Delille Cellars Metier 2015 | Lafite-Rothschild of Washington State
Delille Cellars Metier 2015 displays opaque purple-ruby color. Luscious aromas of ripe and jammy wild berries, blueberry, smoked meat, black pepper, bramble, and a hint of coriander. In addition, a lush palate, full but not weighty, with supple tannins and balanced finish of ripe fruits and spice. Yet finishes impressively long, with fresh acidity and Southern Rhône tanginess.
So Robert Parker’s calling DeLille Cellars the “Lafite-Rothschild of Washington State” says it all—almost. It leaves out that star winemaker Chris Upchurch’s sublime touch extends to his Rhône-style wines. Most of all well-represented among the jaw-dropping 70+ DeLille wines that have earned 93-97 points from The Wine Advocate. Since the Delille Cellars Metier 2015 is a Beaucastel-like blend. As a result sourced from three renowned vineyards: the legendary Ciel du Cheval vineyard on Red Mountain,
Critical Acclaim
91-93 points Wine Advocate | Released under the Columbia Valley AVA in 2015 due to the inclusion of fruit from the Stone Tree Vineyard on the Wahluke Slope. The Delille Cellars Metier 2015 checks in as a blend of 38% Grenache, 38% Mourvèdre, 21% Syrah and 3% Cinsault. While this medium to full-bodied, opulent, sweetly fruited beauty offers up tons of darker berry fruits, licorice and roasted herb-like aromas and flavors. Hence, it’s a pleasure-bent beauty geared for drinking over the coming 5-7 years.
93 points Vinous | “Bright, dark red. Brambly red berries, crushed cherry, spices and hints of smoked meat and herbs on the nose. While plush, sappy and utterly seamless. Rather conveying a creaminess of texture. In addition with flavors of dried red berries, cherry and tree bark firmed by underlying minerality. Yet really terrific flavor intensity here without any heaviness or phenolic roughness. And the very long finish is lifted by a pungent note of pomegranate.”
Winemaker Chris Upchurch
At DeLille, Chris Upchurch has long been one of the state’s leaders with Bordeaux-style wines. But as the high potential of Rhône varieties in the warm climate and volcanic soils of Washington State became clear, DeLille began dedicating serious resources to their Rhône-style wines. It didn’t take long for Upchurch to make a raft of wines earning 93 points and above.
“Plush, sappy and utterly seamless” is how Vinous describes Chris Upchurch’s homage to the Southern Rhône. This is a gorgeous Washington blend, not only crafted by one of the state’s top winemakers, but also from three of the state’s marquee vineyards.