Spring Valley Vineyard Frederick 2013

Spring Valley Vineyard Frederick 2013

For beginning of the week grilled beefsteak dinner with wedge salad and mashed potatoes, on the deck on a beautiful waning summer evening, I pulled from the cellar this Washington State Red wine from one of our favorite producers. 

We first discovered Spring Valley Vineyards (SVV) with their popular Uriah label, a Right Bank Bordeaux Blend wine a decade ago. 

We tasted and first acquired this wine during our visit to the tasting room and vineyards during our Spring Valley Vineyards Tasting and Vineyard Visit as part of our appellation visit to the Walla Walla (Washington) wine region in 2018. 

There we had the privilege of meeting Dean Derby, husband of Sharilee Corkrum Derby, who is daughter of Frederick (subject of this label) and grand-daughter of Uriah Corkrum who are featured on their labels. Dean passed on just a year ago this week.

I've featured in these pages the portfolio of Spring Valley wines with each label featuring a member of three generations of the Corkrum family reaching back to first generation founding producers Uriah and wife Nina Lee.

Our visit to the SVV tasting room in Walla Walla, then going out to the estate and seeing the magnificent vineyards amongst the barren expansive central Washington landscapes was a highlight of our Walla Walla Wine Experience in 2018.

I've written in these pages about the SVV portfolio of labels, each named after a member of the historic and colorful Corkrum family dating back three generations to the turn of the last century. 

 

 

Spring Valley Vineyards Walla Walla Frederick 2013

This label Frederick, is the Left Bank Bordeaux Blend (meaning a blend of Bordeaux varietals with a predominance of Cabernet Sauvignon, as is the custom of producers on the southern, western side of the Bordeaux Gironde River estuary) of SVV estate sourced fruit. 

It is named for and is a tribute to Frederick Corkrum, son of founder Uriah, husband to Nina Lee, who graces the Nina Lee Syrah label, and father of Sherilee Corkrum Derby, daughter, grand-daughter, third generation current owner, matriarch, and subject of the Sherrilee SVV Petit Verdot label. 

As part of proper cellar management, I pulled the oldest vintage of this label from the half dozen that we hold in our cellar, this nine year old. 

This 2013 release of this label is a blend of 80% Cabernet Sauvignon and 10% each of Merlot and Cabernet Franc. This release was awarded 90 points by Wine Spectator and 89 points each by Wine Enthusiast and Wine Advocate. 

At nine years of age, the fill level, foil, label, and most importantly the cork, were all in pristine condition. 

Tonight's tasting experience was consistent with the last one in May of last year. 

Dark garnet color and medium full body, firm, bright expressive black berry and black currant fruits are accented by some red fruits, herb notes and hints of black olive tapenade on a lingering moderate tannin laced finish. 

RM 90 points. 

https://www.cellartracker.com/wine.asp?iWine=2318936

https://unwindwine.blogspot.com/2021/05/spring-valley-2013-blends-uriah-vs.html

https://www.springvalleyvineyard.com/ 

Spring Valley 2013 Blends - Uriah vs Frederick

Spring Valley Vineyard 2013 Walla Walla Valley Red Wine Bordeaux Blends - Uriah vs Frederick 

Alec bach'ing it for the weekend joined us for dinner with friend AJ in from FLL for a golf weekend. Linda grilled beef tenderloin with scalloped potatoes and asparagus. I sought a red wine blend for the occasion and pulled from the cellar this interesting pair of related wines. Two red wine blends from Spring Valley Vineyards in Walla Walla from the same vintage, this provided a comparative tasting of different blends of the same fruit in a mini-horizontal tasting.

Spring Valley Vineyard Uriah is a Right Bank Bordeaux Blend, meaning it is Merlot based like those from the northeastern or right bank of the Gironde River. Spring Valley Frederick is a Left Bank Bordeaux Blend in the style of wines from the left bank or from the south west of the river based primarily on the Cabernet Sauvignon grape. 

This release of Uriah is 46% Merlot, 40% Cabernet Franc, 6% Petit Verdot, 5% Cabernet Sauvignon, 3% Malbec while the Frederick is 80% Cabernet Sauvignon, 10% Cabernet Franc & 10% Merlot. Being from the same producer from the same vintage, they are comprised of the same fruits with different formulations of Bordeaux varietals. 

We tasted and acquired these wines during our visit to the tasting room and vineyards during our Spring Valley Vineyards Tasting and Vineyard Visit as part of our appellation visit to the Walla Walla (Washington) wine region in 2018. There we had the privilege of meeting Dean Derby, husband of Sharilee Corkrum Derby, who is daughter of Frederick and grand-daughter of Uriah Corkrum who are featured on these labels. 

I've featured in these pages the portfolio of Spring Valley wines with each label featuring a member of three generations of the Corkrum family reaching back to first generation founding producers Uriah and wife Nina Lee. 

Hiding in plain sight ... interesting that in all the years we've been collecting the complete portfolio of Spring Valley wines, I've never noticed that on the capsule, there is a letter designating which label it is, 'U' for Uriah, 'F' for Frederick and so on . 

Only when I was pulling bottles with the distinctive Spring Valley foil to determine their version did I suddenly notice and realize this is the case. While not seeming to be a big deal, it is when one has a half dozen vintages of six different labels - U-Uriah, F-Frederick, N-NinaLee (Syrah), M-Muleskinner Merlot, D-Derby (Cabernet Sauvignon), K-Katherine (Cabernet Franc), and S-Sherrilee (Petit Verdot).

 With dinner,  Linda also served Ceasar Salad, a selection of artisan cheeses and medley of Greek olives. The black Greek olives were an amazing pairing with these wines, especially the Uriah.

Spring Valley Vineyard Uriah Walla Walla Valley Red Wine 2013

So, there is some irony of this being a play on a father-son wine as it has some extra significance besides those featured on the two labels. When the 2010 vintage received a Top 100 #27 in the Wine Spect0ator Top 100 ranking for the year, it suddenly disappeared from merchant stocks. Son Alec picked up a half case on the east coast and brought it home for Christmas that year. 

 

Several years later, tonight, this 2013 vintage is the oldest release we hold in our cellar of these two wines so we pulled them as part of cellar management, drinking the oldest vintages as we cycle through the half dozen vintage releases in our cellar, replacing the oldest with the newest. 

Being a blend of five Bordeaux varietals, this was more complex than the 'simpler' Frederick with only three. I often compare the profile of blended wines to their width and depth - imagine a bar chart with five bars vs one with three.

This release was awarded 93 points by Wine Spectator,  92 points Vinous and Wine Enthusiast. 

Vinous in their review also mentioned both labels in their review,  "Incidentally, this wine and the Frederick are Spring Valley's most important bottlings, with about 3,000 cases of each produced.

The Merlot base exudes smoothness while the Cabernet Franc spiciness shines through. This was dark garnet colored, medium full bodied, Wine Spectator called it 'broad and expressive', black berry and black raspberry fruits accented by pepper, spice, black olive and notes of black olive, expresso and green herbs turning to fine grained tannins on a lingering finish. 

RM 90 points. 

https://www.cellartracker.com/wine.asp?iWine=2296582

Spring Valley Vineyard Frederick Walla Walla Valley Red Wine 2013

As noted above, this label features a member of the Corkrum family, farmers and growers of Spring Valley Vineyards. Frederick was second generation son of Uriah and father of Sharilee Corkrum, current Matriarch of the family. 

As noted above, this is predominantly Cabernet Sauvignon which provided a much more expressive, brighter, deeper and bolder fruit profile, while deeper, its not as 'wide' or complex as the Uriah above. 

Similar tasting profile to the above wine, as expected considering the similarities of the core fruits - Cabernet Sauvignon and the Merlot. 

Same dark garnet color and medium full body, bright expressive black berry and black currant fruits are accented by some red fruits, herb notes and hints of black olive tapenade. 

RM 91 points for its brighter more vibrant fruits.

https://www.cellartracker.com/wine.asp?iWine=2318936

http://www.springvalleyvineyard.com/

Spring Valley Vineyards Frederick Red Blend

Spring Valley Vineyards Frederick Red Blend

Following our Walla Walla (Washington) AVA Wine Experience week before last, and our visits to Spring Valley Vineyards vineyards and tasting room, we opened this  Spring Valley Vineyards Frederick Red Bordeaux Blend for a grilled steak dinner.

As written in my Spring Valley Vineyards blogpost, the branding of Spring Valley wines is based on the rich family history and heritage. The wine portfolio is comprised of labels named for family members dating back to Uriah Corkrum, who is the inspiration and namesake of their Uriah label, their Right Bank Bordeaux Blend. Their other Bordeaux Blend, a Cabernet based blend in the Left Bank style is this Frederick, named for Uriah's son, father of current vineyard owner Shari Corkrum Derby.

Meeting Dean Derby, son-in-law of Frederick was one of the highlights of our Walla Walla wine region experience. Dean and Shari Corkrum Derby started planting the first grapes at Spring Valley in 1993 and the first vintage of Estate grown and bottled Spring Valley Vineyard wines were released with the 1999 vintage.

We tasted the latest current release of this label, Frederick Red Wine Blend 2015 in the Spring Valley Vineyards tasting room there downtown Walla Walla. This evening we opened a vintage bottle from our cellar ten years older from the 2005 vintage.


Spring Valley Vineyard Walla Walla Columbia Valley Frederick Red Bordeaux Blend 2005 -

Dark inky color, full bodied, big, firm, complex but balanced, brooding ripe sweet dark berry - blackberry & black raspberry fruit flavors, tones of cassis, spice, lead pencil - firm but smooth nicely integrated polished tannins on a full lingering finish.

As I have been writing in my blogposts on Washington wines, like many of the other high quality labels coming from the region, this represents high QPR (quality price ratio) relative to comparable wines from the stories more established Bordeaux or Napa Valley regions.

RM 92 points.

https://www.cellartracker.com/wine.asp?iWine=425182

At thirteen years of age, this wine is likely at the apex of its drinking window and won't likely improve any further with age, but it should last another five years before falling off, and should be consumable for a decade yet. I wish I had more to try over that time. Pick up this label when you get a chance.

https://www.springvalleyvineyard.com/


 

Spring Valley Vineyards Tasting and Vineyard Visit

Spring Valley Vineyards Tasting and Vineyard Visit

During our recent wine appellation visit to the Walla Walla (Washington) wine region, we visited the Spring Valley Vineyards tasting room and then ventured out to the winery and vineyards. Spring Valley Vineyards is most likely the longest and deepest collection of Washington State wines in our extensive cellar collection, spanning vintages going back a decade and a half. We first discovered Spring Valley Vineyards Uriah Walla Walla (Right Rank Bordeaux) Red Blend dating back to the 2001 vintage. We still hold more than a dozen vintages dating back to the 2004 vintage in our collection.

Hence, a visit to Spring Valley was on our shortlist of winery or vineyard site visits during our Walla Walla appellation visit. We first visited their tasting room downtown Walla Walla. Spring Valley Vineyards have an extensive and growing brand of wines based on the Bordeaux varietals - Cabernet Sauvignon, Cabernet Franc, Merlot, and Petit Verdot and also a Syrah.

Due to the remoteness and vast distances to many of the Washington State wineries and vineyards, it is commonplace that Washington State producers have tasting rooms retail sites in central locations. The most common site for such tasting rooms is Woodinville, Washington in suburban Seattle which advertises as having more than 130 such tasting rooms. We visited the Seattle suburb last month as part of our Woodinville (Washington) Tasting Experience.

The charming, historic small rural town of Walla Walla, in the center of the Walla Walla Valley wine region in the Southeastern corner of Washington State, is another such site with dozens of tasting rooms, including Spring Valley Vineyards.

The branding of Spring Valley wines is based on the rich family history and heritage. The land that the Corkrum, Derby, and Elvin families farms today has been farmed by the family dating back to the mid 1800’s. Current vineyard owner Shari Corkrum Derby’s grandfather Uriah Corkrum began farming in the area acquired the land now known as Spring Valley in 1910. Shari and Dean Derby planted the first grapes at Spring Valley in 1993 and the first vintage of Estate grown and bottled Spring Valley Vineyard wines were produced with the 1999 vintage. All the wines are named for ancestral members of the family going back to Uriah and Frederick and others. 

In the Spring Valley retail site tasting room, we got to taste their range of primary labels, six labels that span their primary brand. We tasted all six labels from the recent vintage. Two or three vintages were available as boxed sets of the family of labels. No library wines were on offer, or apparent in the retail tasting room.

More on the tasting room wine flight to come.

Wines tasted:

Uriah Red Wine Blend 2014 - Blend: 56% Merlot, 38% Cabernet Franc, 4% Petit Verdot, 2% Malbec
Frederick Red Wine Blend 2015 - Blend: 48% Cabernet Sauvignon, 30% Merlot, 14% Cabernet Franc, 8% Malbec

Katherine Corkrum Cabernet Franc 2016 - Blend: 100% Cabernet Franc

Sharilee Petit Verdot 2014 - Blend: 90% Petit Verdot, 10% Cabernet Franc

Mule Skinner Merlot 2016 - 100% Merlot

Nina Lee Syrah 2015 - Blend: 99% Syrah, 1% Viognier

The Spring Valley Vineyards and wine production facility lie about fifteen miles northeast of downtown Walla Walla. The vineyards are a stark contrast to the vast openness and plains of the surrounding wheat fields that cover the wide vast expanses of the central and eastern parts of the State. The vineyards stand out in stark contrast even on the Google satellite imagery, as shown below.

We drove out Middle Waitsburg Road, around the Walla Walla airport, to Corkrum Road, aptly named for the patriarch ancestor of the Spring Valley producer's family, to the winery and vineyard site. 

There we ran into Dean Derby patriarch, husband to Shari Corkrum Derby, ancester and co-owners of the family business. What a treat and honor to meet Mr. Derby and what a delightful visit we had.
 

The vineyard site sitting amidst over 110 acres of vineyards is open to the public from May to September during posted hours during the week, and at other times by special appointment.

The Spring Valley Vineyards from a distance down Corkrum Road. 

The Spring Valley Vineyards adjacent to the winery site

 The Spring Valley Vineyards adjacent to the winery site

The Winery Production Facility 

Much of the adventure and interest of visiting the region and the Spring Valley site is the magnificent expansive vast vistas of the surrounding hills, as shown below. 

Spring Valley Vineyards continues to expand operations with new vineyard plantings and a growing staff of family members and professionals joining the organization. It is a historic institution in the region and a label of serious quality wines to be sought out and appreciated. It should be on the shortlist of any visit to the Walla Walla appellation.




 

Columbia Valley 2004 Horizontal Red Wine Tasting

Perfect example of a horizontal tasting - three varied but complementary wines from the same region and same vintage - each mapping and highlighted perfectly with artisan cheeses and a dinner course. Listed in tasting order from lightest and simplest to heavier, more complex.Tasted at home w/ L, Mark & Shirley.

Northstar Merlot Columbia Valley 2004 - http://cellartracker.com/w?408341 - RM 91 points: Deep dark purple color - medium-full bodied - may be the most expressive Northstar I have had with full burst of black berry, plum and red currant flavors giving way to sweet oak, spice and subtle vanilla with nicely integrated firm but silky smooth tannins. Lots of fine sediment coats the empty bottle. Consistent notes with earlier tastings.

Mapped well w/ soft cows milk cheese and the twiced baked potato.

Spring Valley Vineyard Uriah Walla Walla Columbia Valley Red Wine blend 2004 - http://cellartracker.com/w?215438 - RM 89 points: Slightly brownish color, perfect cork, medium bodied - initial front of black pepper disappeared after twenty minutes - subtle black cherry and red berry fruits were diminished from last tasting a year ago giving way to hint of anise, slight mocha and leather with a moderate tannin finish.
Blend of 60% Merlot, 31% Cabernet Franc, 5% Cabernet Sauvignon, and 4% Petit Verdot.

Mapped well with the Madam Chevre cheese course, and bacon infused green beans.

 Spring Valley Vineyard Walla Walla Columbia Valley Frederick red Bordeaux blend 2004 -  http://cellartracker.com/w?7267 -  RM 92 points - Better than earlier vintages (2002-03) I have tasted of this wine - full bodied, dark inky color - big, firm, complex, brooding dark berry - blackberry & black raspberry fruit flavors, tones of cassis, spice, lead pencil - firm but smooth polished tannins on a full lingering finish. Blend of 59% Cabernet Sauvignon, 24% Merlot, 12% Cabernet Franc, and 5% Petit Verdot.

Perfect complement to hearty blue cheese, toasted herb bread and the steak course.