2023 Echolands, Cabernet Franc, Walla Walla Valley, Washington State.
I had heard of Echolands, they are getting a lot of buzz, but I had not tried any of the wines, so it was exciting to go through a couple of their offerings with winemaker Brian Rudin and learn about this project, with the 2023 Cabernet Franc being my favorite of the set he brought out to the Slow Wine tour stop in San Francisco recently. This deeply hued, rich and aromatic Cab Franc shows off all the opulence and fruit density you’d expect from Walla Walla, but it also is nicely balanced and has some excellent old world charm too with touches of bell pepper and subtle earthiness to go with the core of blackberry, cherry, plum and black currant fruit, along with anise, cedar, violets and delicate vanilla scented oak accents. Not quite Loire, not quite Bordeaux, this full bodied wine takes its own path on the palate, with soft echos of both. Rudin says the fruit comes from mainly Blue Mountain Vineyard fruit, as well as Cab Franc from their own Taggart Vineyard. He adds that in this vintage 18% Merlot, also from Taggart Vineyard made the final blend, which explains the lush smooth tannins a bit. This wine saw 100% de-stemmed grapes and was fermented in a stainless steel tank to preserve freshness, details and aromatics, with a cool maceration period before going to barrel, maybe 20 % wood, for about 16 months or so to mature. The long cooler growing season of 2023 really shines through here and I suggest getting a few bottles, one at least to open now, which I suggest having with duck breast, and a one to age for 5 to 10 years.
Echolands Winery in Walla Walla, was brand new to me this year, a seems renowned for a selection of award-winning wines like this Cabernet Franc, which I really enjoyed along with their lighter framed Grenache. Interestingly, Echolands Winery was created in 2018 by Brad Bergman and Doug Frost, who is both a MS and a MW, both Kansas City residents who believe in the Walla Walla Valley AVA’s ability to offer a distinct style of wine, and one that would benefit from aging in the bottle. These things might seems obviously true, especially if you’ve been around a while and had some of the star wines from here in Washington State and Walla Walla in particular, but they seem to be going for a bit more restraint and allowing a touch of old world character to shine through, which is hugely welcome. They say that winemaker/general manager Brian Rudin has taken the helm to move towards regenerative organic viticulture and their goal is to craft responsibly produced wines that reflect the potential for elegance and balance from their vines in this special terroir. The Cabernet Franc here, came in at about 13.8% and still has plenty of potential for rewarding evolution, with some good acidity, which Rudin says comes from the foothills fruit and the cooler Blue Mountain site and I hope to revisit it again after a few more years in bottle. I am really looking for the following Echolands releases, all of which are fairly priced offerings, and to see where this small winery goes in the future. A big thank you to Brian for taking the time to explain his wines to me and for his enthusiasm, it really gave me some insight into his efforts.
($45 Est.) 93 Points, grapelive