Showing posts with label Columbia Crest. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Columbia Crest. Show all posts

Wednesday, June 24, 2020

Columbia Crest H3 Les Chevaux Horse Heaven Hills Red Blend 2013

Columbia Crest H3 Les Chevaux Horse Heaven Hills Red Blend 2013

Its easy to find a superb drinking wine for $40. Its hard to find one for $25. Imagine a sophisticated complex pleasant drinking Red Blend for under $20. Buy it, try it, and go and get some more for high QPR (quality-price-ratio) every day drinking.

We opened this for casual easy shipping over the course of a couple evenings, comparing and standing up against several wines. For the price point, it held its own and stood up well against wines multiple times its price. 

I write often that buying wine for home consumption for a wine lover entails everyday wines, once a week wines, once a month wines, and special occasion or once a year wines. Here is a wine worthy of serving for special dinners and quests at everyday drinking prices.

The question I get asked more than any other is what is a high value quality drinking wine at everyday prices. This is such a wine - a 'Rick's Pick'.

Columbia Crest H3 wines is AVA designated wine from the Horse Heaven Hills. Les Chevaux is French for “the horses”, named for wild horses that once roamed the region. It is a blend of Merlot, Syrah, Malbec with small portions of Cabernet Franc and a little Viognier red varietals from Horse Heaven Hills, in the Columbia Valley in Central Washington State. The wine was aged in a combination of French and American oak barrels for around 22 months.

Wine Spectator gave it 90 points.

 This is great every day drinking but good enough to serve at a nice wine dinner as well. Its readily available as over 70,000 cases made. Amazing that they can produce this quality and value in such quantities.

Dark garnet colored, medium full bodied, firm, concentrated, complex, dark berry and plum fruits with notes of dark mocha chocolate and leather with hints of licorice with nice approachable tannins on a supple finish.

RM 88 points. 

https://www.cellartracker.com/wine.asp?iWine=2057908




Tuesday, March 8, 2016

H3-Horse Heaven Hills 2012 H3 Les Chevaux Red Wine

Horse Heaven Hills 2012 H3 Les Chevaux Red Wine






From the large production, widely distributed producer Columbia Crest, their H3 - Horse Heaven Hills branded portfolio offers a range of wines that includes this complex blend of fruit sourced from the Horse Heaven Hills AVA (appellation) in the Columbia River Valley

 

 This label name, Les Chevaux, is French for “the horses”,  named for wild horses that used to roam the area. This was perfect for carry out bbq ribs taken carry out back to the room for a relaxing casual dinner.

 

There is great QPR - (Quality Price Ratio-aka value) in this full bodied, full throttled complex red blend that is unsettled by a slightly flabby structure and some 'heat' on the finish, but this still provides a big pleasant drinking affordable every day red that sets up well with food such as beefsteak or bbq ribs. 
 
Garnet colored, medium-full bodied, bold black raspberry and black cherry fruits accented by a pronounced layer of sweet mocha with tones of clove spice and vanilla on the mid-palate through the finish of smooth tannins.
 
 Blend: 60% Syrah, 27% Merlot, 4% Cabernet Franc, 4% Viognier, 2% Malbec, 3% Other Varietals

RM 89 points. This was awarded 91 points by Wine Enthusiast and 90 points by Wine Spectator.

https://www.cellartracker.com/wine.asp?iWine=1856308

https://www.columbiacrest.com/our-wines/2012-h3-les-chevaux-red-wine