Three Brilliant Cabernets from Passing Time
Three Brilliant Cabernets from Passing Time
This beautifully crafted trio perfectly captures these Washington AVAs
Passing Time
2012 was the inaugural vintage from former NFL quarterbacks Dan Marino and Damon Huard. These 2020s may be their finest vintage to date.
Passing Time 2020 Red Mountain Cabernet Sauvignon
What's most impressive about this pure Red Mountain Cabernet is the tannin management. These sites (Klipsun, Red Mountain Vineyard, Heart of the Hill) are known for aggressively tannic wines. It's a calling card – a marker – for the AVA's red grapes. Here the tannins been tamed just enough to keep the wine in balance and showcasing the heady mix of dark flavors (cassis, black cherry, licorice, a whiff of smoke and more). This is the one to put down for long term aging, but you may find it quite delicious already. 14.9%; $94 (Red Mountain) 96/100
Passing Time 2020 Walla Walla Valley Cabernet Sauvignon
Roughly two thirds Seven Hills and one third Pepper Bridge Cab, the wine has an appealing softness on the front palate, accented with a rich range of dried herbs, straw, earth and cinnamon spice. The core fruit runs from strawberry to red plum and cherry. When the tannins kick in it turns astringent, with some highlights of tobacco trailing out. Among the three 2020 Cabs tasted, this is relatively more accessible, but should be decanted. It opened up nicely on the second day. Sold out? 14.9%; $85 (Walla Walla Valley) 94/100
Passing Time 2020 Horse Heaven Hills Cabernet Sauvignon
The blend includes 12% Merlot from Champoux; the Cabernet comes from the Discovery and the Wallula (Benches) vineyards. Passing Time's owners have sourced top quality grapes from their first vintage in 2012. There seems to be a common palate shared by former NFL quarterbacks as this wine could be a brother to Drew Bledsoe's Doubleback. That's not in any way a criticism. This wine seems modeled on much pricier Napa Valley Cabs in a style particularly favored by now-retired Robert Parker – ripe black fruits, alcohol pushing 15%, ample flavors of lushly toasty new barrels, immaculately polished tannins and an irresistible full-bodied mouthfeel. The difference from Napa (other than price) is the acid component, which adds precision and definition to the wine as it rolls through the finish. This is a fine representation of what has come to be the defining Washington style for high end Cabernet Sauvignon. Still delicious after three full days. 14.8%; $94 (Horse Heaven Hills) 95/100