off inventory before, and we only dabbled in it with a friend's local wine shop. We'd ask for reasonable prices for the odd bottle or so of something with which we'd lost passion. The wines sold quickly.

Perhaps I've been too stubborn to really leverage this tool in our cellar reduction effort. Bwuuhahahaha.

Naaah, I am not that guy.

[Jenise]

I regret to say we stopped following Leonetti for similar price reasons. The '92 QC Reserve was really good on release and it's good news that it is still drinking well.

Oops, my bottles weren't the reserve, just the regular. And they weren't just drinking well--I'd say they were just barely into middle age. They show younger than the '95 (also a good-great vintage) at this point. It has a looooong life ahead of it.

Speaking of '95, I just picked up four bottles of Delille's '95 Chaleur. I haven't had the '95 vintage, but based on the 94 and 96 models this just might be my favorite Washington red wine. Mind you, my experience with all the upper echelon Washington wines so far is so meager it's almost silly for me to have an opinion, but Chaleur just gets everything right (especially for a Bordeaux lover).

Jenise,

I think I misread your earlier note; sorry about the assumption about being Reserve or regular.

I think I've had only one Chaleur Estate wine myself and it was a very nice tasting wine. It was somewhat closed and elegant (non-Reserve, but a bit pricey) but probably not an early-drinking style wine. I think it was a '94 but full recall from that night's brain cell is apparently not working. I do also remember opening it with dinner next to a very showy Merlot from an engaging fellow operating a one-guy-winery in greater Seattle; that winery name was something like Lou Vacelli or Facelli, but there's that brain cell again. The verve of his Merlot that night overwhelmed the Chaleur, but I was sure that in the long run we'd see the Chaleur be much finer.

We stopped tracking Washington wines enthusiastically when my Issaquah-based brother stopped drinking wine entirely - in 2000. So I am really not well-informed anymore as to Washington state wines and wineries.

Is the '95 Chaleur a blend of Bordeaux varieties ? Why do I think I remember some syrah too ? Thanks for anything you can offer up to fill in my memory gap on this one.

[Jenise]

Jenise,

I think I misread your earlier note; sorry about the assumption about being Reserve or regular.

I think I've had only one Chaleur Estate wine myself and it was a very nice tasting wine. It was somewhat closed and elegant (non-Reserve, but a bit pricey) but probably not an early-drinking style wine. I think it was a '94 but full recall from that night's brain cell is apparently not working. I do also remember opening it with dinner next to a very showy Merlot from an engaging fellow operating a one-guy-winery in greater Seattle; that winery name was something like Lou Vacelli or Facelli, but there's that brain cell again. The verve of his Merlot that night overwhelmed the Chaleur, but I was sure that in the long run we'd see the Chaleur be much finer.

We stopped tracking Washington wines enthusiastically when my Issaquah-based brother stopped drinking wine entirely - in 2000. So I am really not well-informed anymore as to Washington state wines and wineries.

Is the '95 Chaleur a blend of Bordeaux varieties ? Why do I think I remember some syrah too ? Thanks for anything you can offer up to fill in my memory gap on this one.

Facelli? UGH. Terrible wines: I tasted at his winery just six months ago. Read about that here: http://www.wineloverspage.com/forum/village/viewtopic.php?f=3&t=16073&p=135129#p135129. You could be right about Chaleur not being an early drinker, I've only drunk the wines young once, and have never tracked one from youth to maturity. The one vintage we had early was quite nice, especially for europhile tastes, but I have to admit that I didn't get from that how great the wines would be with ten or so years on them--presuming I can extrapolate from what was probably an 02 about five years ago to what I've tasted in the 94's and 96's in the last two years. Based on everything you've said about what you liked then, I have a feeling that the Chaleur might not have been big enough for you. I have the impression your palate's changed quite a bit (most of us have to grow into delicacy and nuance, I certainly did)--would you say that's the case?

Jenise,

Maybe the Chaleur wasn't big enough for me at that time, sure; I'll be polite and say it was very polite in a Clos du Val regular Napa Cab of-the-period sort of way. Barry called it restaurant wine but I just thought it a bit underground. This was not a style I wanted to chase. It's almost funny to look back at that period now; I was completely focused, intent on finding and understanding wines from old vine plantings, everywhere - as a mission almost.

But I do still appreciate some big and small wines both, well, maybe not those 17% alcohol oafs. What did David Bueker call them ?

Well, it also sounds as though Facelli isn't producing anything like what he used to when I went to his place. His Merlot that we tried was at least clean, had good density of fruit and tannin, moderate color saturation and almost no new oak, and was balanced to the medium bodied side for its time. It wasn't an UGH wine at all then, though the style of his product from that period is still something I don't pursue. But his wine was more likeable that day than the Chaleur. That's not due to any sort of increased palate acuity or change in preference for more nuanced wine. I have no idea what happened to his operation between then and now, but it sounds sad.

My periods of palate learning and market exploration of the last twenty five years have been very exciting and did include several periods of style indulgence which quickly guided me elsewhere. Those Amador zinfandels, Carneros Pinots, dry White Bordeaux, Loire sweet wines, entry-level everything, and virtually all domestic chardonnay represent but a fraction of, well, let us just say lost appreciations.