Ridge Crest

Here’s the thing: Columbia Valley makes amazing Cabernet. It’s got the sumptuous texture, the unctuous concentration, and pronounced aromas that send the olfactory senses into overdrive. Creating Cabernet that hits all the sweet spots on the palate is no easy task, but there is one person who is easily up to it – Mother Nature. Here’s what she brings to the table:

The soils of Columbia Valley, Washington State, are of a natural fine consistency that phylloxera can’t penetrate. Phylloxera is a vine louse that eats grape vines, including all our favorite varieties like Cabernet. There is no cure, so all the grape vines in the world are a grape producing variety on top, tapped to louse-resistant stock for the bottom. As Washingtonians call them – Frankenvines. But not here in Washington. This wine is through and true Cabernet, from soil, to roots, to flowers to grapes. And you’ll get that in the glass.

Second, Washington has an amazing large diurnal temperature change – the difference between 3 pm and 3 am. This essentially allows the wines to go to sleep at night, getting them ready to grow and concentrate in tomorrow’s sun. As for elite athletes, the same for grapes. If you want that extra edge, power, and concentration, you’ve got to have a long-term plan for development, including sufficient rest. Mother Nature graciously gives Washington State Cabernet the perfect training regimen.

And that gives rise to our wonderfully drinking Cabernet today – Ridge Crest Washington State Cabernet:

There is a purity of fruit from these own-rooted Cabernet vines that you get from nowhere else. The depth of black cherry, crème de cassis, blackberry and espresso is utterly sensational. The flavors carry through on the palate with a seamless drinkability and voluptuous, full-bodied texture that plays on another level. So let me Homer this one in – I love Washington’s Cabernets, and when you want big red wine, Washington Cabernet is going to take you there, and take you better than anyone else.

Bob and Cristal Claar first planted grapes in Washington in 1980 when they were both still active Navy officers. When they transferred to the Naval Reserve (and then fully retired), they focused all of their attention on the winery and handcrafting wine. When tasked by a local grocery store chain to make a high-quality Cabernet, Bob and Cristal accepted the challenge with gusto – creating this delicious Cabernet in such a meticulous manner that it meets the qualifications of Salmon Safe, Sustainable LIVE, International Organization for Biological Control (IOBC) certified and sustainable, and Washington Green. All of these certifications may be meaningless to us, but in Washington State they are taken very seriously. In essence, via this humble label, Bob and Cristal have proven that they can make great wine while being excellent stewards of the land.

So why the price reduction? Here is the next layer of the onion – Bob and Cristal swear, and they have the sales record to prove it, that Ridge Crest does indeed sell well in Washington State. Well, here in Wisconsin, maybe we’re just more sophisticated than those Washingtonians! But seriously, the wine’s label kills it. Yep, an ugly label means no sales, and hence this price reduction.

So here is the ultimate test for you – if you believe it’s what is inside that matters, you’re in for a heck of a bargain – delicious, matured-for-you Cabernet, drinking sensationally now. Enjoy!