Uriah Spring Valley Red Blend 2015

Uriah Spring Valley Red Blend 2015

Midweek dinner, we grilled filets of beef with baked potatoes. I pulled from the cellar one of our favorite labels, a Washington State Right Bank Bordeaux Blend for an ideal food wine pairing. 

We also had a delicious caprese salad … fresh mozzarella, tomato, lettuce and fresh basil from the garden,  and this “Twisted Olive” Raspberry Chocolate Balsamic dressing which is a heavenly pairing with the big red wine. From Modena, Italy, we get this from a local producer/importer at the local farmer’s market.

For this favored meal combination, for a nice relaxed evening dinner together, I pulled from the cellar one of my favorite drinking Right Bank Bordeaux varietal blends from one of our favorite producers, Spring Valley Vineyards. 

We visited Spring Valley during our appellation visit to the Walla Walla (Washington) wine region in the fall of 2018. We visited the Spring Valley Vineyard tasting room in downtown Walla Walla, then ventured out to the vineyards and winery northeast of town. There, we met Dean Derby patriarch, and husband to Shari Corkrum Derby, grand-daughter of Uriah Corkrum, namesake for this label. Meeting Mr. Derby was one of the highlights of our Walla Walla Wine Experience, especially since he has since passed on. We posted a Tribute to Dean Derby and memorium of that visit - Spring Valley Vineyard toward the end of 2021.  

All of the Spring Valley wines are named for one of the ancestral or current family members. Spring Valley Vineyard wines are all produced from 100% estate-grown fruit, a relative rarity in Washington.

Washington State and regional powerhouse Chateau Ste. Michelle Wine Estates purchased the winery and the brand from the Derby family recently, but they continue to own and operate the vineyards.

The complete lineup of Spring Valley wines featuring the family member labels is featured in a boxed set. Shown is our set commemorating the 2013 vintage releases.

Spring Valley Vineyards Uriah Red Blend 2015

The Spring Valley Vineyards adjacent to the 
farmstead site

This label, Uriah, is named for the Spring Valley Vineyards founder Uriah Corkrum, grandfather of matriarch Shari Corkrum Derby. Born in Walla Walla on June 1, 1866, he began successfully farming on his own during the 1880s. Unusual summer rain kept him from getting his harvested wheat to the warehouse so he lost everything in the depression of 1893. He persevered and, in 1897, acquired land in the area known as Spring Valley that is the site of the vineyards today. Uriah is featured on the flagship label Uriah Spring Valley Red Blend. This is our favorite label from the Spring Valley portfolio. 

This is 100% sourced from Spring Valley Vineyards in the wind-shaped Palouse Hills 12 miles northeast of Walla Walla, amid the picturesque wheat fields of southeastern Washington and the Blue Mountains in the distance. The initial block of Merlot was planted in 1993 on a southern hillside facing southwest. The vines follow the north-south slope of the hills in vertical rows, an orientation that when combined with the declination of the slope, allows the vines to take optimal advantage of air drainage, sunshine, and the reflective nature of the surrounding wheat fields.

The 2015 vintage was one of the warmest growing seasons on record in Washington. Warm temperatures continued through the spring and summer, moderating slightly into fall and extending an early harvest. Overall, 2015 saw very favorable growing conditions, producing optimal ripening across varieties and yielding outstanding wines throughout the region.

This label, Uriah, is a Right Bank Bordeaux Blend, meaning it is predominantly Merlot based rather than Cabernet, complemented by Cabernet Franc, Petit Verdot and Malbec. This release has a high percentage of Cabernet Franc which provides spiciness and bright flavor sprites. 

This 2015 release is a blend or Bordeaux varietals, 43% Cabernet Franc, 38% Merlot, 14% Cabernet Sauvignon, 3% Petit Verdot and 2% Malbec. It was aged 18 months in 100% French oak, 40% new.

Winemaker Tasting Notes: “Our most terroir driven blend, mostly Cabernet Franc and Merlot. A rich wine coming from one of the warmest harvests. The tannins are velvety and the finish is long and soft.”
~ Serge Laville, Winemaker.

This was rated 93 Points by Wine & Spirits, 92 Points by James Suckling, 91 Points by Wine Spectator, and 90 points by Sean Sullivan of Wine Advocate. 

We hold half dozen vintages of this label and pulled the oldest vintage as part of effective cellar management rotation.  

At eleven years this is probably at its peak, the apex of its drinking profile, not likely to improve further with aging, but certainly to age gracefully for another decade if you're patient enough to keep it that long. It seems more vibrant and expressive than it did earlier, hence am adding another point to my review. 

Bright garnet colored, medium bodied, elegant polished, rich but approachable for pleasant but sophisticated drinking, its right-bank style blend shows vibrant black berry and dark plum fruits with notes of cassis, spice, floral and hints of balsamic and herbs with dusty minerality with polished soft tannins on the lingering finish.

RM 93 points. 

https://www.cellartracker.com/wine.asp?iWine=2648699

Linked referenced in this blog: 

https://unwindwine.blogspot.com/2018/10/spring-valley-vineyards-tasting-and.html

https://unwindwine.blogspot.com/2019/11/spring-valley-vineyards-nina-syrah-2017.html

https://www.springvalleyvineyard.com/

Château Larmande St Emilion Grand Cru Classe’

Château Larmande St Emilion Grand Cru Classe with Waygu Beef at Entourage DG 

Having been traveling for much of the month of July, Friday night dining out, we returned to Entourage Restaurant in nearby Downers Grove, which has become our favorite go-to eatery with a diverse menu of delectable selections. This was a return visit for us with friends/neighbors Richard and Adessa. 

We’ve featured Entourage numerous times in these pages, most notably our Pour Boys Wine Group dinner at Entourage last fall. This is the same restaurant group that has a sister restaurant in Naperville, also featured in these pages in  Plumpjack Reserve Napa Chardonnay at Entourage Restaurant Naperville.

After dinner, we enjoyed the live band performing on the fountain square at the train station, immediately across the street. This is a bonus for those dining outside at Entourage!

Prior to dinner we enjoyed two favorite features … taking advantage of the Social Hour, ‘early bird’ specials, we ordered the Rosemary Focaccia Bread - “Made Fresh Daily”, served with Mediterranean Olives and Sea Salt Butter. While it may be easy to discount this as a simple bread plate, it’s delicious! 

Additionally, prior to our main course, we enjoyed the Roasted Beets and Whipped Goat Cheese Salad - Arugula, Baby Gem with Spicy Pecans, Fennel, Hot Honey and Grapefruit Citrus Vinaigrette. As always, this was delicious - a wonderful pairing of flavors.

For dinner, I had one of my favorite dishes that I look forward to, but can only take occasionally, which is understandable when you see the sensational presentation! 

This signature entree continues to be amazing! It’s enough for two dinners, tonight, and then a follow on with the take-home leftovers. On occasion, we’ve actually ordered a second one for carry out to take home. 

Entourage Signature Wagyu Meatloaf Sundae - Truffle + Parmesan Whipped Potatoes, Brioche, Wild Mushroom Gravy,  Vegetable Succotash topped with Crispy Onions.

This was delicious and with ample portions - enough for a follow on take home meal with two large slices of meatloaf, but not enough of the delectable pomme puree’! But where would you put it in that tower, or what they call a ‘Sundae’!

Linda ordered what has become one of her favorite entree’s, Entourage classic signature Shrimp and Grits -  Spicy Shrimp & Jalapeno Grits - Blackened Wild Shrimp, Andouille Sausage, Charred Jalapeno, Charred Corn, Baby Peppers and Creole Cream. Richard also ordered this dish on her recommendation and loved it as well. 

Adessa ordered the Waygu Beef sliders and loved them. 

To pair with my Waygu beef meatloaf, I brought BYOB from our home cellar this aged vintage Right Bank Bordeaux for a perfect food-wine pairing. 

Château Larmande St Emilion Grand Cru Classé 2005

Grand Cru Classe’ producer Château Larmande lies north of the town of St. Emilion, close to Soutard and Cadet-Piola. It consists of 25 hectares of vineyards planted with Merlot (65%), Cabernet Franc (25%) and Cabernet Sauvignon (10%). Larmande was sold to the French insurance conglomerate, La Mondiale in 1991. 

Looking back at our CellarTracker tasting notes, and blogposts in these pages, this is the fourth bottle of this label we’ve enjoyed over the recent past, as we consume our remaining holdings of this label in its twentieth year, arguably at the prime, or reaching the end of its prime drinking window. We have one more remaining bottle from this vintage and I’ll miss this enjoyable label. (Records show we acquired no less than twenty bottles upon release - a great QPR - quality price ratio selection.) 

At twenty years the fill level was still fine but the cork was beginning to lose integrity as it pulled apart using a traditional corkscrew. I took my Ahso two pronged cork puller which would’ve most likely removed the cork in-tact, but I was too late and the cork disintegrated on the server who did his best to save it. 

Our server, Jason, is a Sommelier and relished the challenge and handled it well. In the end, feeble efforts to use a coffee filter, to remove the crumbled cork in the bottle,  I managed to pour the wine slowly, carefully into a decanter for serving. 

I wrote back in 2020, “It's hard to believe its been five years since I last tasted this label when I wrote,' at eleven years of age, I sense this is approaching the end of its prime drinking window as the fruits seem to have given way slightly to the emergence of the non-fruit flavors based on earlier tasting notes from three and five years ago'.

“We still hold three bottles of the case we acquired upon release. We'll need to consume these in the intermediate term, but it still has several years to go, yet.” 

My published tasting report notes for this label show nine postings with one a year ago when my notes were consistent with earlier tastings and project life still left in this release.

This vintage release was a blend of Merlot (65%), Cabernet Franc (30%) and Cabernet Sauvignon (5%).

Consistent with earlier notes … Dark garnet colored, medium bodied, aromatic blackberry and black cherry fruits accented by tones of tar, smoke, earthy leather, hints of cedar and spice, (earlier reports of mocha were not apparent), on a firm lingering tongue puckering tannin finish - fruits slightly diminished from earlier tastings with seemingly increased acidity.

RM 89 points.*

*PS. A postscript to an earlier tasting, after a couple days open in the bottle, chilled, this wine returned to its earlier elegance, structured balance and fruit, regaining earlier rating of 89 points. Once again, I shouldn't P-n-P, pop and pour these complex aged wines, rather, give them respect, open them and allow them to breathe at least a couple hours before diving in! 

**PPS: And of course, pay attention to the cork condition and use appropriate instrument for extraction! 

https://www.cellartracker.com/wine.asp?iWine=351693

http://www.chateau-soutard.com/chateau-larmande-.aspx

https://entouragerestaurant.com/downers-grove/

Earlier, recent reviews of this label ….

https://unwindwine.blogspot.com/2020/12/chateau-larmande.html

https://unwindwine.blogspot.com/2019/09/chateau-larmande-2005.html

https://unwindwine.blogspot.com/2025/04/chateau-larmande-st-emilion-grand-cru.html