When I told a friend I was going to taste this for a possible wine of the week, she said, "Good luck. I've had it more than a few times, and I don't remember it fondly at all."
Which is understandable. Columbia-Crest makes the kind of wine that gets sold in national chain restaurants, where the staff's lack of wine knowledge is matched only by the managment's lack of concern about the staff's lack of knowledge. So if a bottle sits open for a couple of days and oxidizes, no one cares that the wine they serve to the customer is more or less undrinkable. It's also a grocery store wine that gets sold to grocery stores that don't sell a lot of wine, so if it sits in a hot warehouse and turns to vinegar, no one is any the wiser.
Which is why I wanted to try it. Just because a wine is sold in a chain restaurant or grocery store is no reason for the Wine Curmudgeon to write it off without tasting it. And, in fact, the cabernet ($10, purchased) is -- if not a great wine -- certainly better than my friend remembered. In this, it's a not only a value, but a big, hearty wine for those who like that sort of thing.
The cabernet has Washington state terroir, oddly enough, which you don't find in most mass-produced wines (and Columbia-Crest is owned by the same company that owns the even more massively-produced Chateau Ste. Michelle). That means it's got that dark, fruity, earthy cabernet flavor, as well as the tannins, that typify Washington state. California winemakers, on the other hand, go for a more rich and juicy approach.
The wine is a bit overwhelming at first, but let it sit for a few minutes -- something else you don't have to do with most grocery store wines -- and it opens up sufficiently. It's definitely a food wine: red meat certainly, and I drank it with Friday night take-out pizza, and that almost wasn't enough for it.
This is always a wine that I look for if my only option for a bottle of wine is a grocery store, the Merlot is good, the chard is just ok, vintage seems to matter.
Posted by: bburnsey | February 15, 2012 at 01:27 PM
Couldn't agree more that these grocery store wines can be quite good and a great bargain at $8 a bottle here in the DC area. And as noted here (http://t.co/mp0kbQEU), they seem be be consistently good from year to year, as the Curmudgeon's praise of the 09 vintage supports.
Posted by: DCBudgetWineGuy | February 15, 2012 at 01:53 PM
Great review and characterization of Washington's style. I agree with BBurnsey's assessment on vintage variability and I've found myself reaching again and again for the 07 Merlot and Syrah. At $10, they really overdeliver. Okay, so they're part of a huge winorporation, but it's still people working hard in the vineyard and cellar making it all happen. Thank goodness for them.
Posted by: Steve McIntosh | February 15, 2012 at 01:55 PM
Oops! Sorry about that bum link. http://shar.es/fNVHG
Posted by: DCBudgetWineGuy | February 15, 2012 at 02:03 PM
Indeed. These quality grocery store wines are a Godsend, when you have to run into an unfamiliar wine shop -- or Safeway, more aptly -- for a bottle that you forgot to bring to a picnic or some other impromptu occassion for popping a cork. Bogle is another mass-market brand that is consistently pleasing and inexpensive, like Cousino-Macul from Chile and Cave du Lugny for French chardonnay. It's great to explore, but it's also nice to have some consistently good and ubiquitous labels.
Posted by: DCBudgetWineGuy | February 15, 2012 at 02:12 PM
I keep going back to Columbia Crest because their wines are consistent and offer excellent value. I like the fact that they are widely available. Jeff - please keep your "grocery store" mindset on this line and DO NOT include it in your Hall of Fame. If it gets too much attention CC will raise the price! And if you get the chance, try their Amitage(a red blend) - my mistake was not buying enough of the '08.
Posted by: JDub | February 15, 2012 at 05:21 PM
Wow. Six comments on a wine of the week. Thank you very much.
JDub, I have grocery store wines in the Hall of Fame -- Bogle, for instance.
DCBudgetWine Guy is exactly correct (and Cousino and Ludgy) are other fine choices). Sometimes, one needs to shop where the selection is limited.
Posted by: Jeff Siegel | February 16, 2012 at 05:11 AM
A local "dented can" grocery store has been selling the 08 Amitage for $8.99 a bottle, I find that a nice bargain. Hope no one figures out that it is a great deal.
Posted by: bburnsey | February 17, 2012 at 06:09 PM