Grenache Fiddleneck Vineyard

First Production: 2018

Professional reviews and tasting notes from prior vintages added as published. Scores within parentheses indicate barrel samples:

2018 Horsepower Vineyards Grenache Fiddleneck Vineyard

100 Points

… This is the first edition of this wine and any lover of world-class Grenache will be very glad that this wine has been made... this wine shows quite differently than Grenache from Sur Echalas Vineyard — but is every bit as good. A rich core of red and dark fruits mingle with tobacco leaf, Umami, beef fat and green peppercorns on this evocative nose... Bright Yakima cherry tones mingle with Satsuma orange rind, seaweed, red raspberry cordial, red rose water, and smoldering rocks on the palate… While showing a good degree of richness, this is highly elegant Grenache that is best enjoyed over the next eight years. But why wait? —Owen Bargreen, owenbargreen.com

94 Points

A new vineyard release, the 2018 Grenache Fiddleneck Vineyard is cut from the same cloth yet offers a touch more fruit, with lots of wild strawberries and blueberries interwoven with violets, chalky minerality, and peppery herbs. Medium to full-bodied, with good concentration, firm yet ripe tannins, and a great finish, it's another Grenache that demands bottle age. Do your best to hide bottles for 3-4 years and enjoy over the following 10-12. —Jeb Dunnuck, jebdunnuck.com

94 Points

Expressive and appealingly gamy, with multilayered raspberry, smoked meat and crushed stone accents that build tension toward refined tannins. Drink now through 2030. —Tim Fish, Wine Spectator

93+ Points

New this year, the 2018 Grenache Fiddleneck Vineyard has a ruby core and slight garnet rim, expressing aromas of dusty rose petals, cherry blossom and elements of plum compote, dried orange zest, iodine and a soft stemmy essence. Medium to full-bodied, the wine displays a fresh, bright expression, firm mineral essence and spiced, red-fruited nature that sways with dusty red flowers and an undercurrent of red peppercorn. The wine ends a delightfully lingering finish with a subtly spiced petrichor note that brings me back for another sip. –Anthony Mueller, The Wine Advocate

93 Points

This is the inaugural release from this vineyard, which like many sites in this area was formerly an apple orchard, with this one abandoned in the early 1990s with fiddle-neck flowers sprouting up. Coming from fourth leaf fruit, it brings the good, old-fashioned funk that made this region of the valley famous. Behind that are aromas of blood orange, flower, soot, wet stone, fresh tobacco and pomegranate. The palate is fuller in style, chock-full of orange and savory flavors. Savory notes persist on an intense finish that will not quit. —Sean Sullivan, Wine Enthusiast