Powers Cabernet Sauvignon Reserve Champoux Vineyard 2019

Black Currant Preserves, Damson Plum, Maduro Cigar Wrapper, Cassia Buds

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"Over many different selections from the Columbia River Valley, I have discussed the effect of the Missoula floods, but rarely have I addressed the source of the bedrock of the area, which was formed by volcanic activity. The origin of this bedrock began 17 million years ago during the Miocene period when the area covering Montana, Wyoming, Idaho, Washington and eastern Oregon was dotted with active volcanos. Over millions of years, these volcanos spewed lava and volcanic ash, blanketing the region several hundred feet deep. In the period following this time, the land was relatively flat, and rain, creeks and rivers slowly eroded the hard rock, creating what is commonly called loam. This is a blend of sand, silt and organic material that is quite fertile and perfect for growing almost any crop.

When discussing great Washington state wines, it is almost impossible not to mention the legendary Champoux vineyard, which is pronounced like “shampoo.” This site is, in part, the origin of the great wines from Quilceda Creek, Andrew Will, Woodward Canyon and our friends from Powers Vineyards. This site, in what is now the Horse Heaven Hills AVA, was originally planted in 1972 by Don Mercer. The initial seven acres were part of his sprawling 6,600 acres of field crops, planted in the areas with deep loam soils. Coincidentally, the determining factor for the location of the original vines was that they were out of range of an overhead sprinkler system. Mercer’s original vision was to produce a wine similar to Chateau Lafite-Rothschild, although the soil makeup and climate share little in common. Nonetheless, the quality of the grapes inspired him to continue planting vines, growing to more than 130 acres by the time he established Mercer Vineyards in the early 1980s. At that time, he hired Paul Champoux to manage the vineyard.

Originally a hop farmer, Champoux switched to grape vines and managed the first 2,300 acres of vines for Columbia Crest. In 1989, Mercer closed his winery, so Paul and his wife, Judy, began leasing the vineyard and selling the fruit to many of the elite names previously mentioned. By 1992, they formed a partnership with these wineries and purchased the vineyard outright. In 2014, Paul retired, suffering from West Nile Virus, and the vineyard is currently managed by Dan Nickolaus.

Champoux quickly recognized the potential for this site and instituted the radical idea to farm the vineyard organically. To this day, there has never been a man-made herbicide, fungicide, or fertilizer used on the vines. One of the great advantages of this particular site is that the proximity to the Columbia River means there is a constant breeze blowing across the vines. This lowers the humidity and temperature of this site, meaning the grapes ripen slower with less impact from pests or disease.

For the Powers Reserve bottling, they use exclusively Cabernet Sauvignon, which is hand-harvested and destemmed before going into the fermentor. They then employ a pump-over technique to gently extract color and tannins. Once dry, the wine is racked to small, French oak barrels, where it undergoes malolactic fermentation. Once that is complete the wine is then moved to a combination of 65% new French barrels, the balance being second and third pass. The wine is then aged for 30 months before bottling. There were 998 total cases made." - Tim Varan