Great Washington Wines From... Oregon?
In just the past few months I've featured four Pamplin wines in my top three. Why have you never heard of this winery?
OK I’m being presumptuous. Perhaps you have heard of them. If you haven’t, let me make the introduction. Pamplin Family Winery was founded with a focus on making Cabernet Sauvignon-based wines from select vineyards in Washington’s Horse Heaven Hills, Red Mountain, Rattlesnake Hills and Walla Walla Valley AVAs. Good for them, you say. What’s unusual about that?
What is unusual is that the winery is based in Dundee, Oregon, yet makes no Oregon wines. That is handled by their sister winery, Anne Amie, also Pamplin family owned. The annual releases from Pamplin (other than the J|R|G) are limited – no more than a few hundred cases, usually less – and generally include the J|R|G Red blend, a Columbia Valley Cabernet Sauvignon and one or more single vineyard Washington Cabernets. Winemaker Robert Henry succeeds admirably in his stated goal to make wines that are refined and graceful; that strike a certain harmonic tone that rings from start to finish; whose fruit is pure, deep and focused. “I believe that Washington State has unlimited potential to produce wines of this caliber” he writes.
My tastings of Pamplin wines go back to the 2008 vintage and consistently score 91 points and higher. My most recent notes are published below. The featured four: May 5th – Pamplin 2019 Cabernet Sauvignon 95/100 (Wine of the Week); and these three on December 31st – Pamplin 2018 Seven Hills Vineyard Cabernet Sauvignon 93/100 (Wine of the Week); Pamplin 2018 J|R|G Red 93/100 (Value Wine); Pamplin 2018 Cabernet Sauvignon 92/100 (Cellar Wine).
Here are the full reviews:
Pamplin 2018 J|R|G Red – This blended red brings together grapes from a plenitude of Red Mountain, Horse Heaven Hills, Rattlesnake Hills and Walla Walla Valley vineyards. It's principally Cabernet Sauvignon, with small amounts of Merlot and Petit Verdot; classic Washington style and focus. Chewy, chunky flavors of black cherry, cassis, tobacco, graphite and slate combine in a powerful wine that emulates Washington Bordeaux blends selling for considerably higher dollars. Though this is not an expensive wine, it includes grapes from such iconic sites as Klipsun, Seven Hills and Elephant Mountain, afforded extended aging in one quarter new oak. 1024 cases; 14.2%; $40 (Columbia Valley) 93/100
Pamplin 2019 J|R|G Red – A captivating dark blueberry/black cherry color, this Cabernet Sauvignon (labeled red but 97% Cab) is sourced from vineyards scattered across the Red Mountain, Rattlesnake Hills, Walla Walla Valley and Horse Heaven Hills AVAs. As such it's a fine expression of an all-encompassing Washington state style – muscular, dark, deep and finished with polished, firm tannins that are set against 40% new and once-used barrels. A percentage of press wine is blended in, a deft touch that adds texture and details of graphite and clean earth without pushing the wine into unfriendly bitter territory. 915 cases; 14.3%; $40 (Columbia Valley) 93/100
Pamplin 2018 Cabernet Sauvignon – Principally Red Mountain Cabernet, with a small addition of Petit Verdot, this firm, polished wine explodes with cassis, dark chocolate, tobacco and a streak of vanilla. It's close to the winery's J|R|G Red in substance and style, but more focused as a purer evocation of Red Mountain Cabernet. The tannins are full and fleshy, ripe and polished, with just a touch of grit. This outstanding red should be decanted for at least an hour before serving. Drink now and through the mid-2030s. 207 cases; 14.2%; $50 (Columbia Valley) 92/100
Pamplin 2019 Cabernet Sauvignon – This pure Cabernet, tasted against the winery's J|R|G Red, which is 97% Cab, seems bigger, chewier, more tannic and focused, though not necessarily better. Both wines are fine expressions of classic Washington Cabernet Sauvignon, here sourced from Klipsun, Discovery and Scooteney Flats vineyards. The 55% Klipsun fruit accounts for the firm, dark, pencil lead tannins, which are perfectly ripened and polished to a fine luster. Winemaker Robert Henry has made a poised, balanced wine with impressive, yet restrained, power. This bottle sings out for dry-aged beef and a hearty appetite. 289 cases; 14.2%; $55 (Columbia Valley) 95/100
Pamplin 2018 Seven Hills Vineyard Cabernet Sauvignon – It's not unusual to taste a Seven Hills Cab, but here's a slightly different twist from an Oregon winery. Tasting the three Pamplin 2018 Washington reds side-by-side you see a spectrum from a three variety to a two variety to a single variety wine. This is tight, focused, firm and concentrated. Flavors of cherry, cassis, lead pencil and a touch of char are front and center. No new French oak was used; half single use and half neutral barrels, allowing the quality of the defining fruit to be the star. Drink now and through the mid-2030s. 79 cases; 14.2%; $65 (Walla Walla) 93/100
Pamplin 2019 Discovery Vineyard Cabernet Sauvignon – It's interesting that winemaker Robert Henry puts his most expensive, most rare, single vineyard Cabernet entirely in neutral barrels. It's a testament to his appreciation for the quality of the fruit, and it flies in the face of the long-standing, unspoken rule that the better the fruit, the more expensive must be the barrels. The emphasis here is on fruit purity and vineyard expression. Ultimately it makes a more delicate wine, and one that must be examined more closely as it doesn't hit you over the head with massive fruit or new oak. It's more like Pinot Noir in the was it unfolds, the layering of details and the overall elegance. 46 cases; 14.3%; $70 (Horse Heaven Hills) 92/100