From Saint Michelle Wine Estates and Columbia Crest comes a new brand, Intrinsic and new experiment to making red wine. Juan Muñoz Oca, head wine maker at Columbia Crest and the wine making team decided instead of removing the skins after 7 to 10 days, how would the wine taste if we left the skin together with the juice for 9 months? This gives birth to a new way of making wine! The 2017 Intrinsic Cabernet Sauvignon was sent as a #sample for us to try. We love trying new wines out of Washington State and this is definitely a new wine. First produced in 2014 and it really seems like they have perfected the process.
At first it really didn’t open up after 2 hours, but at 3 hours, it was ready. The wine has an inky black color with aromas of dark cherries, fruity but not too fruity. The taste was of soft raspberries with a hint of caramel and the tannins were soft for such a young wine. The finish reminded me of a Zinfandel with hints of spice. This is a wine that won’t break the bank, runs about $22 a bottle.
About myredwineguys
My red wine guys, Jim and Rich, have been drinking and comparing red wines together for the last 10 years. We drink reds exclusively (except for champagne during New Year’s Eve celebration's or special occasions). In our search to find the best red wine for the buck, we are constantly buying and drinking a variety of reds. Frequently, we see many of our favorite reds increase in price (making them impractical to buy and consume with the dismal economy). This motivates us to try and compare lesser known reds from a variety of wineries. We are constantly telling our friends where to buy and save on these great reds. One weekend over a bottle of red wine (of course), we decided to share our recommendations with the world via a blog (with the support of our wives who really think this is another way for us to drink more red wine). We are going to be making road trips up the coast and sharing our opinions on some great California Reds.
Jim is a retired Navy Senior Chief now working as a Navy Technical Rep. His world travels have given him the opportunity to taste wines on different continents. He finds himself often comparing them to his favorite region – Napa Valley’s Oakville/Rutherford districts that produce some of the world’s best Cabernet Sauvignon's.
Richard is a musician who grew up in Santa Maria with a family rich with red wine tradition. According to the family legends, his grandfather used to make wine out of grapefruit when grapes were not available. He grew up drinking and making wine with his father and other Italian families in the central coast, long before there were grape vines in the area. In fact, the reason his family located to California was to make wine!
Thank you for visiting our site! We hope you enjoy a glass of exceptional red wine soon!
