2021 Cedar + Salmon Cabernet Sauvignon, Horse Heaven Hills
92 Points, Tasting Panel Magazine
Tasting Notes
Cedar + Salmon Celebrates the artistic spirit of the Pacific Northwest. Sourced from family vineyards nestled under the canopy of ancient forests, our wines are lush and mysterious, brimming with flavorful harmony. Gracing our labels are woodcut prints of cedar and ash trees that evoke the sylvan beauty of the region and the ancient march of time.
Sourced from high, rolling hills, this vintage was born out of a heat wave, cooling just in time for harvest. Aged in 15% new French and 15% new American oak, this Cabernet Sauvignon (with 8% Malbec and 7% Merlot) shows concentrated power. With tobacco-washed blackberry, espresso, and Italian herbs, it is well built, with sturdy tannins. Dark chocolate and bacon fat enter midway with a toasted cedar finish.
Winemaker Notes
A cool spring followed by a record-shattering heat event in late June led to a small but strong 2021 vintage. Cooler temperatures in September and October allowed for grapes to hang longer on the vine. Flavor maturity was achieved before sugar ripeness, elevating the wine’s natural acidity. After the grapes were harvested, sorted, and fermented, the wine was then aged in 15% new French and 15% new American oak until bottling.
Food Pairings
This full-bodied Cabernet Sauvignon is a perfect pairing for soft truffle brie, a savory mushroom tart, moussaka, rosemary braised lamb shanks, or a slow-cooker beef stew.
Diverse and distinct, yet rooted in tradition
As a family-owned company, 3 Badge Enology is committed to sourcing select wines from various winegrowing regions throughout the world. With a diverse and distinct lineup of wines, our portfolio aims to please a variety of wine drinkers. Our wines are unique, yet approachable, and rooted in a rich tradition.
Available States
AZ, CA, CO, CT, DC, FL, GA, ID, IL, IN, IA, KS, KY, LA, ME, MD, MA, MI, MN, MO, MT, NE, NV, NH, NJ, NM, NY, NC, ND, OH, OK, OR, PA, RI, SC, SD, TN, TX, VT, VA, WA, WV, WI, WY
2021 Cedar + Salmon Cabernet Sauvignon
6 bottles for $69.99 $11.67/bottle + $1.33/bottle shipping
Case of 12 for $114.99 $9.58/bottle + $1/bottle shipping
How much more are you saving by buying a full case?
(Note: tax and shipping are not included in savings calculations.)
Cedar + Salmon Cabernet Sauvignon - $25 = 17.85%
The anticipation began building last week when we got the news that we were being called up for Lab Rat Duty. The wine arrived Thursday evening and we had until tonight to post the review, so we had a full two days to let the wine rest before opening it. Upon arrival I checked the wine bottle’s temperature and confirmed that it wasn’t noticeably warm. We’ve been enjoying mercifully cooler weather here in Georgia and despite this wine spending a full day on a warm delivery truck, it was slightly cool to the touch. Still I placed it in our wine fridge at 60 degrees with the intent to let it nap for 48 hours.
Saturday afternoon we opened the bottle before friends arrived for a dinner we were hosting. The initial Pop and Pour immediately revealed that the wine had a deep garnet color as shown in the photos below. Not super long legs, but there was some on the glass. Nose wasn’t terribly strong but again the wine was still cool at this point. It had a lot of dark fruit but there was also a smell that I could best describe as eucalyptus. Upon tasting, we both agreed that there was good concentration and some structure to the wine but the strange eucalyptus flavor also came through in the first sip. As the wine was a little cool at this point, I wanted to give it some more time to air out and warm up.
30 minutes later the wine had warmed a bit and the bouquet had strengthened with much more fruit coming through. This time we agreed we were getting some vanilla but it was very light. My guess would be the juice had seen some American oak but maybe not first use barrels. The wine was balanced with a decently long finish.
We again tasted two hours later, but in the interim I had sabotaged my pallet with a Negroni and a half glass of a different Washington wine. The wine was noticeably more fragrant now but the wine seemed to drink a little lighter. The original dark fruit notes still came through, but the wine didn’t seem to have as much body or heft. I then placed a vacuum seal on the wine and placed it back in the fridge.
Tonight we finished the last third of the bottle. The dark fruit and berry was still there, but not as pronounced. At this point the wine seemed to have really lost some of its weight and just did not have us much complexity or grip. It was fine and the strange eucalytus flavor seemed to have toned down, but I can’t say it was completely gone.
Net, this is a good wine and I would guess that it will be in the $15-$18 range. There is nothing fancy (or costly) about the standard bottle, but the juice is pretty good and sourcing it all from HHH isn’t going to be inexpensive. There is nothing extraordinary about the wine, but if you like Washington cabernet you won’t go too wrong here - especially if the case price is on the lower end of that spectrum. For serving, I would not suggest that this bottle needs more than an hour to air out but your temperature will play a role in that. We enjoyed it with grilled chicken tacos in fresh tortillas and it was a good math.
2021 Cedar + Salmon Cabernet Sauvignon, Horse Heaven Hills
92 Points, Tasting Panel Magazine
Tasting Notes
Winemaker Notes
Food Pairings
Specs
What’s Included
6-bottles:
Case:
Price Comparison
$299.88/Case for 12x 2021 Cedar + Salmon Cabernet Sauvignon, Horse Heaven Hills at Gehricke Wines
About The Winery
Available States
AZ, CA, CO, CT, DC, FL, GA, ID, IL, IN, IA, KS, KY, LA, ME, MD, MA, MI, MN, MO, MT, NE, NV, NH, NJ, NM, NY, NC, ND, OH, OK, OR, PA, RI, SC, SD, TN, TX, VT, VA, WA, WV, WI, WY
Estimated Delivery
Monday, Sep 15 - Tuesday, Sep 16
2021 Cedar + Salmon Cabernet Sauvignon
6 bottles for $69.99 $11.67/bottle + $1.33/bottle shipping
Case of 12 for $114.99 $9.58/bottle + $1/bottle shipping
How much more are you saving by buying a full case?
(Note: tax and shipping are not included in savings calculations.)
Cedar + Salmon Cabernet Sauvignon - $25 = 17.85%
The anticipation began building last week when we got the news that we were being called up for Lab Rat Duty. The wine arrived Thursday evening and we had until tonight to post the review, so we had a full two days to let the wine rest before opening it. Upon arrival I checked the wine bottle’s temperature and confirmed that it wasn’t noticeably warm. We’ve been enjoying mercifully cooler weather here in Georgia and despite this wine spending a full day on a warm delivery truck, it was slightly cool to the touch. Still I placed it in our wine fridge at 60 degrees with the intent to let it nap for 48 hours.
Saturday afternoon we opened the bottle before friends arrived for a dinner we were hosting. The initial Pop and Pour immediately revealed that the wine had a deep garnet color as shown in the photos below. Not super long legs, but there was some on the glass. Nose wasn’t terribly strong but again the wine was still cool at this point. It had a lot of dark fruit but there was also a smell that I could best describe as eucalyptus. Upon tasting, we both agreed that there was good concentration and some structure to the wine but the strange eucalyptus flavor also came through in the first sip. As the wine was a little cool at this point, I wanted to give it some more time to air out and warm up.
30 minutes later the wine had warmed a bit and the bouquet had strengthened with much more fruit coming through. This time we agreed we were getting some vanilla but it was very light. My guess would be the juice had seen some American oak but maybe not first use barrels. The wine was balanced with a decently long finish.
We again tasted two hours later, but in the interim I had sabotaged my pallet with a Negroni and a half glass of a different Washington wine. The wine was noticeably more fragrant now but the wine seemed to drink a little lighter. The original dark fruit notes still came through, but the wine didn’t seem to have as much body or heft. I then placed a vacuum seal on the wine and placed it back in the fridge.
Tonight we finished the last third of the bottle. The dark fruit and berry was still there, but not as pronounced. At this point the wine seemed to have really lost some of its weight and just did not have us much complexity or grip. It was fine and the strange eucalytus flavor seemed to have toned down, but I can’t say it was completely gone.
Net, this is a good wine and I would guess that it will be in the $15-$18 range. There is nothing fancy (or costly) about the standard bottle, but the juice is pretty good and sourcing it all from HHH isn’t going to be inexpensive. There is nothing extraordinary about the wine, but if you like Washington cabernet you won’t go too wrong here - especially if the case price is on the lower end of that spectrum. For serving, I would not suggest that this bottle needs more than an hour to air out but your temperature will play a role in that. We enjoyed it with grilled chicken tacos in fresh tortillas and it was a good math.