2021 Cabernet Sauvignon Tchelistcheff Mach One Vineyard Clone 412
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Tasting notes
From the Mach One Vineyard in the Horse Heaven Hills and all Clone 412, raised in new oak, the 2021 Cabernet Sauvignon Tchelistcheff is deep ruby/purple-hued and boasts an incredible nose of spiced black cherries, smoked tobacco, spicy oak, and graphite, with some loamy earth and obvious background minerality. It's rich, full-bodied, has beautifully integrated oak, velvety tannins, and a focused, pure mouthfeel that will benefit from 4-5 years of bottle age and evolve gracefully over the following two decades. While Quilceda Creek has had some substantial changes in their winemaking team over the past few years, with both Alex Steward and Hal Overson departing to work at Matthews, it certainly hasn’t affected the quality, and 2021 is going to go down as one of the all-time great vintages for this estate.
Critic scores
Average Score
James Suckling
Jeb Dunnuck
More reviews and scores
Considerably bolder than the Palengat bottling from the same vineyard, Mach One, the 2021 Cabernet Sauvignon Tchelistcheff Clone 412 showcases the classic house style of Quilceda Creek but, more interestingly, displays the dramatic diversity in mouthfeel, structure and complexity that each of the different Cabernet clones can offer. With a hedonistic backbone of juicy fruit, the Tchelistcheff overflows with oak tones, dusty purple flowers and generous layers of black and blue fruit tones. Full-bodied, fresh, firm, layered and complex, it has fine-grained tannins that have plenty of staying power and will remain food-friendly for over two decades. This fantastic wine will be released in April 2024. 2,616 bottles produced.
This distinctive wine from the Mach One Vineyard comes only from clone 412 grapes. A savory, woodsy, tobacco-like aroma leads to luxurious, concentrated and layered black cherries, black olives and graphite on generous, firm tannins that shape it and will help it age for a long time. The wine is memorable, opulent but balanced. Best from 2028.
Moody and youthfully backward, the 2021 Cabernet Sauvignon Tchelistcheff Clone 412 grumbles up with a blend of crushed stones and dusty sage, slowly giving way to orange zest-tinged blackberries and suggestions of smoked meats. This is surprisingly juicy yet also savory in style, with a mineral tinge that emerges quickly, complicating its depths of black fruit as exotic spices swirl throughout. It finishes incredibly long and complex, hinting at cinnamon and clove, with a cocoa tinge. Residual acids maintain a lovely freshness despite the hulking tannins that saturate. The Tchelistcheff is on full display, but this is a beast in need of taming. (EG)
About the producer
Founded in 1978, Quilceda Creek helped put Washington Cabernet on the world stage. Mentored by André Tchelistcheff, the family-owned winery became renowned for its powerful, age-worthy Cabernets and was the first U.S. winery outside California to earn 100 points from Wine Advocate.