Covey Run Merlot Columbia Valley, 1998, "Barrel Select"
Feb 29 '04
The Bottom Line A solid, everyday drinker and a good value.
In the past year I have been able to track down some outstanding deals on Washington State wines. One winery that I have been finding myself going back to because its products are so attractively priced is Covey Run.
The Covey Run Winery produces a range of interesting varietal wines and is a "premium producer" in a line-up of several brands owned by the giant Canandaigua Wine Company -- America's second largest wine company (Constellation Brands, Inc.; http://www.cwine.com/).
Covey Run Merlot Columbia Valley, 1998
Barrel Select
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Alcohol: About 13.5% ABV
Appearance: Medium-dark ruby red; clear in the glass, with brilliant red highlights. 4/5
Aroma: Plum, waxy black cherries, toasted chocolate cake and silt. 16/20
Flavor/Body: Spicy dark plum and berry with silky, tamed tannins. The wine was released in November 2000, so it's been in bottle for almost 40 months. Medium-to-full bodied with toasted/smokey oak flavors resulting from almost 15 months aging in a combination of American (approx. 75%) and French oak (25%) barrels. A blend of Cabernet Franc (5%) at the time of bottling adds the berry-spice characteristic to the wine; the Columbia Valley merlot is rich, fruity and fat. 33/40
Finish: Steady finish of lightly spiced cherry fruit, bright cranberry and toast accented by an earthy flavor of river-bed silt. An awkward description--to be sure--of a fairly tasty wine. This merlot benefits considerably if given 30-45 minutes of breathing time. 8/10
Overall: 21/25. The kind of wine that would pair well with the roast beef, Portobello mushroom and cheese Tortellini that's served at Angelo's and Vinci's Ristorante in Anaheim, California. (Dined there last weekend -- http://www.angelosandvincis.com/ ---- The best wine on the menu to try, though, is the Sterling Vineyards Cabernet Sauvignon. Yum!)
My score: 82. 3½ stars. A solid, everyday drinker and a good value when you can find it under $8. Not a wine that I enthusiastically recommend, but Covey Run is a reliable producer and I always find something interesting from this winery. Fewer than 8,000 cases produced.
Rated by Wine Enthusiast magazine with a score of 85 (rating date: October 2001). Seattle, Washington-based Contributing Editor Paul Gregutt wrote: "It’s a pleasure to find a solidly-made version from an excellent vintage such as this at a good price. ...The wine satisfies and delivers the Merlot goods. Not a keeper, but a fine bottle to showcase the everyday quality that Washington can deliver."
Further reading: http://www.winemag.com/issues/sept01/merlot.htm
Price: This wine carries a suggested retail price of $15, although I have seen higher prices at some online retailers. I purchased three bottles from a discount retailer for about $5/bottle--a good deal, and I would consider buying more. I would not, however, pay the full retail price of $15 for this wine.
Covey Run produces about 300,000 cases of wine per year. Details about recent vintages can be found at the winery's website:
http://www.coveyrun.com/
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Member: Tom Carr
Location: Southern California
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