Spring Valley Katherine Cabernet Franc for lively sipping

Spring Valley Katherine Cabernet Franc for lively sipping

It was a bit poignant getting an announcement from this producer about ShariLee's (Corkrum - Derby) birthday yesterday, the matriarch of Spring Valley Vineyards in Walla Walla. Sharilee (pronounced Sher’ a lee) Corkrum Derby, is granddaughter of Spring Valley founder Uriah Corkrum. We paid tribute recently to her husband Dean Derby on his passing just last month. 

Family owned and operated Spring Valley Vineyards goes back three generations to ShariLee's father Frederick, and grandparents, Uriah and Katherine Corkrum. All the wines in the SVV portfolio sport a namesake label of one of the family members. As members of their Family Circle club we hold a mini vertical and horizontal collection of all these wines dating back up to a decade. 

So it was fitting I pulled a Spring Valley wine last night for casual sipping with biscuits, cheese and holiday treats by the fire, watching a movie. I opted for the Katherine Cabernet Franc, 2011, the oldest in our collection of this label.

I've written in these pages about our visits to Spring Valley Vineyards in Walla Walla, and meeting Dean Derby, writing a tribute to him on his passing recently. One of the highlights of our trip to Walla Walla was when we had the pleasure of meeting Dean Derby during our visit to the vineyards during our Walla Walla Wine Experience in 2019.

Spring Valley Vineyard Cabernet Franc Walla Walla Valley Katherine Corkrum 2011

 Spring Valley Vineyards Katherine Cabernet Franc 2011

This Cabernet Franc label is named in honor of founder Uriah Corkrum’s wife Katherine, a native of Wales who immigrated to Walla Walla Territory in 1897.

Katherine Williams arrived in the Walla Walla Valley from Hay-On-Wye, Wales to visit her brother David, who was married to Uriah’s sister Rado Corkrum. Katherine and Uriah were married in 1897, and had four sons, including Frederick Corkrum.

This label is from grapes planted in 1995. It was first released in 2002. 

This vintage release is a blend of 90% Cabernet Franc, 5% Malbec, and 5% Petit Verdot.

It was awarded 90 points by Wine Spectator and 89 points by Wine Enthusiast. 

Winemaker Notes - The 2011 vintage is very floral with predominant notes of violet. Rounding out the nose are aromas of dry herbs and hints of orange peel, white pepper and currant. On the palate, fresh red berries, cassis and strawberry. This wine has plenty of texture and is rich mid-palate, but has a soft and creamy finish.  

At a decade, this was garnet colored with a very slight brownish tinge, medium bodied, spicy black currant, raspberry and black cherry fruits with notes of white pepper, tobacco, spice and herbs with a moderate soft finish. 

RM 89 points.

https://www.cellartracker.com/wine.asp?iWine=1659841

https://www.springvalleyvineyard.com/ 

Tribute to Dean Derby - Spring Valley Vineyard

Tribute to Dean Derby - Spring Valley Vineyard - Derby Cabernet Sauvignon

We were saddened to read the announcement from Spring Valley Vineyard of the passing of Dean Derby, patriarch owner proprietor of the family owned and operated SVV in Walla Walla, Washington.

According to their memo sent to wineclub members yesterday morning, "Spring Valley was built on the strong foundation of grit, authenticity, hard work, love for this land, and love for family. Papa Dean was the epitome of these values, and raised our family with the same strong foundation.' 

"Papa Dean passed away peacefully at home with family by his side Early morning on Friday, October 29. We will miss his larger than life smile (shaded by his cowboy hat), his storytelling, and so much more, but the memories we have of him will be shared forever.'

"Please raise a glass of Spring Valley with your family or friends, and cheers to my Papa Dean, a man who lived an amazing life and whose legacy will live forever!"

So, last night we opened a Derby Spring Valley Vineyards Cabernet Sauvignon, namesake wine named for Dean Derby, and toasted Dean and our fond memory of meeting him.

I've written in these pages, and sent out an email to our wineclub that, one of the highlights of our trip to Walla Walla was when we had the pleasure of meeting Dean Derby during our visit to the vineyards during our Walla Walla Wine Experience in 2019. 

We ran into Dean Derby patriarch, husband to Shari Corkrum Derby, ancestor and co-owners of the family business.

As I wrote in that earlier blogpost, we drove north from Walla Walla, out Middle Waitsburg Road, around the Walla Walla airport, to Corkrum Road, aptly named for the early ancestors 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, ancestor and co-owners of the family business. What a treat and honor to meet Mr. Derby and what a delightful visit we had.

We encountered him on the driveway to his farm. As he approached us, I yelled out that we came out to see the site, that we were big fans of his wine. “We admire your artwork,” I said upon encountering him on the country farm. “It’s not my work, it’s the Lords!”, he exclaimed! What a delightful man, he was.

 

Linda followed up and appended my email with a note: "What an incredibly welcoming man he was. We were heading north to Spokane for a later flight and decided to go cross country near to where Rick thought was the Spring Valley Farm. It was beautiful. We were encountered by a man and his dog in a John Deere 4X4 who then engaged with his humble story of the farm not disclosing who he was nor what he did. Rick asked directly if this was his farm…the rest is now his personal eternal history as a man of God." 

Dean Derby moved to Walla Walla where he met Shari in the 6th grade at Sharpstein Grade School. Shari and Dean graduated from Walla Walla High School and attended the University of Washington in Seattle. Shari Corkrum and Dean Derby were married in 1954 and had two children, DeAnn Derby and Devin Corkrum Derby.

Dean Derby was football captain for UW. He still holds the record for longest run from scrimmage for a touchdown at Husky Stadium (92 yards against Illinois).

Dean was drafted into the NFL as the 1st pick of the 4th round by the Los Angeles Rams, then traded to the Pittsburgh Steelers for the 1st league game in September 1957. He was named All Pro Defensive Cornerback and played 4+ years with the Steelers and 1+ years for the Minnesota Vikings.

Dean and Shari planted wine grapes on the ranch in Spring Valley in 1993. The first wine – URIAH, a Merlot-based red blend was released in 2001. 

The Spring Valley Vineyards from a distance down Corkrum Road. 

The Spring Valley Vineyards adjacent to the farmstead site

 The Spring Valley Vineyards adjacent to the farmstead site

Toast to Dean, indeed. I am sure he will be missed immensely by family, friends and many of us distant followers. May he rest in peace. 

Spring Valley Vineyards Wines Portfolio
labels named for Corkrum Family Members

The Derby's devotion to family was profoundly apparent in their naming each of their wines for a member of the family. I write about their branding and the portfolio of the wines in many of my blogposts in these pages. 

We acquired one of the horizontal vintage release collections that featured a bottle of each of the labels that feature a family member. We've also had fun gifting this collectable OWC - Original Wood Case boxed set to folks on special family oriented occasions. 

Thank you, Kate Derby Raymond for thinking of us and reaching out and sharing the sad news. 

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/

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/